The Elle Word
by glenlivet19
Summary: HouseOC. House meets the beautiful new pharmacist at PPTH. It turns out she is as complicated as he is. Can they be friends? Or can romance finally happen again for House?
1. Chapter 1

The Elle Word, Chapter 1 

_**House**_

Monday. She was walking down the hall with Cuddy. I couldn't help but notice her. It was the hair. It was long and wavy, a nice shade of brown with natural blonde highlights. It hung in shimmering waves down to her butt. I couldn't get a good look at her butt; the lab coat covered it up. I didn't remember seeing her around the hospital before. I know I would have remembered that hair. I wanted to run my fingers through it. They stopped in front of the elevator and I quickly limped over.

Staring directly at Cuddy's chest, I said: "Good morning, Cuddy. The girls are looking spectacular today." I glanced at the stranger and saw a glint of humor in a pair of big blue eyes. "And who's this, your new assistant?"

I stage-whispered to her: "They never last. Start looking for another job now."

Cuddy's face tensed up: "House." That tone could drop a man at forty paces.

I looked innocently at her and waited her out.

She sighed: "Arielle Kaplan, this is Dr. Gregory House. Try to stay out of his way or he'll hurt you with his cane or his tongue. I'm not sure which is worse." Arielle's mouth twitched a little; she seemed to recognize my name. Well, I do have a reputation around Princeton.

I shocked Cuddy by sticking out my hand to shake Arielle's. It was worth it to see Cuddy's mouth drop. Arielle took my proffered hand and we shook. Her hand was tiny; it was completely engulfed by mine. She looked me straight in the eyes and said: "Nice to meet you, Dr House." I didn't want to let go of her hand. It was warm and felt really nice against mine. I looked into those big blue eyes and was reminded of a calm cool lake. A person could drown in those eyes.

I dropped her hand and quickly returned to my usual snarky self: "My tongue doesn't hurt if you let me use it the right way. I could demonstrate for the both of you later on in my office if you'd like." I let the left side of my mouth curl up.

"Oh, Gawd, House. Don't you have anything to do? A patient, clinic duty, something?" The elevator finally arrived and we all got in. I decided to ride with them to see where they were going. I stood behind them and they spoke as if I wasn't there.

"Arielle, I'm sorry you had to be subjected to Dr House in your first hour on the job here."

"That's OK. I'm familiar with Dr House's reputation. After all the crap that Thornton put me through, a few sexual innuendos aren't going to phase me."

The elevator stopped at the 4th floor and they got off. Arielle turned and smiled at me as they walked away. She had a lovely smile. I punched the button for 2 and rode back down to my office.

The fourth floor housed the lab and the main pharmacy. So they were heading to one of those places. I ran the name Thornton through my brain. It was somewhat familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. The elevator stopped on my floor and I hobbled down the hall to Wilson's office.

The door was unlocked so I barged in as usual. Fortunately for me there was no patient. Wilson was working on his paperwork. I plopped down on his couch. He glanced up with a questioningly look. I tapped my cane on the floor a few times. He waited me out.

I broke first: "So who is the good-looking woman with Cuddy this morning? They got off at the 4th floor. Big blue eyes, long brown hair, good handshake."

"You actually shook someone's hand?" Wilson stared at me in disbelief.

"Yeah, get past that. Who is she?"

"Well, did you get a name when you were shaking her hand or were you too busy staring at her funbags?"

"She had on a lab coat, didn't get a good enough look. Her name is Arielle Kaplan."

Wilson smiled in recognition. "Ah, she's the new pharmacist. She's coming over from Princeton Memorial Medical Center."

I frowned: "Why is she leaving there? That's a fancy for-profit hospital and I know for a fact their employees make more money than ours."

He chuckled: "Well that's a story that I'm surprised you don't know."

I waited for a minute, then said: "Well, are you going to tell me? The name Thornton came up. Who is he and what happened?"

He laughed this time: "You are really curious about this. It's a new puzzle for you. Well you can buy me lunch and I'll tell you. Or you can find out on your own."

I got to my feet: "Well, I can just google it and find out."  
"You go right ahead. But then you'll come back to me for all the juicy details that you can't find on the Internet."

His laughter followed me as I walked out of his office.

_**Arielle's turn**_

I walked down the hall towards the main pharmacy with Dr Cuddy.

"So that's the famous Dr House, huh?" I asked her.

She replied: "Yes, that's him. Try to stay out of his way. We lose more employees because of him. He makes nurses and lab techs cry. Patients complain about him endlessly. I have more lawsuits because of him than any other entire department."

"And you keep him on because he's brilliant and solves cases no one else can."  
Cuddy smiled: "Yes, that's it in a nutshell. Just be forewarned; now that he has met you, he may seek you out to bother you for a while until he gets tired of playing with his 'new toy'."

Suddenly I felt nervous: "Why would he bother me? And what would be do?"

She explained: "He may want to annoy you because you're new. He'll want to see if he can get to you." She looked at me and noticed something in my face. She stopped quickly and turned to face me.

"He won't hurt you physically. I don't mean anything like that. He likes to engage in verbal combat. If he does, give it right back to him. Don't treat him with the respect you might give any other doctor. If he steps on your toes, feel free to kick him in the nuts. He can only complain to me about it, and I'll just laugh at him. When he snipes at you, just snipe right back."

I felt a little bit of relief. He didn't seem like the type that might get physical, but you never know. I don't like to take chances after all that happened at Princeton Memorial. Verbal sniping I could handle or so I thought.

We walked into the main pharmacy and headed right to the director's office. I hadn't talked to the director since my interview, so I was a little nervous. But Tom Kirby seems friendly enough. I was replacing their previous oncology pharmacist who had moved to Tucson. I am board certified in both oncology and pain management, so Kirby is quite happy that I'm coming to work here. I hoped that the rest of the staff felt the same way.

Cuddy left me with Kirby and told me if I needed anything to let her know. I thanked her, and then Kirby and I got down to brass tacks. I would be working out of the oncology satellite located on the 6th floor. The 6th floor pharmacy satellite took care of the adult cancer patients and the 5th floor satellite took care of the pediatric patients. I would be responsible for double-checking all the chemo protocols, appropriate dosing and supervising the technicians who actually prepare the chemo bags. I would be working with one other pharmacist, Susan Chen, who is board certified in oncology, but not in pain management. We also had two technicians working in the satellite with us. I had not met them yet. Before we headed up to the 6th floor, we talked in his office for a few minutes. He let me know that he admired what I had done at Princeton Memorial, that it had taken a lot of guts to do what I had done. He knew it was tough to be a whistle-blower and he hoped that no one here would give me a hard time about it. If I had any problems, I should let him or Dr Cuddy know immediately. It had been all over the papers, so I knew there was no way to keep it a secret. I just hoped that no one would harass me about it. I just wanted to be able to hold out here for 6 months. I thanked him for his concern and promised to let him know if I had any problems.

We headed up to the 6th floor so I could meet everyone. Susan Chen was a slender Asian with long black hair. She seemed really nice, as did the two technicians: Miriam Garcia and Bonnie Thompson. Then Tom wanted to introduce me to the physicians that headed the oncology and the pain management departments. I explained that I already knew Chris Guskiewicz from Princeton Memorial. Chris & I worked together for 4 years until he left 2 years ago to come to PPTH. He had told me that he was tired of the cutbacks at PMMC that were made simply to increase profits for the corporation. When PPTH's former head of pain management retired, he applied for the position and got it. I had run into Chris once or twice around town and he told me that he was much happier at PPTH. Chris' office was right here on the 6th floor so we stopped by to say hello. He had heard I was coming and he was quite happy to see me. We chatted for a few minutes and he said he wanted to have lunch with me later in the week so we could catch up. I agreed, saying I would call him later for a definite day.

Kirby wanted to introduce me to the head of the oncology department so we headed to the elevator and rode down to the 2nd floor. As we walked down the hall from the elevator, I noticed an office with the words: "Gregory House, M.D., Dept of Diagnostic Medicine". I could see the man himself sitting at his desk, busy on the computer. I averted my gaze and hurried on. Next to his office was a glass-walled conference room. I noticed 3 people inside sitting around the table. On the other side of the conference room was a door bearing a sign: "James Wilson, M.D., Dept of Oncology."

I thought: "Oh, great. I'll have to pass by Dr House's office anytime I need to see Dr Wilson." This didn't sit with me well, but I figured I would be able to avoid Dr House or at least ignore him as much as possible.

Tom knocked on Dr Wilson's door and waited until we heard his response before we entered. Tom pushed the door open and motioned me in front of him. I entered the room and met the eyes of the man sitting at the desk. He rose to greet me as we entered. He had a boyish look about him and beautiful brown eyes. He smiled and extended his hand to me: "Hi, I'm James Wilson. Nice to meet you."

I smiled back and shook his hand: "Arielle Kaplan. Very nice to meet you."

He motioned for us to sit. Tom and I sat down on the couch. Dr Wilson sat back down at his desk. "I'm really happy that you are going to be working with us. Your credentials are outstanding and Chris Guskiewicz can't say enough great things about you. He tells me you are terrific working with the patients on their drug regimens."

I could feel myself blush and stammered that it was very nice of Dr Guskiewicz to say all that.

Wilson went on: "He wouldn't say it if it wasn't true. He admires your compassion for the patients and your skills. If you don't mind my saying so, I'm very impressed with your ethics after all that happened at PMMC."

I interrupted him at that point: "Dr Wilson, if you don't mind, I'd like to downplay that as much as possible. I'm sure people know about it, but I don't really want to talk about it. It was a really tough time for me and I don't want to be constantly rehashing it. I just want to move forward with my new job. I hope you understand."

He nodded thoughtfully: "Of course."

There was an awkward silence for a moment. I broke it by asking Dr Wilson about his patient load. He responded quickly with statistics of how many patients were seen weekly, and what types of cancers they had.

I asked him what he expected from me. Some oncologists like to merely diagnose the patient and let the pharmacist completely decide the drug regimen to use. Others prefer to make the decision about drug therapy themselves and have the pharmacist calculate the correct dosage based on the patient's age, weight, renal function and other parameters. Some doctors decide on a case-by-case basis how involved the pharmacist should be with a particular patient. Dr Wilson explained that he preferred to decide on the particular drug regiment himself and have the pharmacist work out the calculations and adjust the dosages according to the patient's condition. That was fine with me.

Dr Wilson was very happy that I had dual certification in oncology and pain management. Pain management is extremely important with cancer patients. If they are in pain, they do not have the strength to fight their illness and get through the chemo and radiation treatments. Proper pain management is very time-consuming, and Dr Wilson was looking forward to my help with this issue. He wanted me to speak with the pain patients, work up a plan for pain management and run it by him so that if the plan was agreeable to him, he could just write the prescriptions. It would save Dr Wilson a lot of time so that he could focus more on the oncology treatment side. Dr Guskiewicz saw many of the oncology patients, but he also saw non-cancer pain patients. The number of patients he saw was staggering and growing all the time. If I could help the oncologists with the cancer pain patients, it would help alleviate Dr Guskiewicz's patient load. Glancing at Tom, Dr Wilson mentioned his hope that one day the pain management pharmacist would be a full-time position and not just a sideline of the oncology pharmacist. I could see Tom nodding thoughtfully.

This excited me. I enjoyed doing pain management and would love to do it full-time. I'm sure my face showed my excitement as Dr Wilson gave me a big smile as he explained that the hospital was converting a former janitor's closet into a small office for me. It was small, he emphasized, but it was my own office for seeing the pain patients. Tom was allowing me 2 afternoons a week to see patients and we would talk about expanding those hours as the need grew.

I was overwhelmed. My own office! Tom had not mentioned this to me. I looked at Tom for confirmation and he said that they had wanted it to be a surprise.

I grinned: "Wow, this is such a surprise. I'm really excited about this. Thank you for giving me this opportunity."

We chatted some more about my duties and then Tom and I departed from Dr Wilson's office.

We walked back to the elevator, which meant we had to pass Dr House's office again. I didn't look directly at his office, but, with my peripheral vision, I could see him stare at us as we walked by.

The rest of my first day went by quickly. I was shown my little office. It was big enough for a bookcase, desk and 2 chairs for patients. It was being painted and carpeted today and would be ready for me later in the week. They even let me pick the paint color. I selected a nice soft pastel blue that would be relaxing for the patients and navy carpet to complement the walls. I could bring in my own pictures for the walls or they had a selection that I could choose from. I decided to bring my own after I got settled in. After lunch, I spent the afternoon learning the computer system. Every hospital seems to have a different system so I knew it would take me a couple of days to get it under my belt. I got a good start today, but would need a few more days to complete my training.

The day went well and I felt good. I left PPTH with a spring in my step and headed back to the motel where I had been living for the last 3 months. This Saturday, I was finally moving into my new apartment and I couldn't wait. I was so sick of living in the motel. It had no kitchen and I was tired of eating out for every meal. I was looking forward to cooking again.

The landlord had primed the walls, but hadn't painted yet. He had hurt his back and was unable to finish. He agreed to knock off one month's rent if I would paint the walls myself. I jumped at that opportunity. I was happy to save a month's rent and he was paying for the paint anyway. He told me I could pick my own colors as long as they were 'reasonable'. I choose a sunny yellow for the kitchen, a light blue for the bedroom and off-white for the living room.

Once at the motel, I changed into some sloppy clothes and stuffed my hair up under a baseball cap. Then I headed out to my storage unit. I grabbed a few boxes marked "kitchen" and loaded them into my old Honda Accord wagon. The ladder and paint supplies were already in the back. I thought that every night I would take a few kitchen boxes with me and unpack them. That way, the kitchen would be set up by Saturday. I planned on painting the living room first, then the kitchen and the bedroom last. I didn't think I could finish the whole apartment this week painting just a few hours a night. So if I finished the living room, I could just unload all the furniture in there and sleep on the futon until I finished the bedroom. I had to order a new bed anyway and it wasn't going to be delivered for a couple more weeks. So I would be sleeping on the futon until then anyway. I was satisfied with my plan. I pulled up in front of the building and was happy to find a spot right in front. I carried in the kitchen boxes and set up my boom box. I pulled out a bottle of scotch and some paper cups. I planned on toasting my apartment later tonight after I got some work done. Then I walked back out to get the ladder and the paint supplies. As I was heading back to the door balancing the ladder on my shoulder and the paint in my hands, I saw 2 men entering the building. I called to them: "Hey, could you hold the door for me, please?"

_**House **_

I spent the morning on the Internet, googling 'Arielle Kaplan', 'Thornton' and 'Princeton Memorial Medical Center'. The story came back to me as I read. It had been in all the papers as the news broke about 8 months ago. Henry Thornton was the director of pharmacy at PMMC and Arielle had been one of his staff pharmacists. Arielle had discovered that Thornton was diverting drugs to pocket the profit and substituting counterfeit products. His drug of choice was Epogen. There was a lot of money to be made on the black market with Epogen, especially with athletes. Cancer patients often end up with low blood counts because of their disease. They are given Epogen to boost their blood counts so that they can continue to receive chemo in order to get well. Arielle had noticed that the cancer patients' blood counts were not rising after receiving their Epogen shots. So they couldn't get their chemo and some patients died as a result. Then she noticed that while Thornton was on a month long vacation, the Epogen seemed to be working again. Patients' blood counts were rising. Then he returned from vacation and within 2 weeks, it seemed as if the Epogen had stopped working again. Arielle was suspicious, so she smuggled out a vial of Epogen and had it tested at her own expense. The Epogen was fake. She called the FDA to report her findings. They started a quiet investigation and all trails led to Thornton. After a while, her name came out as the whistle-blower. Strange as it seems, she started having problems at work. You would think people would be happy to see this madness stopped, but I guess most people hate a narc, not matter what she is squealing about.

I found another article where Thornton was also charged with witness intimidation. It seems he hired a man to intimidate Arielle so that she would not testify. That article didn't go into a lot of detail; it said she had been physically assaulted and her dog was killed. The man had been charged with deadly assault and put in prison for the maximum sentence. Then he gave up Thornton as the man who hired him and they reduced his sentence by half.

I glanced up as someone walked past my office. It was Arielle and Tom Kirby and they were heading towards the elevator. Kirby must have taken Arielle to meet Wilson. She would be working directly with him so that made sense. I followed their progress with my eyes, but she didn't glance my way. I continued my google search and found another interesting article. Arielle had filed a civil suit against PMMC for harassment and unlawful job termination. That was surprising. I was amazed that Cuddy had hired her since she had a pending civil case against another hospital. That type of situation usually blackballed a person from being hired elsewhere.

I leaned back in my chair pondering all of this. Wilson had told me to go google and then come back to him for the juicy bits. So I got up and headed towards his office.

I walked onto the balcony and glanced into his office. He was alone at his desk. I carefully hopped over the wall and walked into his office.

He looked up as I entered and smirked at me: "Find anything interesting?"

"Oh, yeah. There is a wealth of information out there. I got the gist of it. Now tell me the dirt. What's up with the civil lawsuit and why did Cuddy hire her with that going on?"

"Cuddy told me that she felt the civil lawsuit was justified. The hospital allowed employees to harass Arielle about the incident. I think the corporation hoped she would get frustrated and quit. When she didn't, the acting director of pharmacy gave her such a poor performance review that it triggered her termination. Prior to that, she had always had stellar reviews. So it seems that it was done deliberately to get rid of her. She was branded a troublemaker. She uncovered and reported a drug-diverting scheme, which basically saved patients' lives at the risk of her own. Now she's suing for back pay and punitive damages. It seems reasonable to me and it did to Cuddy so she hired her."

I tapped my cane on the floor for a minute, pondering what he had told me.

"What about the assault? The article didn't say much except that she was physically assaulted and her dog was killed."

"Ah. I know a little bit about that. Thornton hired a thug to go after her. The guy watched her for a few days and when her fiancée went out of town, he broke into her apartment while she was sleeping. Her dog attacked him and he stabbed the dog to death. She ended up with a concussion, broken wrist, separated shoulder and 4 broken ribs. That much I know for sure. There is a rumor that there is more to the story. She had to have surgery after the attack."

I interrupted: "Well, yeah. She had a broken wrist and separated shoulder. They probably had to put Humpty Dumpty back together again."

"That's not the part of the body she had surgery on. The rumor I heard is that she had rectal surgery."

"Oh Christ, the guy probably raped her!"

Wilson nodded: "Yeah, that's what I think. And to top it off, her fiancée broke it off with her about a month after the attack. Some say he couldn't handle the fact that she was raped or maybe he just couldn't handle all the publicity about the case. I'm sure it caused a major upheaval in their lives. I don't know for sure that she was raped, but it seems like it. You know they wouldn't report it in the papers to protect the victim. That's why they just printed the part about the physical assault."

I nodded glumly. I always hate to hear rape stories. Rape seems to suck the very life force out of the victim. If it were true that her fiancée left her because of it that would make it doubly hard. "So you think it's true?"

He nodded: "I have a pretty good source."

I shook my head: "Well, that sucks. Such a pretty girl, what a waste."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, you know she's totally damaged now. Emotionally and probably physically as well."

"You don't know that. She puts on a pretty good face if she is. Have you had a conversation with her other than your little encounter at the elevator?"

I admitted that I hadn't.

"Well I spoke to her for about 45 minutes. She doesn't seem damaged to me. She is very excited about her job here. We surprised her with expanded pain management duties and her own office. She seemed absolutely thrilled."

"Does she seem needy? She may be your type. You should ask her out."

Wilson smirked at me: "Maybe I will. After all, like you said, she is very pretty."

I stood up: "Careful. She may sue you for sexual harassment. She already has one lawsuit going. If she wins enough of them, she might make enough to retire on."

Wilson rolled his eyes at me. "Are we still watching WWF tonight?"

I opened the door to the balcony and turned to look back at him: "Of course. You're springing for the Chinese food too." With that last comment; I headed back to my office.

I sat at my desk and took out my PSP. While killing trolls, I pondered what Wilson had told me about Arielle. She had really been through some rough stuff. This morning, she had come across as being confident. She had looked me in the eyes and I saw the smirk on her face when I made the comment about my tongue and what it could do. I had enjoyed my encounter with her this morning and that surprised me. She was really pretty, but there was something more about her. I couldn't put my finger on it. I liked the smile she gave me as she left the elevator.

I sighed as I was finally killed on level 3 again. I know what it's like to have something horrible happen to you, something that you had no control over. You do feel damaged afterwards. I know I've felt damaged for years after all the crap my father gave me. And I was so out of control with that whole situation with my leg. I told Stacy what I wanted and she went behind my back and had enough of my leg muscle removed that I became a virtual cripple. She may as well as had my whole leg amputated for the shape I'm in today. I'd probably be in less pain if it had been amputated. Not that I would admit that to anyone. I hate looking at my scar, but it would be worse looking down at a stump everyday. I knew I was damaged. That's the main reason I keep pushing people away from me. I don't need any more damage done to me. If you open up to people and get close, then they can hurt you. Keep them at arms length and you might be safe from further harm.

Hmmm, Wilson said Arielle would be doing pain management. Maybe I should go see her and find out what she would recommend for me. That might be fun. I'll give her a week or so to get settled in and then go see her.

I started another game on my PSP while I waited for General Hospital to start.

I managed to get through the whole day without having to do any actual work. I marked it as a very successful day. Wilson came by around 6PM and said he was ready to leave. We walked out to our cars together. He followed me to my place. There was a green Accord wagon parked in my usual spot. I was irritated at having to park further away. I limped to my front door and Wilson caught up to me. I unlocked the outer door and entered the foyer. As I was unlocking my apartment door, I hear someone yell to please hold the door. Wilson obliged, of course. He stood there holding open the outer door as a short person carrying a ladder and paint cans approached. Then I heard a slightly familiar voice say: "Thanks for holding the door." Then I heard a sharp intake of breath and "Dr Wilson? Do you live here?"

I turned to see Arielle, dressed in painter's overalls and a baseball cap covering her beautiful hair, standing there with a surprised look on her face as she stared at Wilson.

Wilson shook his head: "No, I don't live here, but he does." He pointed at me and she glanced my way.

With a surprised look on her face: "Hi, Dr House. Well, I guess we're going to be neighbors."

_**Arielle **_

Boy, was I surprised to see that it was Dr Wilson holding the door for me. I asked him if he lived here. He doesn't but Dr House does. Great. After trying to figure out how to avoid him at the hospital, I was going to be living across the hall from him. This was going to be a long 6 months. Dr Wilson pushed open my apartment door for me while I was struggling with the ladder and the paint. I walked in and set everything down. They followed me inside.

Dr House glanced around at the empty apartment: "So do you moonlight after hours as a painter or what?"

"No, I rented this place. The landlord hurt his back and couldn't finish the painting. So he told me if I painted it myself he would give me a free month's rent. Seemed like a good deal to me. I want to try to get as much painted as possible because I'm moving in on Saturday. Want to help me?"

He snorted: "Yeah, right. In case you haven't noticed, there's a cripple here."

I smiled at him: "You're not a cripple. Besides you don't paint with your leg." I looked directly into his eyes so that he would know I meant it. He glared at me, but I maintained eye contact and he broke away first.

"Yeah, well, I have a tough time standing for long periods. So don't look to me for help."

I shrugged: "You could sit down and paint the baseboards for me."

Dr Wilson laughed: "She's got you there, House."

He snorted and started poking around the place. It was already 7PM and I wanted to get started working. So I began to unroll the tarp to cover the floor. I was hoping to get the prep work done tonight, and if I were lucky, I could do the cut-in part of the painting. Then tomorrow I could just roll the room. But if I didn't get these guys out of here, I wasn't getting anything done. I turned around to find that Wilson had taken off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. He asked: "What can I do?"

I was kinda surprised by this. "You don't really have to help. I was just teasing Dr House. It's very kind of you to offer, Dr Wilson, but I'm sure you guys have other plans this evening."

"We're going to watch WWF, but it doesn't come on until 9PM. I have some time. And Arielle, when we're out of the hospital, call me James or Jimmy. Or at least just call me Wilson. Drop the doctor part, OK?"

"Hmmm, OK. Wilson. If you have time and you really want to help, you could take the end of the tarp and stretch it to the far corner for me and I'll work on this end." I tossed him one roll of tape and I took the other. I felt rather shy about all this. It was one thing to snark at House. Cuddy basically gave me carte blanche to do that, but I would be working with Wilson and I didn't know how to handle this appearance of friendship. After being screwed over at PMMC, I was leery of making friends at the hospital.

Meanwhile, Dr House had wandered into the kitchen. "Hey, you've got a bottle of Glenlivet here. Nice. How does a pharmacist afford this kind of scotch?"

I answered him: "By sipping it very slowly."

I heard him chuckle. "Are you sharing?"

Wilson growled: "House! You have your own scotch across the hall."

He whined: "Yeah, but I'm down to the blends. I'm out of my single malts."

"Well, you should have hit the liquor store on your way home."

I was amused at the bickering between them. They were like an old married couple. I wondered how long they had been friends.

I turned towards the kitchen: "Dr House, there's some paper cups on the counter. Why don't you pour us all a shot?"

His face lit up and I was rewarded with a smile. Wow, he was handsome when he smiled. I couldn't help smiling back. Maybe he would be OK outside of the hospital. It'd be nice to have a friendly neighbor. Maybe we could watch TV together or I could make him dinner once in a while. I had lost so many friends that until tonight I hadn't realized just how lonely I had been. Then I reminded myself not to get my hopes up. These guys had probably heard all about my problems and I doubted they would want to get too friendly. If Wilson hadn't been nice enough to hold the door for me, they would be inside House's apartment watching TV right now.

I looked up as House held out a cup of scotch to me. I brushed away the tired cobwebs from my mind, put on a smile and took the cup from him. Then he handed one to Wilson and raised his own cup.

He queried: "A toast?"

Wilson replied: "To Arielle, and your new apartment. We hope you will be happy here."

I smiled at him: "Thank you. And I say, life's too short to drink cheap scotch." I raised my cup to the both of them and then slugged it back. They followed suit. I love that pleasant burn as the first shot of scotch slides down my throat. The 12-year old Glenlivet was smooth and warm and I immediately wanted another shot.

I held out my cup to House and, putting on a silly cockney accent, said: "Pour us another, luv."

He gave me a slow grin and imitated my accent: "Certainly, missus."

He poured us each another shot. I sipped this one. I wanted to savor it. I needed to work tonight and I didn't have time to get drunk with these guys. I hadn't eaten yet and I knew that if I had more than 2 shots I would be well on my way.

"Sorry I can't offer you a seat, but after I get all moved it, I'll invite you over for a proper drink."

House gave me the once-over: "Do you cook?"

I nodded: "Yes, I like to cook actually. I've missed it these last 3 months."

"Why?"

"Oh, I've been living in a motel. It doesn't have a kitchen, so I've been living on take-out. So I'm really looking forward to cooking again."

House frowned: "Why were you living in a motel?"

Wilson growled at him: "House." It sounded like a warning, like he was trying to shut him up.

I shrugged: "I needed a place to stay for a while. It was my best option at the time." It was a non-answer and I knew he knew that. But I'd hoped it would make him drop his line of questioning. I quickly asked him why he wanted to know if I cooked.

He answered: "Cuz I like to eat."

"I'll keep that in mind."

I finished my scotch and set down the cup. Then I went back to work on the tarp. Wilson went down to the other end of the room and worked on that section. House continued poking around in the kitchen. I could hear him shuffling through my pile of CD's.

I thought of something he could do which would save me some time. I starting digging in my bag and found my screwdriver. I turned to the kitchen and said: "Hey, Dr House, there's something you could do to help me. Could you take off all the faceplates from the light switches?" I extended my hand with the screwdriver to him.

He stared at it: "What do I get if I help?"

"I'll make you a nice dinner when I get moved in."

"One dinner for each faceplate."

Boy, he is either really pining for a home cooked meal or he's even lonelier than I am.

I figured, what the heck, and said: "OK. Just keep count. Here's a baggie to put the plates and screws in." He grabbed the screwdriver and baggie from me and I turned back to work on the tarp.

He continued to shuffle through the CD's: "I'm going to put on some music first." I nodded.

He put on my Stevie Ray Vaughn CD. It was a collection of his best stuff and it was very upbeat. Dr House made a good choice. The music started blasting and we all kept working. Wilson and I got the tarp spread out and taped down and House took off all the faceplates in the living room. He let me know that there were 8 of them and 2 of those were doubles; therefore I owed him 10 dinners.

I said: "OK. Do you want them to be all dinners or would some breakfasts be OK too? I make great French toast and blueberry pancakes."

He looked like he was going to start drooling and quickly agreed that it would be 10 meals. I smiled and said: "No problem. Ten meals it is."

He checked his watch: "Hey Jimmy, it's 8:30. We need to order the Chinese and get ready to watch WWF."

Wilson said: "Yeah, OK. Arielle, is there anything else we can do?"

I replied: "No, I'm good. I just need to start painting now that it's all prepped. Thank you both for your help. I really appreciate it."

They started for the door and suddenly House turned around. "Did you have dinner?"

"No, but I have a peanut butter sandwich in my bag. I'm good. Thanks anyway, Dr House."

He limped over to me, put a finger under my chin and tilted my head up to look at him. He had the most amazing blue eyes and his finger felt electric under my chin. "Like Jimmy said, you can drop the doctor part when we're not at the hospital. Just call me House."

I answered softly: "OK. House."

He gave me a little smile. It reached his eyes and I knew he was being sincere when he asked: "We're ordering Chinese. Tell me what you like or we'll just surprise you."

"Hunan chicken would be nice."

He removed his finger from my chin. The spot felt warm and tingly for a few seconds after it was gone. "We'll come get you when the food arrives."

All I could do was nod, and he turned and walked out of the door.

_**House**_

Jimmy and I walked into my place. I headed into the kitchen to grab the Chinese menu. I yelled to Jimmy: "What do you want tonight?"

"Hot and sour soup, General Tso's chicken."

I picked up the phone and dialed. I ordered everyone's requests and got some beef lo mein and spicy jumbo shrimp for me. I was really hungry.

Twenty minutes later, the food arrived. Jimmy got the door and paid. He brought the bag over to the coffee table and I started unpacking it while he went to get Arielle.

I heard him bang on her door and shout "Food's here." He returned without waiting for a response. Jimmy headed into the kitchen and came back with 3 beers and paper plates. Chopsticks came with the food so he didn't bring utensils. I was sitting on the right side of the couch and Jimmy plopped down on the left side. I heard Arielle walk in and pause. I turned to see what she was doing, just standing there. She was staring at the piano. I leaned back and tapped her arm and said: "Hey. Sit down and eat. Got you a beer over here." My eyes returned to the TV. I heard her walk into the kitchen and the tap went on. Guess she was washing her hands. After a minute, she walked back in and came towards us. Jimmy and I were sprawled across the couch and I guess she didn't want to ask us to scootch over, so she knelt on the floor by the coffee table. She grabbed a plate and started loading it. I was eating my shrimp straight out of the carton. I paused eating for a moment while the fight got exciting and she snagged one of my shrimp.

"Hey, no stealing my food."

"I thought we were sharing."

"Not the shrimp. Mine." I growled at her.

She stuck her tongue out at me.

"Hey, don't stick that out unless you intend to use it."

She smirked at me. She was still holding the stolen shrimp in her chopsticks and she proceeded to slowly lick the sauce off of it. Then she would suck it just a little and go back to licking it. Jimmy and I sat there, slack-jawed, just staring at her. It was incredibly sensual and I was imagining that tongue licking elsewhere. Finally she bit the shrimp with a loud crunch and that shook us out of our stupor. She smiled, knowing the effect she had had on us. There was a loud thump on the TV when one of the wrestlers hit the mat really hard and we turned our focus to the screen.

We ate and drank in companionable silence. At a commercial break, Arielle got up and thanked us for dinner and said she needed to get back to work.

I said: "OK. See ya around." I didn't get up and walk her to the door. Always the gentleman, Jimmy did. Arielle gave me a little squeeze on the shoulder as she walked by. It was an unexpected show of affection and I didn't know what to make of it. Her touch was warm and I could feel it for minutes after it was gone. Jimmy walked her to her door. Then he came back and dropped onto the couch. We stared at the TV.

At one point Jimmy said: "It will be interesting for you having her as a neighbor. You might get fed well."

I grunted: "My luck, she'll be a lousy cook. And I'll have to suffer through 10 meals with her. Wonder if she can make coffee? It'd be great to get coffee in the mornings."

Jimmy snickered: "Coffee in the morning, sugar at night."

I grinned: "Yeah, that would be really nice."

We watched the rest of the match. Wilson took off around midnight. He commented as he was leaving that Arielle's light was still on. I shrugged, guessing she was still painting. I poured myself a scotch and opened my front door. I wanted to see her before she left. If the door was open, I figured she would poke her head in. I sat down at the piano and started playing some Mozart. I was so lost in the music that I didn't hear her come in. Suddenly I felt a presence nearby and I opened my eyes.

She smiled shyly. "Your door was open. You play really nicely. I just wanted to listen for a little bit."

"You play, don't you?"

She nodded. I patted the bench. She came over and sat on my right. Arielle touched the keys gently, lovingly. Very softly, she said: "I've missed having a piano around. Can I come over and play yours sometimes? I mean, if it doesn't bother you?" She seemed incredibly shy with her request, completely unlike her earlier sassy personality.

I nodded: "Play something for me now."

"OK." She ran through some scales to warm up. Then she said: "This was the first classical piece that my mom taught me. I always thought it was a lot of fun."

Then she started off. The tone of the piece kept changing. First it was light and airy, and then it became serious and plodding. Then it changed again to a really playful melody. It was a strange piece. I had never heard it before.

She ended with a sudden flourish. She didn't look at me but I could see a small smile on her face as she fingered the keys.

"That was an interesting piece. I've never heard it before. What is it?"

"It's called 'Kurious Geschichte', or 'Curious Story'. I just loved it when I was a kid. It was so silly and different."

"Did your mom teach you to play?"

She nodded still fingering the keys. "Yeah, I started when I was four. I picked up the guitar when I was 8. Guitars are more mobile, easier to carry around, but the piano is really my favorite."

"Why is instrument mobility important?"

"When you move a lot, it's hard to take a piano with you."

I nodded. "My dad was in the Marines. We moved almost every year. Some places we had a piano, others we didn't. I guess I took up the guitar for the same reason. It would be there if there wasn't a piano. Was your dad in the military? Is that why you moved a lot?"

She shook her head slowly. "No. Um, my parents died when I was 10. So I spent the rest of my childhood in foster homes. I was only allowed one bag and my guitar, so I had to travel light."

"You had no other family to take you in?"

She shook her head again. "No. My aunt and uncle were killed in the same car crash. They dropped me off at summer camp and they were headed to Daytona Beach for a week. On State Road 40, a logging truck blew a tire and swerved into their car. There was no way to avoid the accident. The car exploded and they all died. My aunt was pregnant at the time too, and we were all excited about that. I have no other family, so I ended up in foster care until I was 18."

She closed her eyes and a shudder ran through her body. She continued talking so softly that I could barely hear her: "These last 6 months remind me of that time. I had no place to live and no job. I didn't know what I was going to do. I rotated staying with my friends for a while, but I didn't want to keep doing that, although they were all willing to put up with me. I didn't want our friendship to be a burden." She let out a harsh laugh. "I don't have that many friends left after all of this. Something like this happens, you find out how your real friends are. Anyway I found a cheap motel and moved in there for the last 3 months. I'm so grateful to Dr Cuddy for giving me a job, and now I'll have an apartment so I feel like I'm getting my life back together again."

She stroked the keys again.

"Geez, why am I telling you all of this? I must be boring the heck out of you. I'm sorry to have bothered you. Thank you again for dinner and for helping me over there."

She looked very embarrassed as she rose from the bench. I grabbed her hand before she could run away and she actually trembled at my touch.

"You already thanked me once. That is sufficient. I enjoy your company. And, yes, you can come over and play the piano. Just call first to see if it's a good time or not. Do you have a phone yet?"

"I just have my cell now."

"Let me give you my numbers." She pulled out her cell phone and entered my home and my cell numbers as I rattled them off. "I tend to not answer the land-line so start leaving a message and if I'm here, I'll pick up." She nodded. I pulled out my cell and punched in her cell number. "Let me know when you get a land-line, OK?" She nodded.

"I better go. It's pretty late."

I nodded and stood up, retrieving my cane where it had rested next to the piano. I walked her out to the stoop.

She turned and smiled shyly at me.

"Thank you, House. You've been very kind."

"Hey, don't let that get around. I have a reputation to uphold."

She smiled. "Your secret is safe with me." I watched her walk to the car and waited outside until she drove away.


	2. Chapter 2

Arielle Chapter 2

_**Arielle **_

The rest of my week went well. My office was painted and carpeted. I brought in some of my own reference books for the bookcase. By Friday, I felt like I had a good grasp of the computer system. I was getting comfortable here.

Every night after work, I would go and work on the apartment. House came over on Tuesday night and watched me work. We talked about music and he ordered some Thai take-out for both of us. It was nice having someone to eat with.

Wednesday night, he had a bunch of guys over to play poker. He invited me, but I declined since I don't know how to play. When their pizzas arrived, he dragged me over to eat and to meet the guys. Wilson was there and 3 other guys who seem interested in meeting House's new neighbor. Of course, I was at my most attractive self: paint spattered overalls and hair tucked up in my baseball cap. But they were friendly and pleasant to talk to.

House was really a different person when he was alone with me, than he was when we were around others. He was kinder and a lot less snarky when we were alone. Around others, he would be very snarky. Like he said, he has a reputation to uphold. Fortunately Cuddy had warned me about him, so I just snarked right back.

For some reason, he decided to make fun of my name in front of his poker buddies.

"Why do you pronounce your name as 'Ar – ee –elle? Ariel Sharon says his name as 'Airy–elle. Are you afraid that people will call you Airy for short, or Airhead?"

"That is how my parents pronounced it. Both ways are correct." I shrugged. "By the way, my friends call me Elle for short."

"Elle, like the 'L' word? Ooooo, have you had that type of experience?" House waggled his eyebrows at me.

I smiled mysteriously: "That's for me to know and for you to fantasize about alone in your bed at night."

The guys chuckled and Jimmy snickered: "Good one, Elle." House shot me an annoyed look. I shrugged, finished my pizza and excused myself to get back to work.

House dropped by again on Thursday night, bringing steak hoagies and French fries for dinner. The hoagies were delicious, dripping with onions and grease. He stayed only long enough to eat and sounded regretful that he had some charts to review before the next morning.

When I finished painting that night, the living room and the kitchen were done. I wanted to do some decorative stenciling in the kitchen, but that could wait a few weeks until I had a couple of paychecks under my belt. I had moved in most of my kitchen stuff. The dishes and glasses were in the cupboards; the coffee maker and microwave were on the counter.

I was so ready to get out of the motel, that I decided I would pack up my room on Friday and just move all that stuff into the apartment. Then I could stay up late working on the bedroom and not have to drive back to the motel. I had a pillow and blanket and figured I could just sleep on the floor for one night. After work on Friday, I did just that. I packed up my belongings and checked out. Then I stopped at the grocery store and picked up some essentials. I had to wait until next Friday to get paid, so I had to charge the groceries again. I just brought enough to get through to payday. I was hoping I could delay cooking for House for another week. I didn't have the money for extra food. I did buy the ingredients to make brownies. I wanted to have some to thank the guys for helping me move. For beer and my brownies, my guys will do almost anything for me. I owed them a lot. I had stayed with each one of them for 2 weeks after the break-up. They had wanted me to play 'round robin' again, but I just couldn't do it. I didn't want to strain our friendship. I decided to preserve our friendship and I moved into the motel.

I pulled up in front of the building and started unloading the car. The hanging clothes went straight into the closet. The folded clothes were in cardboard boxes, which is where they would live until I got some bedroom furniture. That might take a couple of paychecks. I wondered if maybe I could find something decent at one of the thrift stores, so I made a mental note to check that out. I had to have a good bed though, so that was on order and would be delivered in a couple of weeks. I just needed to find a dresser and maybe a couple of nightstands and that would take care of the bedroom.

I had a futon that would do double-duty as a sofa and my bed for now.

I had bought an entertainment stand, coffee table and end tables at Ikea. They were in storage and would be brought with the rest of my stuff. Of course, they were flat in boxes and had to be put together. Hopefully, the boys would be in a building mood. It would be hard for me to do it all myself, but I figure I could do it if I had to. Eventually, I would get a TV, but it's summer. There's nothing on but reruns anyway, so it could wait.

I finished unloading the car. The clothes were hanging up or in boxes. I started taping down the tarp in the bedroom. By 8:30, I had the room prepped to paint, so I decided to take a break. House had been over every night this week to eat with me, and I missed him. But I'm sure he had better things to do on a Friday night than hang out with me. I made a peanut butter sandwich and grabbed a beer. I had my dinner sitting in the middle of my empty living room listening to Billy Joel on my boom box. I was feeling somewhat sorry for myself, but I kept telling myself that it would get better.

I repeated my favorite mantra to myself.

"Yes, it's gonna be alright. Yes, the worst is over now. The morning sun is shining like a red rubber ball."

That little mantra got me through a lot of rough times when I was a kid. If I had a positive attitude, I was sure it would work again.

I finished my small dinner and cleaned up. I went into the bedroom and started the cut-in portion of the painting. It wasn't a big room, so I thought I could finish that tonight, then go to sleep. Rolling it could wait until Sunday.

I finished about 11:30. I was pooped. I went into the bathroom and stripped off my painting clothes and took a quick shower. I pulled on a tank top and some yoga pants, which were my usual pajamas. Grabbing another beer, I opened my laptop and checked my e-mail. I had a message from Nina, my best friend who happens to live in Seattle. I sent her a quick reply getting her caught up on my activities and promising to call her within a few days. I logged off and closed my laptop. I made up my little bed area against a corner of the living room wall facing the door. I was kicking myself for forgetting to buy a night-light. I no longer liked to sleep in complete darkness. I guess I would just leave the bathroom light on for tonight and buy one tomorrow. In the motel, I used to leave the TV on all night. It was comforting to have the light and the low noise. Maybe I would get a TV sooner rather than later. After all, I would be sleeping in the living room for a while before the bed gets here.

I dug out one of my sleep-inducing CD's and put that on the boom box. I took out my cell phone and set the alarm for 8AM. I needed to meet the boys at my storage unit at 10, so that was plenty of time. I finished my beer.

I knew it wasn't going to be enough to help me sleep, so I poured 3 fingers of scotch and hoped that would be enough. I sat down against the living room wall.

I was scared, being alone in my empty apartment for the first time. I hoped I would feel better tomorrow when I had my furniture. I wished House were at home. I would feel better knowing he was across the hall. I would have to be really, really scared to go running to him, but knowing he was there would make me feel safer. Tears streamed down my face. I sipped my scotch slowly and prayed for peace of mind and sleep.

_**House **_

This patient was complicated. The tests all came back negative and a search of his house turned up nothing. Finally the wife remembered to tell us that he had been in South America 2 weeks ago and all the pieces fell into place. We were able to start him on the right antibiotics and I could finally leave for the night. It was after midnight when I drove onto my street. I noticed Arielle's car parked right in front of the building. There was only a dim light showing in her apartment. Strange, as she wasn't supposed to move in until tomorrow. Curiosity got the better of me and I rapped on her door. A tremulous voice called out: "Who is it?"

I answered: "Tall, handsome guy from across the hall."

I heard her walk across the floor and start flipping the locks. She opened the door and said "Hey." She glanced up at me and then looked away. The light from the foyer was dim, but I could see her face was tear-streaked. I pushed my way in. I noticed the blanket and pillow in the corner. "Are you sleeping on the floor tonight?"

She nodded. "I'm so tired of the motel, so I thought I would just move out of there. I can sleep on the floor for one night."

"Did something happen?"

She shook her head: "No, I just thought I could get a bunch of work done and it would be nice not to have to drive back to the motel when I finished. So I checked out and moved everything over here and got started painting the bedroom. I was about to go to sleep, just having a little scotch first. Want a shot?"

"Yeah, that would be nice." She walked over to the kitchen counter and poured me a shot in a real glass. I guessed that she had done some unpacking tonight. She handed me the glass and I thanked her.

She smiled a little: "Hey, tomorrow I can invite you to sit down. That will be a novelty, huh?"

I smiled back: "Yeah, that will be good". I sipped the scotch, then said: "Don't sleep on the floor. Come over and sleep on my couch."

She paled at my suggestion and immediately protested: "Oh, no. I don't want to bother you."

"You won't bother me. You'll be on the couch and I'll be in my bed. How will you bother me?"

I could see her lip tremble. My God, was she afraid of me? "Elle, I won't bother you. I'm not that kind of a jerk. I hate to see you sleeping on the floor when I have an empty couch." I put my finger under her chin and lifted so she was forced to look at me. I saw fear in her eyes. I asked her softly: "Are you afraid of me?"

Tears sprang into her eyes and she tried to blink them away. "It's not that."

"What is it then?"

"I'm afraid, but not of you. I guess you know I was assaulted, right?"

I hadn't moved my finger so she closed her eyes so she wouldn't have to look at me as she said: "Well, ever since then, I have to have a light on to sleep, or the TV. I can't sleep in total darkness. And sometimes I have nightmares and I wake up screaming." Tears were leaking out of her eyes now and her body was trembling. "That's why I'm afraid I'll bother you, so thanks for your kind offer, but I'll be OK."

I moved my finger away from her chin and she immediately ducked her head. I said: "You're scared now."

"I just have to get used to a new place. It's my first night here. And I forgot to buy a night light."

"Didn't you have one at the motel?"

She shook her head. "I just used to leave the TV on low."

I spoke as gently as I could: "Elle, come sleep on my couch. You can leave the TV on all night, just like you're used to. And if you're scared, I'm right down the hall. My leg keeps me up a lot, so you won't bother me. Really. I stay up half the night reading in bed."

She reached out and gently touched my right hip. "Your leg hurts a lot, huh?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm missing a thigh muscle, hence the cane and the limp."

"I could massage it for you if you think that would help."

I was touched by her sweet offer. "It's not too bad tonight. But I'd love a rain check on that. This is good. I'll have you cooking for me, massaging me. When are you going to start doing my laundry? Then you can clean my apartment and wash my back." I said this in a very teasing manner.

She gave me a smirk and a light punch on the arm.

I acted hurt, even said "OW!" She rubbed the spot and called me a big goof.

"Made ya smile, didn't I?"

She blushed and gave me a somewhat crooked smile: "Yeah, you did."

I reached down and took her hand. "Come over to my place. Drink my scotch, watch my TV and sleep on my couch. Come on. I'm sure there's some great old movie on tonight, or maybe some Monty Python reruns."

She said softly: "That would be fun. OK. You're on."

"Grab your stuff." She picked up her pillow and cell phone and after locking her door, followed me to my place. She put her pillow down on the couch and set her keys and cell phone on the end table. I tossed her the remote and headed to my room to change. I'd been in these clothes for 16 hours, and that was long enough. I put on pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. I didn't want Elle to feel uncomfortable with my casual attire, so I slipped on my bathrobe too. I limped back down to the living room. I poured each of us a double shot of scotch and sat down on the couch next to her. Elle had found a Monty Python rerun so we watched that and sipped our scotch. It was a funny episode; well they are all funny. Elle seemed to especially like John Cleese doing his silly walks. She was rolling with that skit. I had to take her glass away and set it on the coffee table; I thought she would drop it while laughing so hard. She was so cute, giggling like that. I don't know what came over me, but I put my arm around her and pulled her closer. I kissed her forehead, and she snuggled into my embrace. We sat curled up together and continued to watch the show. I liked feeling her body vibrate against mine when she laughed. Another episode followed and we kept watching. As the second episode was almost over, I noticed that Elle was starting to nod off.

"Hey, you should go to sleep. You've got a big moving day tomorrow."

She smiled sleepily: "Yeah, I gotta get up at 8AM."

"OK. Lay down. I'll get you a blanket." I limped over to the closet and got a blanket. I draped it over her and tucked it around her. She smiled sleepily: "Do I get a good night kiss too?"

I grinned: "Cheeky monkey." I leaned down and pecked her cheek. She turned her head and brushed my cheek with her lips. "Night, House. Thank you." I watched her close her eyes and drift off. I stroked her hair for a minute, reveling in the softness.

I lowered the volume on the TV and turned off the other lights. I grabbed my cane and hobbled down the hall to my bedroom. After hanging up my robe, I climbed into bed and popped 2 Vicodin. I was in the middle of the latest Robin Cook novel, so I opened it to my spot and started reading. I hoped that after an hour or so of reading that I could fall asleep. Maybe the Vicodin and scotch would kick in too.

_**Arielle **_

I was so surprised when House suggested I sleep on his couch. I quickly turned him down; I was in such a state I was sure I would have a nightmare tonight. I didn't want to wake up screaming on his couch. That would be so embarrassing. He soon wore me down. I mean, the couch sounded much more comfortable than the hard floor. We walked across the hall to his place. I settled on the couch and flipped channels until I found Monty Python. He went down the hall and came back in his pj's and robe. He poured us a scotch and we settled in to watch the show. It was so funny. I was laughing so much, that he had to take my glass away from me. That was a good thing as I was about to drop it. Then he did something really unexpected. He put his arm around me and pulled me close to him. It felt so warm and comfortable that I just melted into his side. I hadn't felt that relaxed in a long time. I was so relaxed that I started nodding off. He noticed and got a blanket and tucked me in. Being silly, I asked him for a goodnight kiss and he surprised me by giving me one. I kissed him back and closed my eyes. As I was drifting off, I could feel his hand stroking my hair. He had been so kind and sweet to me tonight. I hoped to pay him back soon with some good home cooking.

_**House **_

I had been reading for about 45 minutes when I heard a noise coming from the living room. At first, I thought it was just the TV getting louder during the commercials as it often does. But it continued and as I listened, I realized it wasn't the TV. I slowly limped down the hall and listened carefully. Arielle was whimpering in her sleep. I could hear her saying: "No, stop, don't" over and over again. She sounded so scared and small. Suddenly she flailed around and ended up rolling off the couch with a thud onto the floor. That woke her up. She groaned and rubbed her elbow. I heard her mutter: "Oh god, what a idiot."

I limped over to the couch: "Elle, are you OK?"

She groaned again: "Oh god, please tell me you didn't just see me do that. I'm so embarrassed." She hid her face in her hands.

"Shhh, it's OK. Come up here and let me look at your elbow. Does it hurt?"

"It's OK. Just feels a little bruised." She still hid her face and didn't get up off the floor.

I sank onto the couch with a sigh: "Come on, get up here and let me look at your elbow. I'm a doctor, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember. I didn't hit my head." She got up this time and let me look at her elbow. It felt OK, and she could move it, so we went for the bruise diagnosis.

"Stay right here." I limped to the kitchen and grabbed a bag of frozen peas. I stuck that on her elbow and told her to hold it there for 10 minutes to keep it from swelling up.

"Thank you doctor. I hope you accept my insurance card cuz I don't have any money to pay you."

"I don't take insurance, but I will accept 2 extra dinners from you."

"OK. You got a deal."

I put my arm around her and she snuggled into my side like she did before.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She sighed: "It's the same old dream. I'm asleep and he breaks in and attacks me. Sometimes I wake up before it gets too bad, other times I relive the whole night. Those are the nights I wake up screaming. Tonight, it didn't get too far. I fell off the couch in the early part. He had just broken my arm and I was trying to get away but he had a death grip on my arm and then my shoulder separated. I was in so much pain I couldn't do anything else to defend myself. He had already killed the dog." Her voice faded away to nothing. She pressed her face into my shoulder.

I stroked her arm: "Elle, do you have someone you can talk to about these nightmares? A therapist or someone?"

She shook her head: "I had one, but when I lost my job, I lost my insurance. But now I can start going again once I get all my insurance cards and stuff. I had some lorazepam right after it happened, but I took them all and I couldn't afford to go back to the doctor to get any more. That used to help me sleep."

"Hey, you know, I'm a doctor. I could write you a script for some."

She poked her head up. "You would? Really? That would be really nice of you. I'd be so grateful. I could get some sleep."

She got all choked up at this point. She threw her arms around my neck and kissed me. Then I heard the first sob escape. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her onto my good leg. I held her halfway on my lap while she cried on my shoulder.

I don't handle crying women very well. But for some reason I felt very protective towards Elle. I held her close and gently stroked her back while she cried. After a few minutes, her sobs slowed down until she finally stopped. She sat on my lap catching her breath.

She spoke softly: "I'm so sorry, I've soaked your shirt. I'm really embarrassed."

"Don't be. It's OK."

She kept her face buried in my shoulder so that when she spoke it was in a whisper in my ear. "You know, don't you, that I was raped?"

"Yeah, I heard a rumor about that. And I heard your boyfriend dumped you right after that too."

She nodded.

"Asshole", I said vehemently.

"Thank you."

Puzzled, I asked: "What are you thanking me for?"

"For being angry WITH me and for not saying 'I'm sorry' and pitying me."

I nodded. I hated it when I got pity about my leg. I understood how she felt.

I held her and rocked her a little. I could feel the tension start to leave her body.

"Come sleep in my bed."

She looked up at me, confused: "But where will you sleep?"

"Duh, in my bed." I continued softly: "I thought if you were sleeping next to me, you might feel safer and not have another nightmare."

She blushed and stammered: "But I couldn't, I don't want to bother you,,,"

I cut her off: "I'd pick you up and carry you to my bed if I had 2 good legs.

You're not bothering me. If you were, I wouldn't be doing this."

I gently stroked her tear-streaked face. "Go wash your face and come to my bed. I will NOT hurt you. I will not be inappropriate. OK? Do you trust me?"

She nodded and said softly: "Yes, I do."

"OK, then." I gave her a nudge to get up. She scrambled off of my lap and stood up. I winced as I went to get up. I had left my cane in the bedroom and my leg became stiff while we sat on the couch. I gingerly eased my butt to the edge of the couch and using my arms managed to push myself to a standing position. Elle moved around to my right side. She picked up my right arm and draped it across her shoulders. I leaned on her as we made our way slowly to the bedroom. I felt her left arm snake across my back for extra support. She didn't say a word as we walked/limped down the hall. I guess someone who dislikes pity recognizes that trait in another person. Whatever, I appreciated it. We walked to the edge of the bed and she said: "I'll be right back. I'm going to wash my face."

"There's a little closet just to the right of the bathroom. There are clean towels and washcloths in there." She nodded and walked out.

I settled myself back into bed. I rubbed my thigh for a minute to try to get some circulation back and then I gave up and reached under the bed for the heating pad. I positioned it on my thigh and cranked it up to high. Then I popped 2 more Vicodin. Sleep was still a ways off tonight.

I heard the water run in the bathroom then the toilet flushed. I heard Elle walk back down the hall to the living room and I wondered if she was going back there to sleep. But in a minute, she returned, with her cell phone in her hand. "My alarm clock," she said as she set it down on the nightstand. She noticed the heating pad but didn't say anything about it. She asked if I wanted anything from the kitchen before she climbed into bed. I assured her that I was fine. I had a glass of water and my Vicodin next to my bed. She climbed in next to me and laid her hand on mine. I turned my head to look at her. She asked: "Did I hurt your leg by sitting on it?"

I squeezed her hand and smiled at her: "No. You were sitting on my good leg. It just hurts all the time and it's usually worse at night and first thing in the morning."

She nodded: "Maybe you need to come see a certain pain management pharmacist next week when she gets in her office." She gave me her little crooked smile.

I chuckled: "I'll think about that. I'm going to read a little bit more. Will the light bother you?"

Elle shook her head: "Not at all." She moved closer and wrapped her arm across my chest. She gave me a brief one-armed hug and kissed my cheek.

"Night, House."

"Night, Elle."

She rolled over and faced away from me. Then I felt her foot against my left calf. She whispered: "Is this OK?"

I smiled. She needed a little physical contact and felt safe enough to touch me this way. "Yes, Elle. It's fine."

She rubbed her foot against my leg for a few strokes and then drifted off to sleep. I continued reading. But whenever she shifted, I moved my leg so I could keep it pressed up against her foot. I finally was able to close my book around 4AM. I turned off the light and fell asleep.

_**House **_

I woke the next morning around 10AM. There was no pressure against my leg and I moved my leg around searching for her. Sadly, I realized I had slept through her departure. I rolled over and grabbed the pillow she had used. I could still smell her scent on it. I pressed my face into it and breathed deeply.

I lay like that for a few minutes, and then I opened my eyes and started to think about a hot shower. My eyes fell on a piece of paper propped up against the lamp on the nightstand.

_House,_

_Best sleep I've had in 6 months._

_Thanks for everything._

_There's coffee in the kitchen._

_Come over later for brownies._

Elle

Yum, brownies. I slowly got out of bed and headed towards the shower. They would be back soon and I wanted to meet 'the boys' who were helping her move.

I took a long hot shower and toweled off. I pulled on a clean t-shirt and jeans and hobbled down the hall to the kitchen. As promised, she had made coffee. She had left it in a carafe and it was still hot. I grabbed a mug and poured myself a cup. I took a sip and moaned. It was as good as Cameron's coffee, maybe even a little better. This would be a nice thing to wake up to every morning. Maybe I should give her a key and ask her to make me coffee everyday. I had a bowl of cereal and drank 2 cups of coffee before I heard the banging in the hallway. Elle and 'the boys' were here.

I really couldn't do much to help and that embarrassed me. There wasn't much I could carry and limp along on my cane. So I decided to stay in my place until most of the banging had subsided and then wander over.

I was amused by the muffled curses and shouts of 'Avi, this way you moron', 'Lenny, don't drop your end' and so forth.

After about 30 minutes, the noise level subsided and I poked my head out of the door. Elle's door was standing open so I wandered in.

The apartment looked radically different. There were 3 bookcases in the corner where Elle had been attempting to sleep last night. A futon was in the middle of the room and there was a small dining room table with 4 chairs. There were several flat boxes marked 'Ikea' and a large number of boxes marked 'books'. There were 2 bar stools under the kitchen counter. Through the pass-through, I could see Elle and several guys in the kitchen. Someone was arguing with her.

"Elle, this apartment is too small. Where are you going to put the piano?"

"Avi, I don't own a piano any more. It's David's now."

"That's BS. He doesn't even play. It's YOUR piano. YOU should have it."

Another voice butted in: "Shut up Avi! If you make Elle cry, I'll shove one of your drum sticks up your butt. Course, you'd probably like it."

Other voices chimed in, but then I heard Elle's on top of everyone's: "Cut it out guys. There is no piano. Just drop it, OK? Come on, let's have a beer and finish up."

I heard Avi mutter: "We should just steal it."

Elle laughed: "Oh, Avi, you're such a nut. How are we going to steal a piano? It's not something we can slip in a pocket or backpack. Someone would notice, ya know. Just drop it, sweetie. There will be another piano, one day."

Avi said angrily: "You should have kept your damn engagement ring. You deserved to keep it. Then you could have sold it and bought another piano."

In a voice that could cut steel, she replied: "No. I could not have done that. Drop it now, Avi. I mean it."

There was dead silence. Avi finally broke the ice, and apologized to Elle. She graciously accepted. I heard the refrigerator door open, glass clinking together and I assumed beers were being removed. I thought now might be a good time to make my entrance.

I rapped on the door with my cane: "Hey, Elle."

She poked her head around the corner and saw me: "Hey, House. Come on in and meet everyone."

I limped into the kitchen. There were 5 guys standing there. "Guys, this is House. He is my neighbor across the hall. He is also a doctor at PPTH. House, this is Billy, he's the owner of Satchel's." She pointed to a big beefy guy with a goatee. He raised his beer bottle as a way of greeting. I nodded at him. "And these are my boys." She pointed at the other 4 guys. "They go by 'Orion' when they are on stage. This is Lenny; he's the bass player. This is Danny; he plays rhythm guitar. And these two guys are Adam and Avi. Yes, they are twins but they are nothing alike. Avi is the drummer and Adam plays lead guitar and is the unofficial leader of this happy band."

"And Elle plays keyboards and guitar and is our girl singer." I couldn't tell if it was Danny or Lenny who said that. Elle tried to look nonchalant and sipped on her beer.

She looked at me: "Where are my manners? Would you like a beer?"

I accepted and she handed me one from the refrigerator. "I can even offer you a seat now. There are chairs!" She gave me her crooked smile and I smiled back.

One of the twins was giving me the once-over. Finally he spoke: "So, House, you're a doctor? Well, maybe you can fix Elle's broken heart."

There was a chorus of groans, and Elle said: "Avi, that's corny, even for you. Come on, guys. There's Ikea furniture to put together. You be men, put together furniture. I be woman, bake brownies."

"Yeah, brownies, now we're talking." The guys trooped into the living room. Avi raised an eyebrow at me as he passed by. "Hey, House, have you had Elle's brownies yet?"

I shook my head.

He paused: "Ah, you are in for a treat. They are the best in the world. However, she usually makes us work for them. She is such a slave driver. So you should help with the furniture or she may not give you any."

"Avi, you're such a drama queen. Go. Work. Show me your man muscles."

"Honey, you know who I show my man muscle to and it's not the ladies."

Elle cracked up. "I don't want to see THAT muscle Avi. I meant your biceps working on the furniture."

"Fine, make me work. I'm already sweaty. I'll have to shower again before I go out tonight."

"Whatever. I'm sure Ricky would love to wash the sweat off of you, babe."

He blew her a kiss and sauntered into the living room.

She shook her head and grabbed a large bowl from the cabinet. "Ricky's his current squeeze. He has very obviously dyed blonde hair, is extremely queenie, and tone-deaf. I don't know what they see in each other, except the bedroom. He's not Avi's usual type. But whatever floats your boat, right? Can you hand me the butter and the eggs out of the refrigerator?"

"Sure." I opened the refrigerator and found the required items and set them on the counter next to Elle.

Avi called from the living room: "Elle, I'm putting on some music."

"OK."

Elle continued dumping the ingredients into the bowl and starting stirring them together. I watched her grease two oblong pans and set them aside.

Suddenly, Bon Jovi's 'Living on a Prayer' came blasting out from the living room. Elle smiled and hummed along. She scraped the brownie mix from the bowls into the 2 pans. She stared at the oven, as it hadn't preheated yet. As she waited, she started singing softly and tapping her foot. I really think she forgot I was behind her.

As the song headed towards its end, one of the guys called her into the living room to see where she wanted the entertainment stand located. Still humming, she walked past me into the living room. That song ended and the next one started. At the opening tones, Avi said: "It's your song, Elle." He had a mischievous gleam in his eyes. I limped further into the living room to see what was up.

The next song was Bon Jovi's 'It's my Life'. I could see this look pass over the guys' faces. I couldn't see Elle's face as she had her back to me. The song starts out with a very distinctive 'thump, thump' played on the drums and guitars. With that 'thump, thump', I watched Elle's hips swish hard to the right and then to the left in time with the beat. Then the boys surrounded her and she started singing the lead. Avi was playing air drums and the other guys were playing air guitar. She started singing loud and clear, and it was evident that it was truly her song.

_This ain't a song for the broken-hearted _

_No silent prayer for the faith-departed_

_I ain't gonna be a face in the crowd_

_You're gonna hear my voice_

_When I shout it out loud._

There was that 'thump, thump' again and that hip swing from Elle. Then the boys joined her on the chorus.

_It's my life _

_It's now or never_

_I ain't gonna live forever_

_I just want to live while I'm alive (It's my life)_

_My heart is like an open highway_

_Like Frankie said I did it my way_

_And I just wanna live while I'm alive_

_It's my life_

It was amazing watching her sing and dance around. This was a side of Elle that I hadn't seen before. The guys stayed circled around her and they were all grooving to the song. I glanced over at Billy and caught his eye. He had a satisfied grin on his face and he gave me a nod.

_This is for the ones who stood their ground_

_For Tommy and Gina who never backed down._

Avi shouted at this point: "And Elle!" Elle shot him a look of pure affection and just kept singing.

_Tomorrow's getting harder, make no mistake_

_Luck ain't even lucky, got to make your own breaks_

Thump, thump. Hip hard right, then hard left.

Then it was back to the chorus and I think they got even louder at this point. Elle started dancing around the room and the guys followed, trying to stay circled around her but she moved too fast for them.

She stopped right in front of me as she started the 3rd verse. That verse is short but it was really fit all that had happened in her life lately.

She grabbed me by the front of my shirt and looked me straight in the eye as she sang:

_Better stand tall when they're calling you out_

_Don't bend, don't break, baby, don't back down_

Thump, thump. Hip hard right, then hard left. She was standing so close to me I could feel her body sway against me as she moved. She looked so incredibly sexy to me right at the moment. I thought she had a slightly lusty look in her eyes as she started the chorus. She let go of my shirt and went back to dancing around the room as she sang. The boys sang along with her. I watched her shimmy across the floor and lusty thoughts ran through my mind.

In the middle of the chorus, the door opened. Two women and a toddler walked in. The dark-haired woman was carrying several bags. The blond woman had a box in one hand and the toddler's hand in her other. When Elle swung around and saw them, she smiled broadly, but didn't stop singing. She moved over to them, the toddler lifted up her arms and Elle picked her up and planted her on her left hip. She continued dancing around with the toddler on her hip. The kid was trying to sing along with her. The song ended with 3 simple words that were the song's title, and the toddler mimicked Elle's hand motions.

_IT'S _(their hands pointed straight out)

_MY _(they brought their fists to their chests)

_LIFE _(they threw their fists straight up in the air)

The song ends very suddenly on those words. It was quiet for a brief moment, and then Billy started clapping. The guys and I joined in. Then the ladies set everything down and completed the group. Elle blushed and looked embarrassed. She covered up by giving the kid a kiss and blowing raspberries on her neck that caused the kid to squeal with laughter.

The clapping subsided and they huddled around her. Their voices swirled around her.

"That was great, Elle."

"It's time to start singing again, Elle. Don't you miss it?"

"Come on Elle, come back. We miss you."

"The audience misses you too."

She hugged the toddler tightly and buried her face in her shoulder. The child had her arms wrapped tightly around Elle's neck. After a minute, Elle lifted her head and looked right at the child.

"What do you think, Audra? Is it time yet?"

The child nodded her head. She spoke very seriously: "Yes, Elle, it's time. I want you to sing again."

Elle gave her a little smile. "OK, baby girl. I'll do it for you."

The kid squealed: "YEAH!" and threw her hands up in the air. The guys cheered and Avi threw his arms around Elle and the kid and hugged them both. There was much shouting and laughter in the room. I enjoyed seeing it, but felt like I didn't belong. I didn't know these people and I wasn't a part of their group. I would have eased my way out of the door, but the room was small and I would not have gone unnoticed.

The dark-haired woman glanced my way and I could hear her ask Elle: "Who's the handsome guy over there?"

She looked over her shoulder at me and smiled. "Come, I'll introduce you."

The women walked over. "Ladies, this is Greg House. He prefers to be called House. He's my neighbor and he's also a doctor at PPTH. House, this is Theresa." She pointed at the dark-haired woman. She had an olive complexion and nice brown eyes. I would bet money that she was Italian. "Theresa is Billy's wife. They run Satchel's together."

Elle pointed to the blond woman: "And this is Genevieve, or Gen for short. Gen is married to Adam and she's Audra's mom."

She shifted the child on her hip a little bit, and said: "And this is Audra, our little princess. Audra, meet my friend House."

The child smiled at me and stuck out her hand: "Hello House."

I took her hand gently and said: "I'm very pleased to meet you, Princess Audra." She was a little blondie, like her mom. She giggled at me.

"Mommy, he called me princess."

Gen answered her daughter: "I heard him, sweetie. Well, you are our little princess. Come here, you're going to wear Elle out." She transferred to her mother's arms and then wiggled to get down. Audra set out to explore the apartment.

Theresa said: "Oh, we brought some stuff for you." She walked over and grabbed the bags and set them on the kitchen counter. Theresa pulled out several cartons of ice cream that causes Elle to squeal in delight.

"It's Mike's, right?" asked Elle. Theresa nodded affirmatively and placed the carton into the freezer. "There's plenty of vanilla to go on the brownies."

Elle exclaimed: "Oh, the brownies! I forgot to put them in." She took the pans and placed them in the now heated oven. She picked up a timer, set it and placed it back on top of the stove.

Gen brought over the box that she carried in. She pulled out 3 small flowering plants that Elle squealed over. I heard Gen said that they were African violets. Whatever. They looked nice.

Billy wandered over to the refrigerator to get another beer. He looked at me quizzically as if to ask if I wanted another one. I nodded and he handed me another bottle. He stood by me and we watched the woman talk animatedly.

Billy took a swallow of his beer and said: "This is the happiest I've seen her in months. It's really good, her getting this apartment and that job. Now she says she's going to sing again." He smiled and nodded. "It's great, man. She hasn't sung since it happened. The boys are flippin' out there that she's coming back."

"She was really depressed?"

"Depressed doesn't even begin to cover it. Catatonic, maybe. Definitely despondent. Not quite suicidal, but we watched her, just in case. It was such a huge blow. She lost everything in a 6-week period. But she's tough. She's bounced back. It's really good to see her smile again."

He stepped away from me and called to his wife: "Hey, Theresa. Where's the housewarming present we got for Elle?"

She replied: "It's in one of these bags. Hey, guys, come in here."

The boys dropped what they were doing and wandered into the kitchen. Audra came in riding on her daddy's shoulders.

Elle protested: "You didn't have to do that. You guys have all done enough."

Theresa said: "Oh, hush, girl. It's an old Italian tradition."

Out of one bag, Theresa pulled a loaf of bread and handed to Elle.

"Here is bread, so that your house will never know want, and there will always be food."

Elle took it from her and smiled her thanks. "Ooooo, and it's challah too."

She looked at me and said: "French toast for breakfast tomorrow." There was a big smile on her face.

Theresa laughed and handed her a container of salt: "Salt, so that your life will always have flavor." Elle accepted the salt from her.

Theresa went on: "And last, but not least, the tradition is to give a bottle of wine so that there will always be happiness in the house. But Billy and I thought you might like this better than wine." With a flourish, she pulled out a bottle of scotch. Elle gasped. My eyes got big. It was a bottle of 15-year-old Laphroaig, rather expensive stuff.

Elle had tears in her eyes. "This is so expensive. You shouldn't have."

Billy simply said: "You're worth it." Elle put her hand over her mouth and looked like she was going to cry. She managed to compose herself and walked over to Billy and gave him a hug. He wrapped her up in a big bear hug and Theresa came over and hugged on her too.

The guys were quiet for a minute, and then Avi broke the silence. "That's it. Make us look bad, that we didn't get her a present."

Elle broke away from her hug. She swiped at her eyes. "I don't need any presents, really. I have you all. I don't know what I would have done without you these past months. You're my family."

Avi retorted: "Well, you are our little sister. We gotta look after you."

She smiled at him: "You know guys, I can't tell you how I really feel without crying and I don't feel like crying today. So let me just say 'thank you'. Thank you, all of you. And we should break open this scotch and all have a snort."

Gen found some paper cups in the cabinet and Elle broke open the bottle. She poured cups for all of us and passed them out. When we all had a cup, she lifted hers and said: "To my family. To Avi, Adam, Gen, Audra, Billy, Theresa, Danny and Lenny. Thank you for your love and support through these last few tough months." Elle looked at each of them in turn as she spoke their names. Then she looked at me. "To House, my new friend. Thank you for all your support this week and all the dinners you fed me." She smiled at me and I gave her a small smile back. She raised her cup high and said: "To a fresh start."

We echoed her sentiment and slowly sipped that expensive scotch. It burned beautifully going down. I watched Elle drink hers. She had closed her eyes and sipped slowly, savoring each drop. When she finished, she told Billy that it was the most exquisite scotch that she had ever had. She looked relaxed and happy.

Elle looked around at the group; we were all staring at her. "What are ya doing? Let's get back to work. The furniture isn't going to build itself, you know."

Avi replied: "Ah, the slave driver is back." They all laughed. People started shuffling towards the living room. Avi hung back and went over to her.

He asked: "Are you really coming back?" He sounded like he was pleading with her.

She put her hands on his shoulders and said softly: "Yeah, I'm really coming back. We play next Saturday, right?"

I could see Avi grin: "Right." He wrapped his arms around her waist, picked her up and swung her around. She laughed as he spun them around. He finally put her back down. She took his face in her hands and kissed him on each cheek. Avi rested his forehead on hers for a moment, and then Elle leaned away. "Go on, get back to work. There'll be brownies shortly. I put in extra chips just for you." She gave him a very affectionate smile. He smacked her butt and walked off. She chuckled and turned towards the stove to check the timer. Then she turned around to head to the living room and our eyes met. Elle walked over to me and stopped very close to me. She was definitely inside my personal space, but I didn't seem to mind. She said softly: "I'm really glad you're here." She wrapped her arms around my neck and my arms automatically reached around her back. I pulled her close and breathed in her scent. Her hair smelled like citrus, I wondered if it was her shampoo. Underneath the citrus smell was another scent. I smelled it on my pillow this morning. The smell of Elle. I held on tightly. I wanted to keep that scent in my nostrils forever.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_**Elle**_

I don't know what came over me, but I threw my arms around House's neck and gave him a hug. He hugged me back, and we stood there for several minutes. I breathed in his scent. He smelled like coffee and scotch and something else, something very male. I thought back to this morning.

I woke to my cell phone alarm. I reached over and shut it off. I felt a pressure against my foot and realized that House still had his leg pressed up against my foot. His touch was comforting. I had rolled onto my right side and watched him sleep. He was on his left side facing me. His hands were curled in loose fists and tucked up under his chin. He looked like a little kid and I wanted to reach over and stroke his face. I was afraid that I'd wake him, so I didn't.

Now, as I stood in his embrace, I felt the same way I had felt this morning, very safe and comforted. I didn't want to move, and I wondered how he felt. After a few minutes, I felt him shift his weight and I wondered if this was bothering his leg. So I gently pulled away. He cupped my cheek with his large hand and gently stroked my face with his thumb.

"Nice family you got," he said.

I smiled at him: "Welcome to my tribe."

"Hmm, are there initiation rituals to undergo? I don't have to get circumcised or anything, do I?"

I cracked up. "No, we just spit in our hands and rub them together. Then we swear to be family forever."

"Hmm, couldn't we just exchange saliva some other way? It would keep our hands from getting sticky."

I blushed at him. He had a twinkle in his eye that was very appealing. I felt a tingling in my lower abdomen that hadn't been there in a very long time. Greg House was turning me on. Kissing him seemed like a good idea.

I answered: "We don't usually do that, but perhaps we could make an exception this time." I thought I sounded a little breathless.

House leaned down and brushed his lips against mine. Then he gently took my lower lip between his and he sucked on it very gently. My lips parted and I felt his tongue slip in just a little ways. Then it retreated and I slipped my tongue in his mouth for just a moment. He backed away with my lower lip captured between his and then he broke the kiss. I looked into his eyes and felt warm all over. Involuntarily my hips pushed against his and I could feel his attraction towards me. He gave me a small smile and pushed against me just a bit to let me know he felt it also.

With a slight snark to his voice, he asked: "So am I in the tribe now?"

"Yes, I think that was most likely an adequate spit exchange."

He raised his left eyebrow at me: "Only adequate?"

I gulped: "Oh, no, I mean it was," He cut me off by kissing me again. It was harder this time and there was more tongue. My fingers had a mind of their own and wandered up into his hair. He had one hand on the small of my back keeping me pressed up against him. The other hand was on the back of my neck pushing me as close to him as possible. It felt so good and I didn't want him to stop. We did finally have to come up for air.

"I hope that was more than adequate."

"Oh, yeah. A Ten."

"Ten, huh? Is that how good I kiss or is that how big you think I am?"

I blushed, but I could give it right back when I felt like it. I looked him straight in the eye and simply said: "Both."

He looked pleasantly surprised, but Audra calling for me interrupted us.

I gave him a gentle hip bump and pulled away. I walked into the living room to see what Audra wanted. I smiled to myself knowing he would have to wait a minute to calm down before he could join us. I couldn't believe how high I felt.

I found Audra in the middle of the living room with a puzzled look on her face. "What's up, baby girl?"

She looked up at me with this sad little face: "Elle, where's Rocco?"

The room went silent. I could feel my bubble burst. She missed Rocco and had forgotten that my dog was gone. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gen approaching with a worried look on her face but I waved her away. I picked Audra up and gently stroked her hair away from her face.

"Sweetie, Rocco isn't here anymore. Remember how I told you that he was old for a dog and it was his time."

OK, so I lied to the kid. We all did. There was no way we were telling a 3-year-old that the dog had been stabbed to death during my assault.

Her little face scrunched up like she was going to cry. I floundered around thinking of someway to circumvent those tears.

I spied my laptop on the dining room table. "Hey, I know. Let's look at our favorite pictures of Rocco, OK? I'll pull them up on my computer. You know, my favorite one is the one of you sleeping on him when you were just a baby."

She brightened up a little: "Yeah, I like that one too. But my favorite is the one where I'm riding him."

"Yeah, that's a good one too." The family was hovering around, making sure I was OK. House picked up on the vibration and moved closer to me. I opened my laptop and powered up. I quickly found my photo file and turned it on. Audra needed a distraction so I suggested that she show the pictures to House. "He didn't get to meet Rocco so you could tell him all about the pictures, OK? The timer just went off and I need to take the brownies out of the oven."

She agreed to show the photos to House. I shot him a desperate look and he came over. He patiently sat down next to Audra and she started going through the slide show with him.

I wandered into the kitchen to pull the brownies out. Gen followed me.

Gen is French Canadian; she hails from Montreal. When we are alone, we speak French together.

She asked me in French: _"Are you OK? I don't know why she asked about him. It's like she forgot everything we told her."_

I shrugged: _"I'm fine. She's only 3. She just didn't remember."_

She touched my arm: _"I know you miss him."_

"_I do miss him. It would be a lot less lonely if he were around."_

I took a deep breath. _"But I'm really doing better. I started my job; I got moved into my new apartment. I'm going to start singing next week. Things are turning around."_

I pulled the brownies out of the oven and set them down on the counter that divided the kitchen from the living room. As I did so, I saw House looking at me. Then he said: "_You didn't tell me that you speak French."_

He smiled as he realized my embarrassment that he had understood my conversation with Gen. Fortunately, I had not said anything embarrassing like the fact I was attracted to him.

_**House**_

The kiss was delicious and I found myself responding to her. Surprising since only a few days before I had referred to her as a damaged rape victim.

Yeah, she has her damaged parts but so do I. There were also some very attractive parts about her and I wanted to know more. I took the second kiss deeper and she responded in kind. I felt my arousal growing and I know she could feel it too. We finally had to breathe. She told me I was a '10'. I asked if that was my score as a kisser or her estimate as to my length. She blushed, but gave it right back to me by saying "both". We were interrupted by the kid before we could take this any further. For some reason the kid was looking for the dog. Elle calmed her and opened her laptop for the kid to look at some photos. She told the kid to show them to me as her eyes begged me to help her out. I decided to do it, but she was going to owe me.

The little princess was cute as she showed me the photos.

"Here's me as a baby sleeping on Rocco". The first picture was a surprise. I don't know what kind of dog I expected Elle to own, but a pit bull wasn't even on the list. Here was a photo of this big ferocious-looking pit bull with the princess using him as a pillow.

"Here's me riding on Rocco." This was a slightly older princess sitting on his back as if he were a pony.

"Here he is, kissing Uncle Avi. And this one is nice, with Elle." That one showed Elle hanging out the drivers' side window and Rocco hanging out the back seat window. Elle was mimicking the dog by putting her hands on the car door in the same position as his paws and both their tongues were hanging out panting. It was cute.

"I like this one too, they are sleeping together." This photo showed Elle curled up on a leather sofa with the dog sleeping at her feet.

"And this one's my favorite." This photo showed Elle with Audra in her lap and Rocco lying by their side. Avi, Adam and Gen were kneeling behind them. It must have been taken right before he was killed because Audra looked only a little younger in this photo.

I told her: "That is a nice one." Audra went on flipping photos and talking about them, but I became distracted when I heard Elle and Gen speaking in French. Elle's accent was perfect. Where did she learn to speak such perfect French?

I turned and looked at her. I managed to catch her eye as she set the brownies down on the counter. In French, I said to her: "_You didn't tell me that you spoke French" _I smiled in amusement at her surprised look.

She simply said: "_My mother was French"_

Then she turned and took the other pan out of the oven and set it on the counter. I smiled, watching her.

Audra tugged on me and I returned my attention to the child. She showed me the rest of the photos until the end of the slide show. Then she got down and went over to investigate what her daddy was doing. Adam and Avi were working on building the Ikea entertainment center. They were making pretty good progress. Billy and Theresa were working on one of the end tables and Danny and Lenny were just about to finish building the coffee table. The furniture was a stained pine, but it was solid wood, not particleboard. So despite the fact that you have to build it yourself, it was decent quality for the price. The stain matched the 3 bookcases that were standing against one wall. Elle and Gen were still in the kitchen, chatting softly in French. I felt a little awkward that I wasn't helping in some way. But her tribe seemed to work so well together that I felt I would just be in the way. I was about to make my excuses to leave when Elle called us into the kitchen for brownies.

OK, not leaving now.

The furniture building continued after the brownie break. Danny and Lenny finished the coffee table and started on the 2nd end table. Avi and Adam needed a hand holding a shelf in place while screwing it together so I awkwardly sat on the floor and helped them out. We got it put together and placed against the wall where Elle indicated. The room was really coming together. The futon had an end table on each side and the coffee table in front of it. All that remained were boxes of books and other miscellaneous items. Avi started unpacking a box of DVD's and arranging them on a shelf of the entertainment stand. Suddenly he let out a roar: "Is this all your DVD's? Where's 'Galaxy Quest?' Where's 'Groundhog Day'? There's nothing in here but your British comedies and the old stuff." He turned to Elle and he looked really pissed off.

She seemed embarrassed by his outburst. She tried to placate him: "Avi, you know I couldn't take everything." Avi continued to spew curses.

"What difference does it make? I don't even have a TV right now. Please, Avi, don't do this."

He exploded: "Son of a Bitch!" He got up and stormed out of the apartment.

Elle stared at the door and her lip trembled. Theresa put her arm around her, but I wasn't sure if Elle even sensed her presence. Gen gave her husband a look and said: "Go after him." Adam shook his head: "Uh-uh. I know to stay away from him when he's in that kind of mood. Let him go work it off." Audra looked like she was going to start to cry and Gen picked her up.

Elle took a deep breath and scrubbed her hands over her face. I thought I could see the gears turning inside her head. She let out a forced laugh: "That Avi. Always the drama queen, right?" There was a chorus of subdued 'yeah's' around the room. Elle walked over and finished emptying the box of DVD's that Avi had started. That seemed to break the spell everyone was under. The guys started opening the boxes of books. Elle dictated where she wanted them placed on the bookshelves: medical books on the right hand side, comic books on the left side and everything else in between.

I asked: "What kind of comic books do you have?"

She replied: "Tintin and Asterix. The French versions."

My left eyebrow went up. It was unusual to find an American familiar with those comics. I had lived all over Europe while my dad transferred from one military base to another. I used to read them when I was a kid, but rarely saw them here. Her copies were mostly decent looking hardback editions.

Billy was digging through another box and called to her: "Hey, Elle, here's the work stuff you were looking for."

She went over to him and examined the contents: "Oh good. I need this stuff for Monday. Just leave it all in the box, Billy." He set it in a corner under the kitchen counter so it would be out of the way.

After about an hour, we had almost everything unpacked. Danny and Lenny tore down the boxes and took them around back where the trashcans and recycling bins were kept. As they walked back in the door, Avi walked back in with a package. He seemed much calmer, almost contrite as he handed the package to Elle. She shot him a questioning look, and he gestured to her to open it. She pulled out a handful of movies. A smile broke across her face: "Avi, you didn't have to do this."

"Yeah, whatever. You have to have these. Who's going to watch them with me and cheer me up whenever Ricky and I have a fight?" He wouldn't look her in the eyes.

"Well, you better not have any fights until I get a TV." She walked over and wrapped him up in a hug and he returned the hug. He kissed her forehead and I heard him mumble: "My sweet baby sister."

Adam smirked: "Avi, that's probably the nicest thing you've ever done. Even though it was partially selfish, since YOU want to watch the movies with her." The guys started laughing.

Elle held up her hand: "Stop it. It was sweet. Let's just leave it there."

Audra tugged at Elle: "What did Uncle Avi get you?"

Elle bent down to show her: "Look, sweetie, he got me 'Galaxy Quest', 'Groundhog Day', 'Scrooged', 'Four Weddings and a Funeral', 'the Wedding Singer, and Ooooo, 'The Fifth Element'. Avi, you got that one cuz you like looking at Bruce Willis' bod."

He laughed: "Honey, we BOTH like his bod. He looks fab in that movie."

She admitted: "Yeah, you're right." She clutched the movies to her chest and smiled at Avi: "Thank you." Her voice was so soft I could hardly hear her, but Avi just acknowledged her thanks with a nod. He moved over to her and took the DVD's and placed them on the shelf next to the others.

It was almost 4PM. There were only 2 or 3 boxes left to unpack. Billy and Theresa excused themselves, as they needed to go to the bar for the evening.

Everyone else started grabbing their things and making their way out. Elle thanked each one profusely with an accompanying hug. Finally it was just the two of us left. Elle walked into the kitchen, calling to me if I wanted a beer. I answered affirmatively and sat down on the futon. I could hear her opening the refrigerator and the clink of the bottles. Then I heard her shuffling through the CD cases. She walked over to the boom box and slid in a CD. The sounds of Stevie Ray Vaughn filled the room. Elle came over and sat down next to me and handed me a beer. She leaned her head back against the futon and closed her eyes.

After a few minutes, she said: "I can't believe we got all this done so fast."

I heard a big sigh of relief. "Feels good to be settled again." She took a swig of beer, toed off her sneakers and plopped her feet on the new coffee table. I stared at her socked feet; then watched as she toed off her socks too. Then she settled her feet back on the coffee table. Her eyes remained closed and her upper body immobile while she accomplished this task.

I leaned back and drank my beer. It felt very comfortable just sitting her with her. It would have been nice to have a TV so I could flip channels, but she had great taste in music. We sat in silence and listened to Stevie sing.

I finished my beer and glanced over at her. She was still resting her head on the back of the futon, eyes closed and her right big toe was keeping time to the beat. She looked extremely relaxed. I noticed her beer was also gone. I reached over to take the bottle from her and my touch shook her out of her reverie.

She smiled at me: "Hey. I guess I just zoned out for a bit there. So, how about French toast in the morning? It could be the first of those 14 meals I owe you."

"Oh, you owe me more than 14 now. I looked at photos with the kid and I helped put together furniture. You know, I'm a cripple, it don't come easy for me to do that."

She sputtered: "You mean, anytime you do me a favor I owe you more food?"

"Yep."

"Oh, so that's how it works. Well, it is good to know the rules now. So how many am I up to now?"

I pondered for a minute: "Hmm, looking at photos, that adds on 3 more. Putting together furniture, I would say, that's another 3. We'll just make it an even 20."

She just nodded with an amused look on her face. "You didn't think the photos were cute? Baby Audra sleeping on Rocco?"

"You let a baby nap on a pit bull? Are you nuts or something?"

She snorted: "Rocco was the most gentle dog you'll ever meet. He was really good with kids. Kids have pulled his ears, hit him with sticks, tugged on his lip and he would just stand there and take it. Actually he would try to disarm them by licking them, and that usually worked."

"You're serious? I thought pit bulls were vicious dogs. There are always articles in the paper about them attacking people."

Elle shrugged: "There are bad dogs in every breed. Pit bulls were originally bred to subdue bulls by biting them on the nose and holding on until the bull submitted. Then they were used in dog fighting. The original breeders did not tolerate any aggression towards humans. If a dog bit a human, that dog was immediately put down. Of course, people have exploited their qualities and used them for bad purposes just like with dobies and rottweilers. You know, Pete the pup from the 'Our Gang' movies was a pit bull."

"No, I didn't know that."

She nodded: "Pit bulls used to be a very popular family pet. During World War I, a pit bull appeared on pro-American propaganda posters. Helen Keller, John Steinbeck and Humphrey Bogart all owned pit bulls. So did General George Patton, Teddy Roosevelt and President Wilson. Pit Bulls are basically hard-wired to listen to their owners. It makes training them fairly easy. They are born to please their owners. Rocco was well trained. I trusted him completely with Audra. The only person he ever bit was the guy who assaulted me. He bit him on the right forearm and didn't let go until he was dead. Pit bulls are tenacious and they don't give up. The attacker ended up in the hospital with infection in the bite wound, that's how they caught him. They were able to match the marks on the bite wound to Rocco's bite."

As she spoke, I turned to face her and saw the tears brimming under her eyelashes. She quickly turned away from me without opening her eyes. As she stood, she brought her hand up and quickly wiped her face. Still facing away, she asked if I wanted another beer. I knew she wanted to escape to the kitchen for a minute, so I just said yes. She grabbed the empties from my hand without looking at me and headed into the kitchen.

I stood up and walked over to the bookcases. I called to her: "So how did you get into reading French comics?"

She returned with two fresh beers. "My mom had quite a collection. She would read them to me until I learned to read for myself. After they died and I had to go into foster care, I was only allowed one suitcase and my guitar. There's only so much that you can put into one suitcase, and I had to fit my clothes in there too. So I took one photo album, my 'Petit Prince' book and 'Asterix and Cleopatra', which was Mamma's favorite book. The other books disappeared along with the rest of their belongings."

Elle reached up and took down a battered copy of 'Asterix and Cleopatra'. She flipped in open and showed me a signature on the front page: 'Rachelle Morganthal'. "That was Mamma's maiden name. She had signed all of her comic books. When I was older, I would hound the used bookstores looking for more of her books. I was able to find a few of them." She pointed to a row of 6 or 7 battered looking copies on the top shelf.

"You found all of these, years later?" I pulled down a battered copy of 'Asterix the Gaul' and checked the front page. Sure enough, Rachelle Morganthal's signature was there.

She nodded. "Yes, I found the older ones on the top shelf. The newer copies I bought at a French bookstore in Manhattan. Have you ever been to 'Librairie de France' at Rockefeller Center? It's a great bookstore. I buy all of my French books there."

"I've never been there. I'll have to check it out next time I'm in Manhattan."

I returned the book to the shelf. Still holding 'Asterix and Cleopatra', Elle walked back to the futon and sat down. She sipped her beer and lightly stroked the book's cover with her fingertips. I limped over and sat down next to her. I stretched my arm across the back of the futon behind her.

"Will you read it to me?" I asked her softly.

She looked up startled. "Why would you want me to read to you? I know you could read it for yourself."

"I could, but you have such a beautiful accent that I'd rather hear it from you."

She looked at me for a minute with a puzzled look on her face. Then she shrugged and said OK.

I patted the futon next to me: "Sit closer so I can see the pictures as you read."

She giggled: "You really are a little kid, aren't you?" But she moved right next to me and I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. She snuggled into my side and propped her feet up on the coffee table. Placing the book on her propped up knees, she opened it and began to read. In this adventure, Asterix travels to Egypt to help a hapless architect design and complete a palace that Cleopatra is building for Caesar. The story is cute and the drawings are fantastic. I was mesmerized by Elle's voice. Her accent was so perfect and her voice was melodious. It was extremely relaxing to sit there and be read to. It was like being a little kid again. I could remember my mom reading to me. I would sit on her lap feeling all safe and warm. That same feeling crept over me as Elle read on. I hadn't felt that relaxed in years. There was warmth along my left side with Elle's body pressed up against me. We laughed together at the silliness of the adventures in the book. It took her about an hour and a half to finish reading it. "Fini," she finally said. I kissed the top of her head and whispered "thank you." We continued to sit, pressed up together for a while longer.

I felt my stomach rumble and asked if she were hungry. She replied in the affirmative. We decided to order Thai and eat at my place while watching a movie. I really wanted to see Galaxy Quest. Elle wanted to take a quick shower, so I went back to my place and ordered the food. Elle walked over with the movies right before the food arrived. She smelled squeaky clean and her hair was still wet, tied back in a loose ponytail. She had changed into black yoga pants and a Tweety bird tank top. We ate in the living room while watching Galaxy Quest. I could see why she and Avi liked this movie so much. It was really funny.

We were snuggled up together on the couch. The coffee table was littered with the remains from dinner. It felt very comfortable being with her.

"There are some brownies left. Should I get them?"

"Oh, yeah, that would be great. Is there any ice cream left also?"

"Yes, Theresa brought quite a lot. I'll be right back."

She went out the door to her apartment. I took a moment to clear the coffee table and dump the trash in the can. Elle returned with two bowls containing brownies with vanilla ice cream on top. She had warmed the brownies so that the ice cream was melting a little. She handed me one bowl and set the other on the coffee table. Then she went over to the TV and popped out Galaxy Quest and popped in another movie.

She sat down and picked up her bowl. "Hope The Fifth Element is OK."

I nodded, since my mouth was full. She smiled, and started to eat.

By the time the second movie had finished, it was almost midnight. Elle yawned and stretched. "I should go to bed. I was up way too early for a Saturday. Thanks for dinner." She started to get up, but I grabbed her arm. She looked at me questioningly. I wanted her to stay, but I didn't know how to ask her. I looked away from her and said: "You could stay here again tonight if you want. You still didn't buy a night light today."

She sat back down: "Oh, you're right, I didn't. I've got to do that tomorrow." She looked away from me and said: "I don't want to bother you again."

"You don't bother me. Look, after you came to my bed last night, did you have another nightmare?"

She shook her head: "No."

"So, maybe, you feel safer sleeping with me and you can relax into a deeper sleep."

She said slowly: "Yes, that's possible. But I can't do this all the time. You'll start charging me rent for sleeping here."

I smiled. She could be snarky too. "I just want food. When are you going to start cooking for me?"

She sighed: "Tomorrow, I can make you breakfast. But honestly, after that, I need to wait until payday to buy some decent groceries."

"You don't have any money?"

"I have a little bit, but not much. Not enough for meat and the stuff I want to cook for you."

"I want you to cook. I didn't say you had to buy all the groceries." I reached into my wallet and took out two hundred dollars and placed it in her hand.

"Here. This is for the first round of groceries. You can get the next round."

She looked shocked at the money. "You're serious?"

"Absolutely. By the way, can you make meatloaf and mashed potatoes?"

Elle nodded.

"Great. Can you make that tomorrow night? I have a craving for it."

A slow smile spread over her face. She nodded her head: "Sure. No problem. Let me know if you have any other requests."

I waggled my eyebrows at her: "Oh, I will. Now, come on. Go brush your teeth and come to bed."

She nodded slowly: "OK." She stood up, collected the bowls and heading out to her apartment. While she was gone, I changed into my pajamas and brushed my teeth. I poured a double shot of scotch and washed down two Vicodins with it. The pain was fairly tolerable tonight, but I like to have meds on board so I can sleep.

Elle walked back in and dropped her keys and cell phone on the coffee table. I offered her a shot, which she accepted. We headed to the bedroom carrying our drinks. I pulled the covers back and we settled in.

I picked up my novel and put on my reading glasses. "Will it disturb you if I read for a while?"

"No, of course not. What are you reading?"

I showed her the cover: "Robin Cook's latest."

"Is it any good?"

"It's alright for a sleep inducing read."

"Will you read to me?"

"I'm in the middle of the book. You won't know what's going on."

"That's OK. I just want to hear your voice; it's very soothing."

No one has ever told me that before. "OK."

She snuggled up next to me and tentatively placed her hand on my arm. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her closer so that her head ended up on my shoulder. Her arm snaked across my waist. I kissed her forehead and whispered: "I got you. You're safe." I heard a sigh and felt her body relax. With my left arm wrapped around her, I opened the book with my right hand and started to read.

I couldn't believe he asked me to sleep with him again. I really wanted to, but I didn't want to ask. That would be very forward of me, and I didn't want him to get the wrong idea. Not that I'm not attrached to him, because I am. I just don't think I should act on that. He's been very nice to me, and I value his friendship. Sleeping with him last night was the best sleep I had had since the attack. We got into bed and I huddled closer to him as he started to read. Somehow he sensed my need and he wrapped his arm around me and pulled me closer. He said: "I got you. You're safe." I felt his lips brush my forehead. I did feel safe. I knew I could sleep now. House started to read and I closed my eyes.

I read aloud until I noticed that Elle was asleep. Then I read to myself until I felt sleepy enough to turn off the light. I gently shifted her head off of my shoulder onto a pillow. She stirred, but settled right back down. Her arm was still flung across my waist. She looked so sweet and small. I brushed her hair away from her face, taking my time arranging it across the pillow. It was so pretty and soft. I reached over and turned off the light, and then rolled on my left side to face her. I gently laid my arm across her waist and fell asleep with my hand resting on the small of her back.

_**Wilson shows up**_

House wasn't answering either of his phones as usual. The game started at 1PM, and we had to drive to Philly to see it. The Phillies was playing the Red Sox, so it should be a good game. I left the house early before Julie could start up about my spending Sunday with House instead of with her. I figured we could have brunch and then head out to Philly. I banged on his door and naturally there was no answer. So I let myself in with my key. The apartment was very quiet. I noticed some keys and a cell phone on the coffee table. Crap, I hope he doesn't have company. But he never lets his hookers sleep over, so I brushed that thought aside and headed down the hall to his room. The door was partially ajar and I pushed it the rest of the way open. He wasn't alone. I saw long brown hair draped across the pillow and House's arm draped across her body. Her back was facing the door and she was dressed in a tank top. The blanket was pulled up to her hips so that was all I could see. House had his chin resting on top of her head. He looked very peaceful in his sleep. Well, I was about to disturb that.

I stage-whispered: "House! House! Wake up!" I crept closer and pinched his forearm. That worked and he jerked and opened his eyes. The surprise on his face was worth it. He seemed genuinely shocked to see me. I looked pointedly at the girl and back at him. A wave of emotions passed over his face like I had never seen before. He was pretty vulnerable when he has just woken up; I'll have to remember that. He motioned to me to leave the room and I backed out, keeping my eyes on him. He rolled over and sat up; then slowly stood up and limped over to his cane, hanging on the doorknob. He left the bedroom, shutting the door behind him. He staggered into the bathroom and I followed him.

House had awakened enough to get snarky: "What, you want to watch me pee? This isn't the men's room at the hospital. There's only one toilet here, you'll have to wait your turn."

I laughed and turned my back to give him a bit of privacy while he peed. "So who's that in your bed? And why are you not sleeping naked with her?"

He finished and flushed. "It's not like that. We were just sleeping. We're not having sex."

"What?! You have a gorgeous woman sleeping in your bed and you're not having sex with her? Who are you and what have you done with the real House?"

"Shut up, moron." He washed his hands, and then proceeded down the hall to the kitchen. I kept quiet until we reached the kitchen.

"Seriously, what is going on? I came over early to see if you wanted to have brunch before the game. You don't answer the phone or the door, so I let myself in. And I find you sleeping with a woman and you won't talk about it except to say you were only sleeping, not screwing. This is weird, even for you."

He started fiddling with the coffee pot. "There's nothing to talk about."

"Oh, I think there is. I'm not letting you off the hook that easily. I can wait you out. The game can keep until I hear this story."

A female voice piped in: "Oh, you're going to a game? Do you have time for breakfast before you go?"

She was so quiet we didn't hear her come down the hall. My mouth hung open in surprise. It was Elle and she was directing the question at House.

_**Elle**_

I woke up, surprised to find House already out of bed. Then I heard voices down the hall. I immediately recognized Wilson's voice. Boy, this could be embarrassing. I'm sure he'll think we are sleeping together. I giggled at that thought. We were sleeping together, but not in the usual meaning of that phrase. I got out of bed and decided to just be very nonchalant about the whole thing.

I padded down the hall very quietly. I heard Wilson say something about the game can keep until he has heard the story. Guess they are going to a game today. So my first question to House was: "Oh, you're going to a game? Do you have time for breakfast before you go?"

I could see he felt bad that Wilson had discovered us. I could read it in his eyes; he didn't have to say a word. I gave him a slow wink with my left eye, so that Wilson couldn't see it. I didn't want him to feel bad about this. House seemed unable to talk right then so I continued blabbering on: "How about this? You shower and get dressed, and I'll go make breakfast. By the time you're ready, I should have breakfast on the table."

I turned to Wilson: "Are you hungry? I was going to make French toast, bacon and coffee."

He nodded slowly: "Yeah, that would be great."

I shrugged: "OK. Come over when you're ready." I walked over to the coffee table and picked up my keys and cell phone and headed over to my apartment. There was utter silence behind me as I shut the door.

_**House**_

I closed my eyes as I waited for the outburst from Wilson. His lips moved for a minute until the sound could finally come out: "You're sleeping with Elle?"

I sighed: "OK. We're not really sleeping together. We were watching TV late last night and we'd been drinking, so she just crashed here. It's not a big deal."

Oh, but it is a big deal. When was the last time someone spent the night with you? You never let hookers spend the night,,"

I angrily cut him off: "She's not a hooker. She just spent the night. Just drop it. And don't mention it to her, OK? She is probably embarrassed. I'm sure she doesn't want anyone to know she spent a night cuddled up to this old crippled curmudgeon."

"It's not like she had to drive home drunk. She just had to stagger across the hall. Something's up with you two and I want to know." He sat back in the chair, arms and legs crossed as if he was going to wait me out.

"Are you going to be like this all day? If you are, I'm not going to the game. I don't feel like being subjected to the 3rd degree all the way to Philly and back."

"Now, you know how I feel when you get on one of your crusades to find out something about me. Tit for tat, House."

"Screw you. Are you going to drop it or not? I can uninvite you to breakfast and you can just head out to Philly on your lonesome."

"I'm hungry, so I'll drop it for now. Take your shower, get dressed so we can go eat."

I grumbled down the hall and headed into the bathroom. As I turned on the shower and waited for the water to get hot, I ruminated on the fact that I was feeling so protective of her. I finally decided it was because I didn't want to see her get hurt. She had been badly hurt by rumors at her last job and I hoped it wouldn't happen at PPTH. I showered quickly and limped into the bedroom to dress. I headed back to the kitchen to find it empty. Shit! He must have gone over to Elle's without me. Great. No time to get our stories straight. I cursed him under my breath and headed over there.

I found them chatting amicably; Wilson was sitting on one of the stools and Elle was in the kitchen. There was some interesting blues on the boom box, a group of women that I hadn't heard before. They both turned around when I walked in. Elle said: "Your timing is great. Everything's ready."

She poured me a cup of coffee, added a spoon of sugar and handed it to me. As I took it from her, our fingers brushed together. I thanked her and took a sip. So yesterday had not been a fluke. She really could make coffee. Elle handed me a bottle of syrup and told us to go sit at the table. She brought over plates with French toast and bacon. She sat down and we dug it. It was delicious. When we had finished, we sat back and sipped our coffee. I was dying to talk to her alone, but I couldn't figure out how to get rid of Wilson. The CD ended and the room became silent.

I asked Elle: "Who were we listening to?"

"That was Saffire, the Uppity Blues Women. Did you like them?"

"Yeah, I did actually. Can I borrow your CD sometime?"

She shrugged: "Sure. Anytime. So what game are you guys going to?"

Wilson answered: "We're going to see Philly play the Red Sox. Do you follow baseball?"

Elle answered: "I'll watch it, but I don't follow anyone in particular. I prefer football and hockey."

Wilson asked: "Who do you follow in football?"

"Well, I'm from Florida, so I'm a Dolphin fan. I also watch college ball. My Alma mater is a powerhouse in the SEC so I try to watch those games whenever I can. They are not on up here a lot, though. I usually have to go to the sports bars to catch the action."

"Who's your alma mater?"

"University of Florida. The Gators. They have a huge fan base. There are Gator clubs all over the country, although not here in New Jersey. New York City has a huge one, the Gotham Gator Club. I've partied with those guys, and they're wild. UF has a reputation as a party school and it lives on with its alumni."

She giggled at that last statement. Wilson was about to ask something else, when his cell phone rang. He glanced at it and sighed. "It's Julie. Excuse me for a minute." He stepped outside to answer the call.

Finally we were alone and I could ask her. "Did he grill you?"

She smiled at me and touched my hand: "He tried. I told him that I assumed he had already asked you. And that whatever you told him was the truth. And I told him that I thought it was impolite to ask a lady that you weren't involved with about her bedroom activities. That basically shut him up. I changed the subject and we started talking about cooking. He really likes to cook, huh? I would not have suspected that he was so domestic."

I grinned at her: "Yeah, he's very domestic, yet can't seem to choose the right wife. He's on number three, you know." Elle seemed surprised by that.

"Yeah, number three. I like how you answered him. That was excellent." I picked up her hand and kissed it. "You're very clever."

She blushed, shrugged her shoulders: "Thanks. Hmm, should I still make dinner tonight? I was thinking of 7 or 7:30, if that's OK."

"Oh, yeah, that's fine. The game is at 1PM, so we'll definitely be back by then."

The door opened and Wilson entered. Elle stood up and started gathering the dishes. Wilson pitched in and helped place the dishes in the sink. I contributed by returning the syrup to the cabinet.

Wilson asked Elle what her plans were for the day.

"Oh, I'm going to finish painting the bedroom, go grocery shopping and cook. Oh and I need to go through some work stuff. I need to show you my pain questionnaire to see if you approve of it. If you and Chris agree on it, I'll ask Dr Cuddy if we can have it printed up with the PPTH logo. I can't really use it right now since it has the PMMC logo on it."

"Oh, yeah. I definitely want to see it."

"I'll drop it by your office tomorrow. I'm pretty sure it is in this one box. I just need to dig it out."

Wilson and I said good-bye and we went back to my place so I could grab a baseball cap and my Vicodin. I quickly swallowed two and we headed out.

Wilson noticed: "I got good seats. You won't have to go up a lot of stairs."  
I grunted my thanks and fiddled with the radio.

He glanced at me: "Interesting neighbor, you have."

I nodded and pulled my cap over my eyes: "She's not boring." I zoned out for the rest of the ride to Philly.


	4. Chapter 4

Arielle Chapter 4

_**Elle** _

After the boys left, I cleaned up the kitchen and changed into my painting clothes. The bedroom was so small that it only took me 2 hours to roll it all.

I tore up the tarp and threw all the trash out. Then I took a shower, dressed and headed out to the grocery store with House's 200 bucks.

Oh, it was nice to be able to buy food. I got all the ingredients for meat loaf and mashed potatoes. Zucchini was on sale so I got some of that to sauté with onions, garlic and peppers for our vegetable tonight. I wanted to make a pot of spaghetti sauce from scratch so I grabbed all the necessary items for that. I'd make that today and keep it in the refrigerator all week to use when needed for spaghetti or chicken Parmesan or whatever. I wasn't sure how often I would eat with House, so I didn't plan too far ahead. I stocked up on the basics and could always grab a few items on my way home from work.

I got the groceries unloaded and started the sauce. It takes a while so I wanted to get it going. While it was simmering, I went through that box looking for all the things I needed for work. I found my pharmacist license and my certifications. Finally, I found my pain questionnaire buried in the bottom of the box. It was a long questionnaire, more comprehensive than most of them. When I interview patients about their pain, I want to know as much as possible to help figure out the best course of treatment for them. It's something I really enjoy doing and I think I'm good at it. It's very rewarding to see patients regain a better quality of life. Most of them will always have chronic pain; the trick is to find the right combination of meds/therapy to keep them as comfortable as possible. I wondered if House would ever let me evaluate him. Surely, he could be on a better plan than just popping Vicodin multiple times a day. Well, I mentioned it to him. The ball was in his court now.

The sauce was simmering nicely, so I decided to take a one-hour nap and then start dinner. I put some soft Mozart on the boom box. I laid down on the futon and set my cell phone alarm. I woke at 5:30, feeling somewhat refreshed. I wandered into the kitchen, grabbed a beer and started on the meatloaf.

_**House** _

The game was close, but the Red Sox were on a roll. The Phillies ended up losing in the last inning. I tried not to overindulge in hot dogs and beer, knowing that Elle was cooking for me tonight. I had dodged Wilson's questions on the way to Philly by napping, but that wasn't working on the way back. He kept needling me about her and I was rather annoyed. We sniped at each other the whole way back. I dodged the bullet until we got almost back. Then he mentioned that it would make good gossip to spread around: "What cranky old doctor is sleeping with the new pretty young pharmacist?"

I growled at him: "You wouldn't dare. Why would you do that to her? You know what crap she went through on her last job."

He merely shrugged: "You'd do it to me in a heartbeat. All you have to do is tell me what's going on. I swear to keep my mouth shut. You're very protective of her. That means you like her. I know this about you."

I groaned and rubbed my forehead. "You wouldn't really spread gossip about her, would you? You're going to be working with her."

He chuckled: "Yeah, I would. For once, I have you over a barrel. This is payback for all the crappy things you have done to me."

"But you wouldn't be hurting me. You'd be hurting Elle."

"By doing that, indirectly I'd be getting you too."

"You're mean, Wilson. I always thought you were the nice one."

He nodded towards me: "I learned from the master."

Crap. I tried to think of a plausible lie of why Elle would be sleeping in my bed. The only believable reasons were for sex, or the truth. I didn't want to admit to either one. Wilson had a really determined look on his face. I needed to give him something or he would spread gossip. He liked needy women. Maybe if I showed him a needy side of Elle, he would be more sympathetic.

I sighed loudly. "OK. When I got home Friday night, it was late, almost midnight. There was a light on in her place, so I knocked. She had checked out of the motel and was planning on sleeping on the floor. I convinced her to sleep on my couch instead."

I paused. Wilson glanced at me and said: "That doesn't explain how she ended up in your bed on SATURDAY night."

I sighed again: "Let me finish, moron. She went to sleep on the couch and I went to bed to read. After a while, I heard a noise. She was having a nightmare; fell off the couch in the middle of it. She has been having nightmares since the assault. I didn't want her to fall off the couch again, so I convinced her to come sleep in my bed. She was so tired that she fell asleep almost instantly. My leg was bothering me, so I read for a while, and then went to sleep. Like I said, not a big deal."

"OK. That explains Friday night. What about Saturday?"

"Gawd, you're like a dog with a bone, aren't you?"

"Learned from you, buddy."

I groaned inwardly. He was being ridiculously persistent. "OK. Saturday night, we watched movies until late. She was standing up to leave, when I suggested she stay again. I thought she would get better sleep if she wasn't feeling scared by being alone in her apartment."

He looked puzzled at me: "Why are you being so nice to her?"

"She cooks for me. And she's not boring. You, on the other hand, bore me. And when was the last time you cooked for me?"

He smirked: "Is she going to be your new best friend? Are you going to let her sleep with you all the time so that she's not scared?"

I shook my head: "No."

"I asked you two questions."

"Well, they have the same answer, but keep up the 3rd degree and I'll change my answer to the first question. Seriously, I've told you now. I expect you to keep this to yourself. Don't talk to her about it; it would embarrass her. And don't spread any gossip about her. All right?"

"OK. I got my answers. I'm satisfied. Although I want you to promise to tell me when you do start sleeping together AND having sex." He winked at me.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back: "Yeah, I'll tell you. Pigs will fly and hell will freeze over, but I'll tell you when it happens."

We pulled up in front of my building and got out. I glanced at my watch as we headed to the door. It was almost 7PM. Dinner would be ready soon and I wanted to ditch Wilson. I turned to him and asked: "Don't you need to go home to your wife?"

"Naw, she's pissed that I spent my whole Sunday off with you so she's having dinner with her sister tonight. Wanna get Chinese?"

"Nope. I have dinner plans."

"Ooooo, is Elle cooking tonight? Can I join you?"

"Yes, she is. And no, you can't."

"Ah, you want to be alone with her, huh? I understand." He smirked.

"Go home." I knocked on Elle's door with my cane. I could hear B.B. King on the boom box through the door. After a few seconds, Elle opened the door. I paused when I saw her. She was wearing black hip-hugger jeans and another Tweety Bird tank top; this one had black and gray stripes with Tweety in the middle of her chest. There was about 2 inches of tantalizing white skin showing between the tank top and the jeans. She was barefoot and holding a hammer in one hand and rubbing her left shoulder with the other hand. She looked hot, but grimaced in pain. I stepped in and Wilson followed.

Elle shut the door and walked over to turn down the volume on the boom box. She asked: "How was the game?"

I said: "Phillies lost. Why are you rubbing your shoulder?"

"Oh, I've done a bit too much these last couple of days and it's caught up to me. My shoulder still bothers me if I use it too much. And between the painting and moving, I guess I've overdone it. I was hanging some pictures and it kinda went out on me. I was just going to get some ice when you knocked."

That explained why she had a hammer in her hand. I noticed she had hung a couple of framed photographs and there were more leaning up against the wall. She set the hammer down on the coffee table and grimaced with the movement. I knew that look; I felt like that all the time.

I said to her: "Sit down. Let me look at it." Elle sat on the futon and I sat on her left. I asked her what the pain was like.

"When my shoulder was separated, the tendons were overstretched and the joint separated, right? So now it seems like the tendons are loose and don't hold the joint together properly. So it feels like it is trying to separate again. If I ice it down, it seems to tighten up the tendons again and it goes back in place."

I carefully prodded her shoulder while she spoke. I found a couple of tender spots, but nothing else. She really needed an MRI of her shoulder and I told her so. She nodded: "Well, now that I have insurance again, I guess I could get one. Do you want to be my doctor, or am I diagnostically boring?"

Wilson cracked up with that snark. Even I had to smile. "I'd love to be your doctor, but you might be better off with an ortho. I'd suggest Robinson. Tell him I referred you. That will scare him." She giggled, and then moaned in pain. She glanced over at Wilson: "Would you mind going to the freezer? There's this blue ice pack in there. Could you get it for me?"

Wilson nodded and headed into the kitchen.

She looked at me and said: "Dinner's almost ready. But I think you may have to help me a little bit. I'm not sure I can lift the meatloaf out of the oven with my shoulder like this."

"No problem."

Wilson came back with a fancy ice pack that was made to wrap around the shoulder. Elle said that she had just bought it a few days ago and hoped it worked better than the other ice packs she had used. It was a professional ice pack, the type pro athletes use. It would ice the shoulder and limit her motion while it was on. I set it on her left shoulder and secured it by fastening one strap around her upper left arm and then securing the Velcro that went around her chest. Wilson was giving me the eyeball as I was fastening the Velcro around Elle's chest, but she didn't even flinch.

She smiled at me: "Thanks, House." She looked over at Wilson and asked if he was staying for dinner.

"Uh, I'd love to if that's OK."

"Sure. You are elected to help in the kitchen. House, you're in charge of dinner music and setting the table. First, you both should go wash your hands before dinner."

I mugged: "Yes, Mom." I limped into her bathroom, used it and washed my hands. Wilson opted to wash his hands at the kitchen sink. As Elle said, dinner was almost ready. The potatoes were mashed, and the vegetables were cut. Under Elle's instruction, Wilson sautéed the vegetables in a large skillet. When the timer went off, he removed the meatloaf from the oven and placed in on a platter. Meanwhile, I found a Muddy Waters CD and put that on. Elle pointed out the plates and silverware and I set the table. Wilson brought the platters to the table and we all sat down to eat.

It was the best meal I'd had in a long time. I seriously could not remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal. It was delicious. Even the vegetables were good and I'm not much on the green stuff, but these were really tasty. Elle was eating with one hand, but seemed to be doing OK, as nothing really needed cutting with a knife. I did open the beer bottle for her.

We made small talk during dinner. I gave her the highlights of the game. Wilson asked about the photographs on the wall. It turns out that Elle took them. She likes to shoot black-and-white photos. The ones that were hanging were good and I was interested to see the others. She asked if we could guess the location of one of the photos. The photo depicted some gnarled looking trees, just starting to bud with leaves. The ground looked barren like it was in the desert. Wilson guessed Arizona or New Mexico. Elle shook her head and turned to me. I asked for more time to study the photo. She agreed and we chatted about other topics.

I glanced at my watch and then said: "Elle, you've had that cold pack on for more than 30 minutes. You need to take it off before you get frost bite."

She nodded and started undoing the Velcro straps. I helped her take it off and limped over to place it back in the freezer. She moved her shoulder gingerly. "It's still sore, but I think it's better. I'm going to take some ibuprofen." She wandered into the bathroom and quickly returned with a bottle. She handed it to me: "Child-proof top."

I smirked at her: "And you said I was a little kid? You're so little you can't open these bottles, and you're a pharmacist!"

She whined: "My shoulder hurts." I opened the bottle for her and poured a couple of tablets into her hand. "Thanks".

She went looking for her beer to wash them down. I left the open bottle with the lid off on the kitchen counter in case she needed another dose later.

Meanwhile, Wilson started clearing the table. He stacked the dishes and brought them to the sink. Then he started washing them. Elle stared at him in surprise, then glanced at me. I just shrugged. She nodded and started slowly wrapping up the leftovers.

Wilson finished the dishes and dried his hands on a towel. Elle thanked him and asked if he would grab the large pot on the stove and set it in the refrigerator for her.

Wilson lifted the lid of the pot: "What's this? OH, this smells terrific. You make sauce from scratch?" He rummaged in a drawer until he found a spoon and tasted it. The look on his face was pure ecstasy. "Oh, this is fantastic. House, you gotta taste this." He grabbed another spoon and dipped it into the pot again. He handed it to me and I tasted it. He was right. It was excellent. I had some exquisite Italian meal to look forward to in the near future. I licked the spoon clean and made appreciative yummy noises. "Yum. What are you making me with that terrific sauce?"

"I was thinking spaghetti, maybe some chicken cacciatore, lasagna, stuffed shells. Next time I'm off, I could make manicotti, but I need all day for that as it's a long process."

Wilson's jaw dropped: "You make manicotti from scratch?"

Elle nodded and shrugged as if to say: what's the big deal?

Wilson's enthusiasm grew: "Oh, can you show me how? I would love to be able to make that from scratch."

Elle shrugged again: "Sure."

It was fun watching Wilson get all excited about cooking. Maybe he missed his calling. Perhaps he should have been a chef instead of a doctor. He asked Elle: "Where did you learn to make this stuff? You're not Italian, not with a name like Kaplan."

She giggled: "Italian boyfriend who wanted me to cook like Mama."

I was intrigued now. I liked delving into her past. As Wilson grabbed the pot, and set it in the refrigerator under Elle's direction, I asked: "So who was this Italian boyfriend and what happened to him?"

"We broke up amicably. We're still friends. Actually, he's Theresa's second cousin. That's how I met Theresa and Billy and through them, met the boys."

That was not enough information for me. I like details. "Not much of a story. You weren't together very long."

She replied: "Four years."

I looked surprised. She chuckled: "Did you want the whole story or just the highlights?"

Wilson jumped in: "I want to hear about the cooking part."

I scowled at him: "I prefer the juicy details. So go for the whole story."

She laughed: "You guys are incorrigible. Want brownies and ice cream for dessert? There are enough brownies left for the 3 of us."

Wilson and I responded affirmatively. Elle placed brownies into 3 bowls, heated them in the microwave for a short time and Wilson scooped vanilla ice cream on top of each one. We sat back down at the table to hear Elle's tale. Elle glanced between the two of us as we sat there eagerly awaiting her story.

"You guys are hysterical. Nosy, but hysterical. I met Tony at pharmacy school. We started dating in our 4th year of the 6-year program. He taught me how to cook his favorite dishes. When they didn't come out quite right, he'd call Mama and she would talk me through it over the phone. I was never as good as Mama, but I think I came close. Tony's the only boy in a family of 6 kids. So Mama wanted to be sure he was eating right. We flew up for Christmas during our last year at school and I got hands-on kitchen time with Mama. I helped her and all the sisters with Christmas dinner. It was nice, being a part of such a big family for a while. He's the reason I moved to New Jersey, you know. This is where he's from. So after college, he had always planned on moving back. So I came with him. Our relationship lasted about a year longer, and then we broke up. I liked my job and I had met the boys. We hadn't started playing at Satchel's yet, but we were rehearsing together. I really didn't have anyone back in Florida to return to, so I stayed here. Stop that!"

That last part was addressed to me. I had finished my brownie and was trying to steal some of hers. She hugged the bowl closer to her chest and growled: "Mine."

I grinned and raised my left eyebrow at her. She sure was cute, but I still wanted more brownie and I wanted to hear the rest of the story. I put on the sad puppy-dog face and said 'please' in a very whiny voice. She ate a couple more bites staring right at me. Then she handed the rest of her bowl to me and wiped her face with a napkin. I stared at the bowl incredulously. There was half of it left. I tried to hand it back to her, but she shook her head. "I'm full." I looked at her eyes to see if she really meant it. Her gaze softened and she nodded. I nodded my thanks and finished her dessert.

In between bites, I asked: "So why did you break up?"

"He comes from a very traditional family. Singing in a bar with a band was not their idea of what a woman does, especially a married woman. He wanted me to convert to Catholicism and stay home to raise the kids. I was 26 years old and I wasn't ready for that. I wanted to work and I wanted to sing. I hadn't just spent 6 tough years working my way through college to just stay home. We knew we wouldn't be able to compromise on certain things, especially religion, so we decided to end it before it got ugly. We stayed friends. He met Nancy and married her about a year later. I went to their wedding. I've been to the babies' christenings. They have 2 boys and another baby on the way. They send me a Christmas card every year and Theresa keeps me up to date on the family happenings."

She looked down for a minute and then continued: "They all came to see me when I was in the hospital, the whole family. Mama brought me food. She'd actually feed me when I was in too much pain to feed myself. She made me baby food, orzo and stuff that were easy to digest. It was really nice of them."

She looked back up at us and said in a faux Italian accent: "So, dat's the story of me and Tony. Youse two heard enough?"

Just then Wilson's cell phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and groaned. He looked at me and just said: "Julie."

I shrugged: "Probably time to go home and face the music."

He stood up: "Yeah. Elle, thank you very much for dinner. It was terrific."

"No problem. You're a great guest. You do dishes. I like that in a guest."

She grinned at him. "Actually, you could do me one favor before you go. Could you set this box in my car? I'm afraid I won't be able to carry it and I need to take all this stuff to work tomorrow."

He replied: "Sure, but how will you get it into the hospital in the morning?"

"I'm sure I'll find someone to help me out, or I'll grab a wheelchair and push it in. Oh, and here's a copy of the pain questionnaire. You could just take that with you." Elle grabbed some papers out of the box and handed them to Wilson. He glanced at it quickly, and then rolled it up and shoved it into his back pocket. He picked up the box and they walked outside. Her car was parked right out front. I watched him set the box in the back of her car. He gave her a peck on the cheek and then he walked off to his car. I was staring at the tree photo when Elle walked back in.

"Have you figured it out yet?"

"No, but give me some time." My eyes roamed over the photo, taking it in. Then I turned to her and asked how she was feeling.

She sighed: "It hurts. Do you think it could have separated again?"

"Probably not. When it's separated, you can usually feel a bump on the tip of your collarbone. Let me check for that again. I didn't feel it before."

I probed her shoulder gently. It was tender, but there was no bump.

"You may have just aggravated the tendons. I don't think you did anything so strenuous this weekend to cause it to separate again. Let's get it X-rayed tomorrow and check it out. I'll try to set up an MRI too."

"Thanks. Could you help me lower the back of the futon? I don't think I can do it with one arm."

"Why don't you sleep at my place again? Then you won't have to mess with the futon."

She laughed: "I'm beginning to think you like me sleeping with you." She had a mischievous glint in her eyes. Shaking her head, she said: "Seriously, I don't want to bother you. I'm sure I get up a lot earlier than you do. I have to be at work at 8AM."

"That's OK. Your little cell phone alarm doesn't wake me up. I don't want you to risk rolling off this little futon and hurting your arm. That's the arm you landed on Friday night when you fell off my couch."

"Oh, yeah. You're right." She bit her lower lip in concentration. "OK, if you're sure I'm not bothering you."

I groaned: "You're not except for this repetitive question of 'are you bothering me'. Go put on your pajamas and put on a t-shirt. You shouldn't have the ice on your bare skin. There should be a layer of cloth between the ice and your skin."

She nodded and headed to the bedroom. I was checking out her other photos when I hear a cry of pain from the bedroom.

I hurried over to the door and asked: "Elle, are you OK?"

She choked out: "No-o-o. I can't lift my arm to get my shirt off. It's really hurting."

"Can I come in?"

She replied in a shaky voice: "Ye-es." I opened the door. She had her back to me and I could see that she was wiping her face. She was crying and trying to hide it from me.

"Let me help you. Where's the t-shirt?" She pointed to a cardboard box next to the closet.

"Do you have a big shirt? It would be easier to get on and off."

She nodded and pawed through the pile of t-shirts until she found what she was looking for. It was a Jackson Browne concert t-shirt, size X-L. Perfect.

"OK, Elle. Turn around and face away from me." She did as I asked.

I'm going to take off your top on the right side first, then I'll get the left side". She nodded. I grabbed the hem of her top under her right arm and gently lifted it up. Her right arm slipped out easily, then I pulled it off her head. I carefully eased it off her left arm. I didn't know where to put it so I just dropped it on the floor. I grabbed the t-shirt and reversed the process. I slipped her left arm in first. Then I pulled in over her head and she slipped her right arm in. I tugged it down in the back and she took care of the front. All covered up again, she turned around and shyly thanked me. She looked so small and vulnerable in that huge t-shirt that I wanted to wrap her up in my arms and hold her. I don't know where that thought came from. Maybe Wilson was right. I was feeling very protective of her.

I cleared my throat: "Can you manage your jeans or do you need help?"

She smirked at me: "Trying to get in my pants already, Dr House?"

I chuckled: "Just trying to be neighborly and help. I'm going to go get your ice pack. Call me if you need me."

I strode out of the room and went into the kitchen. I took the ice pack out of the freezer and waited for her. I thought of her naked torso and placed the ice pack over my groin to cool off.

**_Elle's turn_**

I can't believe I have messed up my arm again. The boys will just kill me if I can't play this weekend after I promised them that I would. Shit, it hurt so bad right now I couldn't even get my top off. House had to help me. That was kinda embarrassing, although I must say he was a real gentleman about it. He had me turn my back and there was no funny stuff. I don't understand why he's so nice to me.

I managed to get my jeans off, no small feat with only one hand and pull on my yoga pants. House was waiting for me in the kitchen with the ice pack. He helped me put it on and fastened the Velcro for me.

"Come on, Elle. Grab your keys and cell and let's go to my place."

I did as requested and in a few minutes we were sitting on his couch, sipping scotch and watching some more Monty Python. When the show finished, he helped me take the ice pack off and he placed it in his freezer. When he returned, he asked me how it felt. I reluctantly told him that the ice helps, but it was still fairly painful. He looked concerned.

"Do you want me to take you to the hospital tonight for an X-ray?"

I shook my head almost in tears. "No, I don't want to bother you."

"God, you have to stop saying that. You're not bothering me. Maybe you don't know me very well, but everyone at PPTH will tell you I'm a rat bastard and I don't do ANYTHING that I don't want to do. Well, except for clinic duty that is forced upon me by Cuddy."

He lifted my chin and made me look him in the eye. "You know I've got this bum leg. If I was hurting and needed something, would you help me?"

"Of course, I would." I felt a tear slid down the side of my face. He caught it with his fingertip and wiped it away.

"Then let me help you. Look, it's only 10PM. We could go to the hospital now and get the X-ray. Or I can fasten a sling, immobilize it for tonight, and see how you are in the morning."

I took a deep breath. "Let's immobilize it tonight and see how it is in the morning. If I can't get dressed in the morning and have to wake you up to help me, then I'll know it's really bad."

He grinned: "If you have to wake me before 8AM, you better be prepared to owe me about 20 more dinners." He kissed the top of my head and let his lips linger there for a minute. I was surprised, and then he hurriedly got up saying he was going to look for something to make the sling with.

I watched him limp down the hall and thought that popped into my head and temporarily drove away the pain was: _"Nice ass"._

**_House's turn_**

_What was I thinking, kissing the top of her head like that? The smell of her hair, ohmygawd, I could have lingered there for a long time. It smelled of oranges, so fresh and citrus-y. Gawd, she's gorgeous. I don't know how much longer I'll be able to just sleep with her without wanting more._

I tried to push those thoughts of Elle out of my mind as I searched for what I needed to make the sling. Finally I found the cloth I was searching for. I returned to the living room and make the sling. I eased her arm into it gently. She assured me that it was OK. I poured us each a scotch and we settled back and watched some more TV. Elle wanted to go to bed at 11, so we wandered down the hall together. It was way too early for me to sleep, but I climbed in with her to make sure she was comfortable. I propped her arm up with an extra pillow and she said she felt comfortable enough to sleep.

"It's early for me to go to bed, so I'm going to sit up for awhile. Call me if you need anything."

She smiled and said thanks.

I couldn't resist brushing a few stray hairs away from her face. Her skin was so smooth and soft. Her big blue eyes were sleepy and starting to close, but she gave me a small smile. I leaned down and kissed her cheek, whispering in her ear: "Night, Elle."

She turned her head, kissed my cheek and said: "Night, House."

I watched her close her eyes. Then I got up and headed quietly out to the living room.

I went to bed around 2AM. After two Vicodin and a couple of scotches, I figured I could sleep now. I left the light on in the bathroom to be a night light for Elle. She seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She was laying on her right side, with her left arm propped up on the pillow. She faced my side of the bed and was laying right smack in the middle of the bed. I chuckled, but there was still plenty of room left for me in the king-sized bed. After I climbed into bed, I switched off the bedside lamp. I rolled over to face her and could just see her face with the dim light coming from the bathroom. She looked peaceful and angelic. I found my body responding, desiring her. I rolled away, onto my back. I had to put these thoughts out of my mind. We had a nice thing going and I didn't want to ruin it. She may have her damaged bits, but she was young and beautiful. There was no way she would want to be with a cranky old cripple like me. She could find someone better than me. I scrubbed my hands over my face in frustration and started counting sheep. I was up to 430 little lambs before I finally dozed off.

_**Elle's turn**_

My alarm woke me at 6AM. I rolled over and quickly flicked it off before it could wake up House. I lay on my back assessing my shoulder. It didn't feel too bad at the moment. The test would come when I took off the sling and tried to get my shirt off. I was about to roll out of bed when I felt a large hand on my tummy.

A sleepy voice said: "Hey. How's the shoulder?"

"Sorry I woke you. It seems OK at the moment; it's not hurting."

"Good." He seemed to doze off again, but then his eyes opened halfway. "Call me if you need something."

"I will." I watched his eyes droop until they closed and his breathing settled into a peaceful rhythm. I tentatively caressed his cheek with the back of my right hand. I like the way his scruffy beard felt against my skin.

I didn't want to leave this lovely warm cocoon but I knew I needed to get going. I kissed his forehead and rolled gently out of bed. Grabbing my keys and cell phone, I headed to my place and started the coffeepot. Then it was the moment of truth. I eased the sling off, so far, so good. I slowly pulled the t-shirt off. The shoulder ached some, but not too badly. I breathed a sigh of relief. I moved my arm gingerly and realized it was not as bad as last night. So I hopped in the shower and washed up. I put on a loose comfortable shirt that would not feel binding against my shoulder. Dressed for work, I headed to the kitchen for some much-needed coffee. I made a fried-egg sandwich and had it along with 2 cups of coffee. I poured the rest of the coffee into a carafe and walked it over to House's apartment. I left it on the kitchen counter for him to find when he woke up. He seemed to really like my coffee. I still had about 15 minutes before I needed to leave for work, so I grabbed my ice pack from his freezer and took it back to my place. I sat down and put it on as best I could. I couldn't get the chest strap fastened with just one hand. I let it sit for 10 minutes, and then stuck it back in the freezer. Even sitting partially on my shoulder, the ice pack helped. Hopefully, I would get through the day OK.

I pulled into the parking garage at PPTH, looking around for another person. I needed someone to carry the box for me. Starting at 8AM put me at a disadvantage. Most of the medical staff started their morning shifts at 7AM; the office staff started at 9AM. It looked like I would need to go into the hospital and grab a wheelchair and come back for the box. Then I saw a guy drive in. He was in a rather expensive-looking car, which meant he was probably a doctor. I shouldn't ask a doctor I didn't know to help me. Too bad it wasn't Wilson. I watched him get out of his car. He looked very young to be a doctor, but maybe he was just blessed with good genes. I decided to go for it anyway; the worst that could happen would be that he would tell me 'no'.

I called over to him: "Excuse me".

He turned around and flashed a nice smile at me. He walked over and said: "Hi. Did you need something?"

I gave him a big smile. "Yes. I was wondering if you could help me. I'm new here and I've got this box of things I need to carry in. I hurt my shoulder over the weekend moving into my new place and well; I don't think I can carry it in. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind could you bring it into the hospital for me? Then I could set it in a wheelchair and push it up to my floor."

"It's no trouble. I can carry it to your floor. Where are you?"

"I'm up on 6. I'm Arielle Kaplan, the new oncology pharmacist."

"I'm Robert Chase. I'm a fellow here."

He stuck out his hand and we shook. So he was a doctor. Well, he had a nice smile and he was being very kind about carrying the box. I unlocked the back of my car and he picked up the box. We walked towards the hospital.

I floundered for some small talk: "I couldn't help noticing your accent. Where are you from?"

Again the smile: "Australia. My boss is always ragging on me for being British, but there is a difference."

"Wow, Australia. That's a long way off. How did you end up here?"

"My father wanted me to go to medical school here. He's also a doctor. So I came for med school and stayed for my internship and residency. Now I'm doing a 3 year fellowship."

"Will you go back to Australia when you've finished your fellowship?"

"I don't know. I haven't decided yet. My mum's passed away, but my sister is there. I've been away so long that the States almost feels like home. How long have you been in Princeton? Oh, wait, you said you just moved."

"Yeah, but I just moved into a new apartment. I lived here for about 10 years. I'm originally from Florida."

"How did you end up here from sunny Florida? The one thing I really hate about New Jersey is the crappy winter weather."

"Yeah, sometimes it's pretty bad. I moved up here with my college boyfriend. We lasted about a year after the move, but I decided to stay. There wasn't really anything in Florida to go back to."

"You don't have any family there?"

I shook my head: "No, my parents died when I was 10."

He nodded: "Yeah, I was 18 when my mum died. It still sucks."

We reached the elevator and I punched the 'up' button. We stood in silence waiting for the elevator.

Then I heard a familiar voice say: "Good morning, Elle. Morning, Chase."

I turned to see who was standing next to us and was pleased to see it was Wilson. "Good morning, Dr Wilson. Dr Chase was nice enough to help me with bringing my box in from the car."

He had a wary look in his eyes: "Yes, that was nice of Chase. Um, I'm going up to 6 now; I could take it the rest of the way for you. I know it's out of your way, Chase."

Chase replied: "Oh, I don't mind. I'm early anyway. Got plenty of time."

Wilson blew out a puff of air and spoke rather insistently: "I can take it, Chase. I need to talk to Elle anyway about some work issues."

Chase got the hint and handed him the box. He looked at me and said: "Nice meeting you. Hope to see you around. I'm going to go to the cafe for some coffee before I head upstairs. See you later, Wilson."

The elevator arrived and we entered. We were alone for the ride up.

I looked at Wilson and said: "So, what was that? You obviously didn't want him to come up to my office."

He sighed: "Sorry. I didn't mean to come across so rudely. You should know that Chase is one of House's fellows."  
I shrugged: "OK. So what does that mean?"

"House probably won't like it if you hang out with Chase. He gets rather protective at times."

"Do I need to be protected from Chase? He seems harmless. Is he a closet pervert?"

"No, I'm sure he's fairly harmless. But I think House would be miffed if you were to go out with Chase."

"Why? Does House want to date me? He hasn't given me any indication that he wants something other than food from me." But there are the kisses and the concern about my arm. And he strokes my hair. I've slept in his bed for 3 nights now. What does that mean?

"House isn't very verbal when it comes to his feelings. He may be letting you know in other ways. Just keep it in mind."

I nodded slowly, my mind running off in 10 different directions. We reached the 6th floor and headed to my little office. Wilson set down the box.

"I didn't mean to come across so harshly. You haven't seen him when he is in one of his tiffs and I don't want Chase to be an innocent victim because he was nice enough to help you out."

"It's OK. Don't worry about it."  
By the way, I really like the pain questionnaire. I'll take it to Cuddy and have it printed up with the PPTH logo on it. In the meantime, just take some whiteout and cover up the PMMC logo and use it. I have 2 patients this afternoon that I want you to see. I'll get you their files later. I want to sit in with you today to see what you do. After that, you'll handle them on your own, OK?"

"OK. Thanks. I'd better get to work. Susan will be wondering where I am. Oh, and if you see House, you could let him know that my shoulder feels better today."

He gave me one of his nice smiles: "I'll tell him. I'm glad it's doing better. I'll see you later. The first patient is at 2:00." He left and I walked down to the pharmacy satellite, thinking about what he had said about House.

_**House **_

My alarm went off at 9AM. I slapped it and rolled back over. She was gone, but I could still smell her on the sheets. It was a nice citrus-y scent and something else, something distinctively her. It is a good thing, really, that she wasn't here. I woke up with a huge boner that was tenting my pj's. She would not have been able to miss it. I got up and hit the shower right away taking care of all my needs while I was in there. I imagined her soaping me all over and I came with a quick fury. Lathering myself after that was rather boring, but I washed up and headed out to the kitchen with a towel around my waist. I discovered the coffee right away and sent thanks through the airwaves for her. I sat and had a cup right away, savoring it slowly. I dressed and poured the rest in a to-go cup and headed out to work.

My morning was uneventful. Wilson came by around 11:45 for lunch. We headed out to the cafe. Wilson grabbed his usual salad and I had my usual Reuben. We nabbed a booth back in the corner and sat down to eat.

Wilson said: "I saw Elle this morning. She said to tell you that her shoulder is better today."

"That's good. Did she get the box inside all right?"

"Yeah, CHASE carried it in for here."

I sputtered incredulously: "Chase was here at 8AM? How bizarre. Did he hit on her?" I tried to act nonchalant about that. I didn't want Jimmy to think too much about that.

Wilson chuckled: "I headed him off before he could try. I took the box from him at the elevator and sent him on his way."

"Good man, Jimmy. Can't have the wombat making time with my neighbor." I frowned. "She might stop cooking for me. That would be really bad."

He smirked: "Yeah. That would be. I warned her to stay away from him."

"You did? Why?"

"I figured you wouldn't like it if he hung out with her."

"Well, I wouldn't. But I don't have the right to tell her who to see."

"How very noble of you. But considering that this woman has actually slept in your bed, I figured you might be feeling a tad possessive of her."

I smirked: "Maybe a tad. She is beautiful and a great cook. She won't be alone for long."

"It could be you if you put a little effort into it."

I slowly shook my head. "Naw, Jimmy. I can't go down that road. It only brings pain. Besides she deserves someone who is not a old cranky cripple."

"Yeah, go on and feel sorry for yourself. Moron."

"Idiot."

"Self-absorbed nutcase."

I pulled myself up to my full height: "Hey, that hurt. I'm not a nutcase."

He chuckled.

Ready to change the subject, I asked: "So are you watching General Hospital with me in Coma Guy's room at 2PM?"

"I can't. Got patients to see. In fact, I have 2 pain patients for Elle to see today. First appointment is at 2PM and the other is at 3PM. Today, I'm going to observe how she handles the patients, and then I'll let her see them on her own, and report back to me. Have you seen her pain questionnaire?"

I shook my head.

"It's really comprehensive, much better than others I've seen. Here's a copy. See what you think." He removed some papers that were rolled up in his back pocket and handed them to me. "Maybe you should go see her. I'll let you know what I think of her interviewing techniques after today's patients. Maybe she could help you get off of the Vicodin."

"Right, I'll just control my leg pain with sunshine and puppy love. Thanks, Wilson, but it's just not enough."

"There are other meds, House."

"Yeah, Jimmy, there are. But if the pain is barely controlled with the Vicodin, what makes you think I can handle it with non-narcotic meds? You should actually be afraid that after she evaluates me, that she might suggest something stronger than Vicodin."

He snorted: "I doubt that would happen."

"We'll see after your patients today. What does Guskiewicz think of her? He used to work with her at PMMC, right?"

"He thinks she's great. But we have not talked in detail about her drug recommendations."

I stood up and grabbed my tray to bus it. "Come see me later this afternoon and let me know what you think of her recommendations."

"If I like her ideas, would you go see her?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. I hope to see her for dinner, anyway." With that last smirk, I walked off.


	5. Chapter 5

Arielle Chapter 5

**_Elle's turn _**

After lunch, I went to my office. I hung my license and certifications on the wall. I used whiteout on the PMMC logo and ran off some copies. Now I was ready to begin. Wilson came to the office right at 2PM with the patient and her husband. Wilson had already given her a copy of my pain questionnaire to fill out. I usually like to fill out the questionnaire with the patient myself. I feel I get more accurate answers than having the patient do it alone. Patients often tend to try to minimize their pain in order to 'please' their health care provider. I wanted to be sure that was not the case.

Betty Schultz had breast cancer that had metastasized to her bones. She was in a lot of pain and was refusing to take pain meds because she was afraid of getting 'addicted.' Her husband Alan was very concerned about her level of pain but also was concerned about his wife becoming a 'drug addict.' She was taking large amounts of acetaminophen and over-the-counter ibuprofen to cope with her pain. She admitted to drinking a couple of glasses of vodka nightly to help her sleep. I hated to hear that. If someone admits to 'a couple of glasses', it often means that they are taking more but do not want to admit it for fear of sounding like a drunk. I sighed inwardly. She was afraid of becoming 'addicted' to pain meds, but would use alcohol, a drug itself, to try to cope with her pain. I see that so often. People think that since alcohol is legal it has a better connotation than using 'drugs'. I had some teaching to do.

I started off very gently: "Mrs. Schultz, I'm here to help Dr Wilson find the best medication to help you with your pain. It is very important to keep your pain down to a tolerable level while you are undergoing treatment. The pain is sapping your strength. We want to keep it under control so that your body continues to have the strength to fight the cancer."

Mrs. Schultz tearfully said: "I'm so afraid that I'll become a drug addict."

I explained carefully: "You won't become an addict. Let me explain what addiction is. Many people, including physicians, confuse addiction with physical dependence. If you stop opioid narcotics suddenly, you may experience a withdrawal effect. Therefore, many people confuse that normal physical reaction with addiction. A withdrawal effect occurs with other meds also, not just with narcotics. It happens with certain anti-depressants and some blood pressure medications. Your body gets used to having that medicine in its system and when it is suddenly gone, your body reacts. You have a physical reaction, like sweating, chills, and tremors. Addiction is a psychological dependence on the drug, not a physical dependence. It is characterized by certain behaviors like cravings, compulsive use, continued use despite harm and impaired control over drug use. Our cancer patients who take narcotics don't become addicted. But they do become physically dependent and that's to be expected. Really the best way that I can describe the difference is to say that addicted individuals experience a loss of function while people who use narcotics for legitimate reasons experience an improvement in function."

I paused for a moment to let that sink in. "When the pain is gone and you no longer need the pain meds, we will taper you off of them. You will not have to go through withdrawal. We will gradually cut your dose until you are off the medicine. Having your pain under control will help you sleep better. We need to treat your pain just like we need to treat your cancer. If you had high blood pressure, you would get pills to treat that, right?"

She nodded.

I continued: "This is no different. Pain is a medical condition that needs to be treated. You have tried non-narcotic meds and they give you minimal relief. It's time to bring out the big guns. What I'd like for you to try is a time-released medicine called oxycodone. It works very well for pain. You take it twice a day, 12 hours apart. By taking a time-released product, it helps to keep the blood levels of the drug stable in your system. Then Dr Wilson will also prescribe a short-acting form of it for break-through pain. If you have some pain in between your doses, you can take it for extra relief. How does this sound?"

She looked at her husband for a minute, then back at me. Then she nodded slowly. "I think I want to try it. I'm so tired of not being able to sleep. I'm so tired of being a burden to my family. I just want to be able to cook dinner again." With that last statement, she burst into tears. Mr. Schultz leaned over and put his arm around her to comfort. I let her cry herself out, and then I leaned forward and took her hand. I said in my most sincere voice: "We're going to help you." She smiled through her tears.

I recommended to Dr Wilson that we start Mrs. Schultz on time-released oxycodone 10 mg every 12 hours. In addition, we would prescribe short-acting oxycodone 5 mg, 1 to 2 tablets every 4 hours as needed for breakthrough pain. I explained the dosing regimen to the Schultz's and they seemed to understand. I wrote everything down for them anyway. People often need something written to refer to after they get out of the doctor's office. I explained that the major side effect to watch for is constipation as most patients who take narcotics end up needing to use laxatives. I made some laxative recommendations, which I also wrote down. Dr Wilson wrote out the prescriptions and handed them to Mrs. Schultz. I asked her to come back in a week so we could assess how she was doing. I explained we might need to play with her dose a bit to get it exactly right. I needed her to write down how many times a day she needed any breakthrough medicine so we could make adjustments next week and to keep track of her pain levels on the pain scale. I explained that it would also be best if she didn't drink alcohol while on this medicine. I also wrote down my work phone number in case she had any other questions. We made an appointment for next Monday. We all stood up and they thanked us for all our help. Mrs. Schultz gave me a hug and they departed. The appointment lasted 45 minutes. I was pooped and we had another appointment in 15 minutes.

I pulled out my water bottle and took a long slug. Then I glanced at Wilson who was beaming at me. "What?" I asked.

He chuckled: "You're good. You're really good with them. I'm impressed. I really like the way you explained the difference between addiction and physical dependence. We'll talk more after the next patient, but I need to run down to my office since that is where he's meeting me. I'll be back with him shortly." He rose and left the room.

I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. It was good to know that I had impressed him with the very first patient. So far, this job was going pretty well. Maybe I could be happy here. I was feeling hopeful as I rested waiting for Wilson's return.

**_House's turn_**

General Hospital was over and I needed a new distraction. Fortunately I saw Wilson rushing down the hall towards his office. I got up and followed him. He was surprised when he turned around and saw me. I'm good at sneaking up on him despite the cane. He ran his hand through his hair and said: "House, I don't have time for you now. I have another patient in 5 minutes. We'll talk later."

I thumped my cane: "How was Elle's first pain patient?"

He blew out a puff of air and said: "Wow. She was amazing with them. They were very worried about becoming 'addicted' to the narcotics and Elle eased their fears. Her explanation about the difference between physical dependence and addiction was fantastic. The patient totally got it. Elle convinced them to try oxycodone. She's really something. You should go see her, seriously."

I snarled: "She's not getting me off the Vicodin. I told you non-narcotic meds are not strong enough for me."

"You should still go see her. Just to see what she would recommend."

"I think it would surprise you more than me."

Just then, there was a knock at the door. It was Wilson's 3:00 patient. I beat a hasty exit out the balcony door and went back into my office. I sat in my chair and lifted my leg up on the desk. Elle's pain questionnaire was lying on my desk. I started to read it. Then I started to fill it in. I had no idea why I was doing this. I had no intention of showing it to her. Her questions were intriguing. The attempts to quantify the intensity and the type of pain were more detailed than other questionnaires I had seen.

One question asked to rate your pain at its worst in the last month. It was a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being 'pain as bad as you can imagine'. I merely circled the words feeling that my true 'number' was way off the scale. The next question was harder; Describe your pain at its least in the last month with the same 1-10 scale. I tried to think about when I felt the best. I pictured myself at home, at the piano with 2 Vicodins on board and a glass of scotch. That was probably my best. The pain was still there but tolerable. I gave it a '5'.

The next question asked to describe your pain on average in the last month using the same 1-10 scale. If '5' was my best and 'way off the chart' was my worst, it was hard to average since the 2nd value was not an actual number. I thought about it for a moment and decided that I basically lived at a '9' most of the time. I circled that number.

The next question was: "What makes your pain better?" I filled in the blank with "Vicodin, scotch and piano." Then I added: "Monster trucks, porn and General Hospital" If she ever read this, at least she would get a laugh.

The next question was: "What makes your pain worse?" I suddenly felt depressed. Almost everything made it worse. Too much pressure by walking, sitting, standing, even certain sexual positions could make the pain excruciating. Of course, except for the occasional foray with a hooker, I hadn't had much sex in the last 5 years. The last time I had tried a certain position with a hooker my thigh screamed in protest and I collapsed on top of the woman. Fortunately I was paying her 500 bucks and she didn't laugh or belittle me. She merely rolled me over to my back and finished the job.

I sighed remembering this incident. That was one of the many times that my lack of thigh muscle caused me to feel less than a man; and Gawd, I hated that feeling. I finally filled in the blank of that question by writing: "almost everything else other than the above."

I skipped the question about what medication are you currently taking. There was no way I was putting down on paper the amount of Vicodin that I take everyday. I didn't want anyone to see that.

The next 7 questions asked if pain interfered with certain aspects of your life, again using a 1-10 scale, 10 being 'completely interferes'. The 7 areas were: general activity, mood, normal work, sleep, enjoyment of life, ability to concentrate, and relationships with other people. I just shook my head and circled the '10' on every line. The pain completely interferes with everything in my life. I set the paper aside. I was feeling rather depressed now trying to evaluate my pain. I wished I could just ignore it but it was like ignoring someone hammering on your leg. It just couldn't be done. I swallowed 2 more Vicodin, found some cartoons on my TV and waited for Wilson to return from his current appointment.

_**Elle **_

Wilson and the next patient walked in about 3:10. This patient was Jonathan Adams and he had an osteosarcoma, which was causing him a great deal of pain. He had been maintained on a fentanyl patch, but now his insurance company was refusing to pay for it anymore. It was too expensive for him to pay for it himself, so Dr Wilson wanted me to change him to another med that was acceptable on his insurance's formulary. This was less complicated than Mrs. Schultz. I checked his insurance formulary and decided to switch him to long-acting morphine tablets. He had been previously on fentanyl 100 mcg/hr patch so I did a little math to convert him to the approximate dose of morphine. It converted to 360mg per day of morphine. So I recommended to Wilson to change Mr. Adams to morphine 180 mg twice a day. I was surprised when Wilson balked at the dose. He thought it seemed high. I frowned. I had assumed Wilson was used to doing this himself and knew about the conversion tables, but he seemed taken aback by the high morphine dose. This was a conversion that I had in my head. I couldn't show Wilson my conversion chart as it was still buried in my box. I had not had time to unpack everything. Wilson wanted to give him morphine 60 mg twice a day. I knew that dose would be too low, and I convinced him to go for the middle ground: 120 mg twice a daily. I was still concerned it would be too low for the patient, so I also convinced Wilson to give him a prescription for short-acting morphine 15 mg every 4 hours as needed for breakthrough pain. I asked Mr. Adams to call Dr Wilson or me by Friday and let us know how he was doing. I reminded him that converting from one drug to another was not an exact science, so he may needed some readjustment if the new drug was either too strong or too weak. He promised to call by Friday and left with his new prescriptions.

I took the bull by the horns and said: "You were not OK with my recommendations, were you?"

Wilson answered: "Well, no. Frankly, that dose seemed very high. I would have changed him to morphine 60 mg twice a day and gone up slowly from there."

I shook my head: "That dose would be too low. He would need a lot of breakthrough meds and possibly experience a bit of withdrawal. It is a standard conversion. For every 25mcg of fentanyl patch, the equivalent oral daily dose of morphine equals 90 mg. He is not opioid naïve; he needs a larger dose. I have dosed patients much higher than that. There is no upper limit on morphine until you get to respiratory depression."

He seemed shocked by my statement. I went on: "Look, if you have doubts about my recommendations, we are going to have trouble working together. Talk to Chris Guskiewicz. He worked with me for 4 years. He knows my work. Let me find my conversion charts so you can see where I get my data. It might help you feel more confident with my suggestions."

He nodded: "OK. I have another patient. Why don't you get your data and meet me in my office at 5PM? We'll go over it and I'll talk to Chris the first chance I get. Don't get me wrong, Elle. I do want to work with you. You were great with Mrs. Schultz. I was just uncomfortable with this conversion."

I used to do a lot of conversions at my old job. I feel comfortable with them. But I was going to have to convince Wilson of my ability in order to increase his comfort level. I agreed to meet him in his office at 5PM. He left to go see his patient. I tackled my box. I wished that I had had time to finish the box before the first patient came in, but that was water under the bridge. It was time to get busy. I took out all of my reference books and arranged them on my bookcase. I found my usual conversion charts and went down the hall to make copies of them for Wilson. I got my office completely arranged the way I wanted it. I needed to bring in some pictures for the wall, so I made a mental note of that. Kirby mentioned that he would have some business cards printed up for me to hand out to patients, so I send him a quick e-mail, detailing the patients I saw today and asking him to let me know when the cards were ready. The cards would be handy to give to the patients so they would have my contact information.

When I had finished all of this, I found it was nearly 5PM. So I grabbed my things and headed down to Wilson's office. I would go home afterwards. I hoped House would be in his office as I was curious if he would be coming to dinner or not. When I passed by, his office was empty, but I could see his backpack on the floor so I knew he was still here.

As I approached Wilson's office, I could hear voices. I realized Wilson was having a conversation with House. I stood there for a minute, eavesdropping.

"I need to talk to Guskiewicz about her. I was just not happy with her morphine dose for my patient. I thought it was too high."

House chuckled: "I told you she would surprise you. And you want me to see her, thinking she is going to get me off of Vicodin. Yeah, I'll go see her now. She'll dope me up on morphine. Maybe that's what I really need."

Wilson snorted: "She can recommend all she wants. You'll still have to find someone to prescribe it for you and it won't be ME."

"Ah, and I thought you were my bestest friend, Jimmy. You don't want me to be in pain, do you? If the good pharmacist says this is what I need, you should give it to me."

This was too much. The two of them were just dissecting me. I knocked loudly on the door. Wilson called: "Come in." I opened the door. Wilson was behind his desk and House was sitting on the couch. I glanced back and forth at the two of them and said: "Hi. Did I come at a bad time?"

Wilson shook his head: "No. It's fine. House and I were just shooting the breeze."

House gave me a lazy smile: "We were talking about you, babe."

"Ah, that explains why my ears were burning. Wilson, here are the charts I use. I made copies so you can keep these."

He took the copies from me and glanced at them. The references were all from highly respected medical journals, so I know he could not refute my information. He said: "Thanks, Elle. I'll look these over."

I decided to push it a little. "You can see the morphine/fentanyl conversion here." I pointed to a spot in the middle of one of the pages. "This is where I got today's dose for Mr. Adams. Conversion is not an exact science, but this gives you a place to start the patient when switching drugs."

Wilson still looked skeptical, but House looked amused. "Elle, what if you had a patient taking 16 Vicodin a day? What would you change him to?"

Wilson sputtered at him: "Is that how many you are taking a day?"

House replied: "Naw, this is strictly hypothetical."

I asked: "Which strength Vicodin?"

House said: "The five's."

I said: "Well, first off that person is getting 8 grams of acetaminophen per day. That is double the maximum recommended amount. So I would want some liver function tests to see if this patient has killed his liver. Second, I would, at the very least, switch the patient to Vicodin-10 so that he would only take 8 tablets a day and thus get only 4 grams of acetaminophen per day. But assuming it is a chronic pain patient, I would want to switch him to a long-acting product and just use the Vicodin for breakthrough pain. Sixteen Vicodin-5's contain 80 mg of hydrocodone. The conversion between hydrocodone and morphine is 1 to 1 – 2. So I would probably try the patient on morphine sustained-release 45 mg twice a day and titrate up or down from there."

House asked: "You would use morphine instead of oxycodone?"

"Well, it would depend on the patient. Women respond better to oxycodone than men. So if our hypothetical patient is a woman, I might try oxycodone first. If it's a man, I'll try morphine first. Morphine is the gold standard. I usually start with morphine unless there is a compelling reason to start with something else."

There was silence in the room. I glanced back and forth between House and Wilson. House was smirking at Wilson and Wilson looked pissed.

House told Wilson: "I told you that she would surprise you."

Wilson snarled: "This is a hypothetical patient, remember?"

Something was up between the two of them and I didn't want to get in the middle of it. I looked at Wilson and said: "Why don't you look these charts over and maybe we could get together later in the week with Chris and discuss it?"

Wilson dragged his eyes away from House and stared at me for a moment. Finally he nodded.

The tension was thick and I wanted out of that office. I looked at House and said: "Dinner, 7:30?"

He nodded slowly: "I'll be there." I turned to leave and he grabbed my hand. "How's your shoulder? Do you still want it X-rayed?"

I replied: "Naw, it's OK. I think I just really overworked it this weekend. I gotta learn to pace myself. I'll ice it again tonight, but I think it's OK."

He nodded again. I gave him a quick smile and said: "See you at 7:30. Good night Wilson."

Wilson bade me good night and I high-tailed it out of there.

_**House **_

I burst out laughing after Elle left. "I told you, Jimmy. I knew she would surprise you."

He ran his fingers through his hair, totally destroying the look that probably had taken an hour of blow-drying to achieve this morning.

"Admit it, she surprised you."

He made an exasperated sound: "OK, OK. Yes, she did. It doesn't mean I'll always act on her recommendations, especially where YOU are concerned. Do you really take 16 Vicodin's a day?"

"No, of course not. But you know, she is right about the acetaminophen in them. You should start prescribing me the Vicodin-10's instead of the 5's."

Wilson chuckled: "Get some liver function tests and tell me how many you are really taking per day first."

I chuckled: "Hmmm, wonder what's for dinner? I hope she's doing something with that tasty sauce. Bet you wish you were coming for dinner. Is Julie cooking for you tonight?"

"Yeah, right. She's still pissed about yesterday. I'll make an omelet or something."

I rose from the couch: "Poor Jimmy. Well, I'll tell you all about our Italian feast tomorrow."

I limped back to my office, grabbed my stuff and headed out.

I pondered our 3-way conversation on my ride home. I brought the bike today, so I took the long way home enjoying the ride. I was actually surprised at Wilson. While he was always trying to limit my Vicodin dosage, he always seemed pretty liberal with pain meds for his cancer patients. So his reaction to Elle's dosing recommendations was surprising. I was secretly pleased at Elle's suggestion about the hypothetical Vicodin patient. I knew I was taking too much Vicodin because of the amount of acetaminophen in the tablets. Between the Vicodin and the booze, I was definitely going to kill my liver. I needed better pain relief, but I didn't want to go to anyone about it. I liked being in control of my situation as much as possible and having to go to a new doctor and talk about my pain levels, etc. etc. just infuriated me. I hated to talk about my pain. I also hated to admit how much I was using. On an average day, I took 10 to 12 tablets. On really bad days, I had taken as many as 16, so it wasn't a completely hypothetical patient. This discussion in my head was messing with my enjoyment of my ride, so I turned it off for the rest of the ride home.

There was a parking spot only 2 doors down when I got home. I parked the bike, unhooked my cane from its holder and lifted my right leg over the bike. As I limped into the foyer, I could smell dinner. My mouth started watering immediately. I entered my apartment and tossed my stuff on the couch. I headed to the bedroom, pulled off my shirts and put on a clean t-shirt. It was only 6:45, but I was starving. I hoped she wouldn't mind if I came over early.

I could hear Jackson Browne on the boom box as I knocked on the door. She answered the door wearing low rider blue jeans and a royal blue tank top with the word "_Gators"_, printed in bright orange, right between her breasts.

I stared very deliberately and smirked: "Gators?"

She smirked back: "University of Florida mascot, my alma mater. You must be hungry as you're early.

"Stating the obvious, sweetheart."

She laughed and headed to the kitchen. She pointed to the bar stools parked under the kitchen counter and said: "Have a seat and keep me company."

I pulled out one of the barstools and sat down.

I checked out all the pots on the stove and said: "Geez, how much food are you making?"

She laughed: "It's not all for tonight. We're having baked ziti tonight and I'm coking the chicken for tomorrow's cacciatore. Will you be able to make it to dinner tomorrow?"

My mouth was watering: "Oh yeah. I'm sure I can."

She bustled around the kitchen, multi-tasking. She stuck the baked ziti in the oven saying we could eat in about 20 minutes. Then she took a loaf of French bread and sliced it down the middle lengthwise. She melted butter and stirred in garlic powder, tasting it until she was satisfied. She spread the mixture onto the bread, sprinkled Parmesan cheese and paprika on top and stuck it in the oven.

I commented: "That's an interesting way to make garlic bread. Did you learn that from the Italian guy?"

"Oh, no. They make rolls dripping with butter and hunks of garlic with parsley sprinkled on top. This is how my mom used to make it." She chuckled a little: "It's one of the things that Tony and I would fight about. He wanted me to make garlic bread his mother's way and I refused. My mom was a good cook, but all of her recipes are lost to me. This is the only thing of hers that I can make. She taught me how to make it when I was 8 and it was always my job to prepare it. So I always make it this way. It's not authentic Italian, but I don't care. It's just one little way that I can remember her."

"You miss her a lot?"

She shrugged: "Yeah, sure. But they've been gone longer than I had them." A pensive look crossed her face, but then the timer went off and the look was gone. She removed the baked ziti from the oven. It was bubbly hot and cheesy. It looked delicious.

Elle passed plates and silverware to me and I set the table. She brought a bottle of merlot to the table with the corkscrew and I opened it. Meanwhile, she brought the dish of ziti to the table and set it on a hot pad. The bread came out of the oven and she sliced it into smaller chucks and placed them into a breadbasket. In a few minutes, we were stuffing our faces. The food was delicious. I complimented her verbally and by having seconds. The merlot was excellent and complimented the food well.

We ate in companionable silence. She finished eating before I did and sat back sipping her wine. Finally she asked: "So what was up with you and Wilson today? I get the feeling that he has issues with your pain meds."

"Yeah, he does. He thinks I take too much. He thinks I should deal with my leg pain with sunshine and flowers and ibuprofen."

She scrunched up her face in disbelief: "Really? As an oncologist, I thought he would have a better handle on pain management than that."

"He does for his cancer patients, but not where I'm concerned. Anyway, it's an old problem between me and him, so do you mind if we just drop this?"

"Oh, yeah. Of course. I didn't mean to, hmm." She was clearly embarrassed and stood up to clear the table. I grabbed her wrist before she could move away and she looked at me. I tried to convey with my eyes that it was OK, that she shouldn't feel bad about our discussion. She seemed to get my message because she gave me a small smile.

"Do you want dessert? I didn't have time to make anything, but there's lots of ice cream."

"No, actually I'm rather full right now. Maybe later. Want to come over and watch TV before bed?"

"Well, I need to clean up the kitchen and put away the food. I thought I ought to actually start sleeping here tonight. I have to get up so early and I don't want to bother you. I bought night lights, see?" She dumped a bag onto the table. There were no less than 6 nightlights spilling out of the bag. I felt something that I couldn't describe. The fact that she needed so many nightlights to feel safe stirred some sort of emotion in me, but I couldn't figure out what. I picked one of them up and examined it. "Are you sure you'll be OK?"

She nodded, then quickly looked away from me: "Yeah, I'll be OK."

I had my doubts, but I knew that she was trying to be brave.

An idea occurred to me. I grabbed my cane and quickly limped out of her apartment without saying another word.

_**Elle **_

Oh crap. I must have offended him. Why else would he have left without saying anything? First I mentioned his altercation with Wilson, and then I turned down sleeping with him. I bit my lip to try to keep from crying. I started piling the dishes in the sink and wondered what I should do. I was scared about sleeping alone here, but I couldn't keep sleeping with him. It seemed weird to sleep with him without having sex. And aside from his semi-erection on Saturday when he hugged me, he really didn't seem interested in me that way. I mean; he makes little jokes and sexual innuendos, but I think that's just his way. He was like that with Cuddy the day I met him. He was really staring at her breasts, and why not? She has breasts the size of melons and mine are like peaches. He's a handsome doctor. He could get any woman he wants. Why would he want someone as screwed up as I am? He knows I've been raped. He knows I'm damaged goods. My depressing thoughts were starting to spiral out of control. I squeezed the bridge of my nose in a desperate attempt to keep from crying. Then I heard the front door open and his distinctive gait as he entered my apartment.

_**House**_

I found Elle in the kitchen. She glanced up at me when I walked in and then quickly looked away. She looked like she was about to cry. I walked over to her and put my hand on her shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?" She continued to look away, but she softly said: "You left so abruptly. I thought I offended you." I realized that I had left without a word and how easily she had misinterpreted my actions. I gently took her by the shoulders and turned her to face me. She was looking down and I wanted to see her eyes. I gently touched her under her chin and said: "Will you look at me?" She raised her head and looked me in the eyes. I could see fear in her eyes and I smiled to try to put her at ease.

"Elle, I went to my place to get something for you." I pulled it out of my pocket and placed it in her hand. I closed her hand around the object and kept my hand on hers for a moment. Then I dropped my hands and took a step back. She opened her hand and looked at it for a moment, and then she looked up at me with a puzzled expression on her face.

I explained: "It's my spare key. You keep it. If you get scared in the middle of the night, you can just come over. And when I'm not home, you can still come over and play the piano."

Her chin started to quiver: "House, that's really nice of you. But I don't want to bother you. I mean, what if you have, you know, 'company'? I have got to try to get by on my own"

"Hmm, if I have 'company', you could still crawl into bed with us. I'll try to find women who are into threesomes." Her trembling grew worse. Damn, my little joke didn't take the edge off. "Look, I don't have 'company' very often. Not too many people can put up with me. How about this? If I do have a guest, I'll hang my stethoscope on the doorknob and you'll know not to come in. OK?"

She nodded. "OK. Guess I'll owe you a lot more dinners for this, huh?" She gave me her crooked little smile.

"Nuh-uh. There is something special I want for this. I really love your coffee. Would you leave me a carafe of coffee every morning before you go to work? You have the key. You can let yourself in and leave the coffee." I ended on a slightly pleading note.

She smiled broadly. "Sure. I'll do that." She reached up and hugged my neck and I hugged her back. She whispered: "I don't know why you are so nice to me."

"Cuz I want you to keep cooking and making coffee for me. Maybe by next week, I'll have you convinced to do my laundry." She giggled.

_I thought: you feed me and keep me company and I'll try to make you feel safe._

We stood there holding each other. I felt very protective of her. I don't have a sister, but I wondered if big brothers were like this about their little sisters.

Avi called her his little sister and he seemed to be very protective of her. I can remember back at school, guys beating up other guys for picking on their little sisters. The only problem was: if she is my sister, why am I getting a boner hugging her?

_**Elle's turn**_

Wow, I can't believe that he gave me his house key. I can't understand why he is being so nice to me. I've only known him a week. He says he wants food and coffee. I wonder if that's all he wants. I could feel his erection as we hugged. He backed away from me, but I felt it. It was probably just a physical reaction; I still don't believe he would be interested in me that way. I definitely think I could be into him though; he is quite handsome. I love his scruffy beard and his blue eyes. I haven't had sex since I got raped. I haven't even spanked the pony since then. I feel like that part of me has died or something. But when I'm in House's arms, something stirs, so maybe it is only hibernating.


	6. Chapter 6

The Elle Word Chapter 6

_**Elle **_

I didn't sleep with House that night. After he gave me his key, he helped me with the dishes. OK, I washed and he kept me company. Then I grabbed my ice pack and we went back to his place. He helped me put the ice pack on and we watched WWF for a while. Around 10PM, I excused myself to go to bed.

He walked me to the door and as I turned to say good night, he cupped my cheek with his left hand. "You have the key" was his gentle reminder that he was here for me. I thanked him and leaned up and kissed his cheek. He reciprocated and I went to my apartment. I made up the futon and I plugged in the nightlights. After putting on my PJ's, I turned on one of my sleep-inducing CD's, had a shot of scotch and crawled into bed. It wasn't my best night's sleep, but it wasn't my worst either.

After 2 cups of coffee, I was almost human. I poured the rest of the pot into the carafe and took it to House's apartment. I set it on the kitchen counter and then I tiptoed down the hall to peek in on him. He was lying on his back; both arms hugging a pillow to his chest and he was snoring. I felt a surge of affection for the man. He has been so kind to me. I was smiling as I walked back down the hall.

I headed out to work. I had no appointments today. It was decided that I would see pain patients on Monday and Thursday afternoons for now. Those were the quietest times of the week in oncology. On Mondays the patients get admitted and receive all of the blood work and other tests that they need to determine if they are well enough to withstand having chemo. Brand new patients, "chemo virgins", have to get their central or PICC line placed. Most chemo meds are given IV and need to be given through a large vein. The drugs are too irritating to go through a small vein. A PICC line is a peripherally inserted central catheter. The PICC line is inserted into a peripheral vein just below the bend of the elbow and then advanced through increasingly larger veins towards the heart until the tip rests in the distal superior vena cava near the heart. The line comes out just below the elbow. With a central venous line, a catheter is inserted right into a major vein, such as the subclavian or internal jugular, and then advanced toward the heart until it reaches the superior vena cava or right atrium. The line comes out on the upper chest. Either of these devices allows the patients to have blood draws without multiple needle sticks as the blood draw can be done through the device. Before starting a new round of chemo, the patient needs to have blood work performed to make sure their counts are high enough to withstand the chemo. If their platelets are too low, they run the risk of bleeding. If their white count is too low, they run the risk of infection. If the patient is receiving a drug that is toxic to the kidneys and those blood levels are off, it would be wise to hold the chemo until the blood work is better. Otherwise, the chemo will only make it worse.

So all in all, Monday is just getting ready for Tuesday when everyone starts on his or her chemo. By Thursday, things calm down a bit. We keep busy mixing the drips, but that's easy stuff compared to all the set-up and dosage calculations. Fridays get busy again. Patients who are trying to work around their chemo treatments come in on Fridays and spend the weekend getting their chemo, so that hopefully they'll be able to go back to work on Monday or Tuesday.

Susan and I split the orders. We calculate the dosages for our patients making sure that they match the protocols. If the doses vary too much from the protocols, we call the doctor for an explanation, which we have to document. Sometimes the doctors change the dose because the patient has lost weight or the kidney function has declined necessitating a lower dose. Then Susan and I double-check each other's calculations. When the technicians actually mix the chemo, they will triple-check our math. The techs prepare all the drugs into syringes or IV drips and the pharmacists double-check their preparations. It may sound like a lot of double work, but most chemo drugs are extremely toxic. An error can produce very serious consequences. Not every health-care professional wants to work with chemo drugs. If an error occurs, the results can be deadly. It helps to be a perfectionist in this job.

Our day went by quickly. We were busy, but not the 'pulling your hair out' kind of busy. We even managed a lunch break. All four of us cannot leave at one time, so I lunched with Miriam and Susan lunched with Bonnie. I got to know Miriam a little bit over lunch. Her family came from Cuba in the early 1960's after Castro took over, and she is first-generation American. She was surprised to learn that I was from Florida and delighted that I was fluent in Spanish. We chatted amicably in Spanish during our lunch. I like having Spanish and French friends to talk to so I can keep up my conversational skills in those languages. Miriam eventually wants to be a pharmacist and is currently taking night courses at the local community college.

I wanted to call my old therapist and set up an appointment, so I excused myself from Miriam and went outside to call from my cell phone. Gail was happy to hear from me. I was fortunate that she had a cancellation on Weds. at 5:30 and could see me then. That was perfect for me; I could easily get off from work and get to her office by 5:30. I closed the phone and as I was slipping it back into my pocket, I heard it beep. I had a new text message. I opened the message and found that it was from House. It merely said; "Dinner?" I smiled at his brevity and promptly texted him back saying only: "7:30". I slipped the phone into my pocket and headed upstairs. As I got off the elevator on 6, I heard the beep again. It was another message from House. This one merely said: "K".

On the way home from work, I stopped to get salad fixings. I heated up the chicken, cooked some pasta and tossed a salad. Everything was ready by 7:15, which was good since House was early again. He brought me a present, a bottle of 12-year-old Glenlivet.

I was stunned: "Wow, this is really expensive. You shouldn't have."

He shrugged: "I've been drinking a lot of your scotch. Thought it would be decent that I replace it."

"Thank you. Dinner's ready. Have a seat."

He sat and I brought the food to the table. He ate the chicken and pasta with gusto and merely picked at the salad.

"Not into veggies, huh?"

He shrugged: "Not really. I'm a true carnivore with carbs thrown in for flavor."

"Want more chicken, then?" He nodded and I took his plate into the kitchen and loaded it up again. I set the plate in front of him and sat back down. He grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "Thanks." Again with the brevity. I smiled in amusement.

We had been eating in a comfortable silence listening to Jackson Browne's "I'm Alive" CD. When it ended, I asked: "Would you mind if I come over and play your piano tonight? I need to practice a little bit before Saturday."

"Sure." He was quiet for a minute, and then he asked. "So you used to have your own piano?"

I smirked: "Well I guess it wasn't really mine. David bought it for me as a birthday present 2 years ago. Last birthday, he dumped me. Ironic, huh? Anyway, it's a baby grand and it was very expensive. When he asked me to move out, he made it quite clear that I wasn't taking the piano. I wasn't going to fight him over it. I'll buy my own damn piano. It really pissed Avi off though. Avi considers it MY piano and if he ever gets on that subject, you just have to tape his mouth shut cuz he won't stop. Anyway, I couldn't play for 2 months afterwards because my left wrist was in a cast. And I haven't had much opportunity to play since then. I just want to loosen up my fingers a little."

He scowled: "Did he really dump you on your birthday? That is seriously cold."

"Well, it was actually 2 days before my birthday, but still. You like details; you want the timeline? I got raped on Dec. 15, was in the hospital until the 23rd. I tried to go back to work on Jan 5, which was way too soon, but I was concerned about my job and all of the fall-out. I had my horrible bogus review on Jan. 15 and lost my job. On Jan. 17, David asked for the ring back and told me he wanted me out ASAP. I spent my birthday on Avi's couch drinking myself into oblivion. The following Monday I got a lawyer and filed suit against PMMC. The rape trial was in Feb.; that was hell. Thornton's trial was in March. It wasn't much fun either. Now, it's June. I've got a job and a home. So I'm getting back on my feet again. Now if my last HIV test comes back negative, I'll be a happy camper."

He growled: "Why can't they just test the guy, then you'll know?"

I shrugged: "They can't force him to be tested. Have to protect his civil rights, you know. So I took a month of prophylaxis meds and I'm getting tested regularly. Will the 6-month test really be the last one I need? Do you think I need to retest after a year to be sure?"

He shook his head: "No, 6 months will be the final one you need. 97 of people develop the antibodies within 3 months of exposure. In very rare cases, it can take up to 6 months. You took all the meds?"

I nodded: "You bet I did. I took Combivir and Sustiva for 4 weeks. And I got tested for every other STD there is. Amazingly, I didn't get anything. I got retested after 3 months to make sure and the tests were all negative. So I just need one more HIV test and it will be over."

"I could do the test for you. They are probably giving you just the EIA, which tests for the antibodies. I'll do an EIA and the Western Blot for confirmation, and an RNA test, which detects the HIV virus directly. Then you will know with absolute certainty."

I felt a lump in my throat. I swallowed hard and said: "Thanks. I'd really like you to do the tests for me. I would really feel better about it."

"It's been 6 months. I'll draw the blood tomorrow if you want."

I nodded, stood up and started gathering the dishes. He grabbed his plate and took it to the kitchen. As I went back for the rest, I heard the water turn on. When I went back to the kitchen, he was starting on the dishes.

I protested: "House, you don't have to do that. I'll do them."

Without turning around, he merely said: "You did them last night."

Well, I wasn't going to fight about it. I placed the leftovers into containers and set them in the refrigerator while House did the dishes. He stacked the last dish in the drainer and dried his hands on the towel. I thanked him and he turned to look at me. He gave me a slow smile and said: "Thank you for dinner. It was delicious. Now, pour us each a shot of that Glenlivet and let's go tickle the ivories."

_**HOUSE **_

We headed back to my place with 2 glasses of scotch. Elle carried them and I handled the doors. We sat on the couch and sipped at the scotch. It had a nice burn going down. Elle seemed to be savoring it.

I nudged her: "You like it? "

She nodded: "Yeah, it's really nice."

We sat and sipped for a few minutes, and then she got up and headed to the piano. She ran through a few scales and then asked me if there was anything I wanted to hear. I told her to surprise me.

She smiled and started off with some Mozart. I think it was Sonata #16 in C major for piano. Her technique was flawless. She closed her eyes and her whole body got into the music. It was a short piece and she then segued right into Elton John's 'Crocodile Rock'. I was stunned at her transition from one type of music to another. She sang really well and could really project her voice. Without a microphone, I could hear her very clearly over the piano; and believe me she wasn't playing softly. While she played, her eyes were either closed or looking down at the keys. When she got to the part of the song that went 'lalalalala' in falsetto, she looked up at me. She had a smile that lit up her whole face. She was really in her element. I smiled back so widely that I thought my face was going to crack. She looked so adorable. As that song ended, she segued right into Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll". She poured all her energy into that song. Elle really was a born entertainer. She knew how to play to the audience. I was looking forward to watching her sing with the band.

When she finished that one, she started to play something else, then suddenly stopped. She jumped up and ran out of the apartment, calling over her shoulder: "I need my harp." She was back in a minute with a harmonica and a holder. She slipped the harmonica into the holder and slipped in around her neck. She started playing an old blues song that I recognized. I was amazed that she knew "Flip, Flop & Fly."

I said: "Wait." She stopped and looked up at me questioningly. I walked over to the wall, took down my guitar and sat on the piano bench next to her but facing away from the piano. I quickly checked the tuning, and nodded to her to start again. She grinned and started over. It starts off with piano and harmonica, and then the guitar part joins in, and that's just how we played it. Elle sang and I joined her on the chorus.

_Now, when I get lonesome, I jump on the telephone,_

_I say, when I get lonesome, I jump on the telephone_

_I call my baby; tell her I'm on my way back home._

_Flip, flop and fly, don't tell me no lie_

_Flip, flop and fly, don't tell me no lie_

_Don't ever leave me, don't ever say bye-bye._

_Give me one more kiss; hold it a long, long time._

_Give me one more kiss; hold it a long, long time._

_Now love me baby, 'till the feeling hits my head like wine._

_Flip, flop and fly, don't tell me no lie_

_Flip, flop and fly, don't tell me no lie_

_Don't ever leave me, don't ever say bye-bye._

We stretched that song out a good 10 minutes. I'd forgotten how nice it is to have someone to jam with. When Elle wasn't singing, she was wailing along on the harmonica. For two people who have never played together before, we did really well.

I smiled at her and kissed her cheek: "You're pretty good, little girl".

She grinned and said: "You're not so bad yourself, old man."

I got up and returned the guitar to the wall. Elle looked surprised: "You don't want to play anymore?"

"Not right now. I just couldn't resist joining you on that one. Play some more for me."

"OK. Since I have the harp, I'll play this one for you." Elle went right into Billy Joel's "Piano Man", which is one of my favorite songs. I leaned back and closed my eyes to listen to her. I complimented her performance when she finished.

Elle said: "Thanks. I really like his first album. It's one of my favorites. Do you like Don Henley?" I nodded and she started singing "The End of the Innocence." As before, her performance was flawless. Elle really had a good ear and was a talented player and singer. I was impressed by her repertoire. She played several more songs, effortlessly moving from one to the next. Finally she played Jackson Browne's "Fountain of Sorrow."

_Now for you and me it may not be that hard to reach our dreams  
But that magic feeling never seems to last  
And while the future's there for anyone to change, still you know it's seems  
It would be easier sometimes to change the past  
I'm just one or two years and a couple of changes behind you  
In my lessons at love's pain and heartache school  
Where if you feel too free and you need something to remind you  
There's this loneliness springing up from your life  
Like a fountain from a pool_

I thought how true those lyrics were, that the magic feeling never seems to last. It certainly hasn't in my life. I wondered if that is how she felt also, considering all she had been through in her life.

As Elle sang that last part, she looked up at me and smiled. I couldn't help smiling back.

She finished singing, walked over to the coffee table and picked up the remainder of her scotch. "Wow, is that the time? I should get going." She finished her scotch and set down the glass. I gently grabbed her wrist and said: "One more. Please." She looked into my eyes and I wondered what she saw as her gaze softened. She nodded and walked back to the piano. She sat for a minute with her hands just resting on her lap. Then she set them on the keys, turned to look at me and said: "This was my Mom's favorite song. She taught it to me when I was 8."

Elle started singing "Over the Rainbow." I swear I thought Judy Garland had landed in my living room. Elle's rendition was amazing. The lyrics speak of longing to be somewhere else, a place where your troubles are behind you, and I thought how fitting that was for Elle.

_Somewhere over the rainbow  
Way up high  
There's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby  
Somewhere over the rainbow  
Skies are blue  
And the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true  
Someday I'll wish upon a star  
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me  
Where troubles melt like lemon drops  
A way above the chimney tops  
That's where you'll find me  
Somewhere over the rainbow  
Blue birds fly  
Birds fly over the rainbow  
Why then oh why can't I?  
If happy little blue birds fly beyond the rainbow  
Why oh why can't I?_

When she finished, I clapped and told her that her singing was beautiful. She blushed and said: "The Wizard of Oz was Mama's favorite movie. Remember, how it would come on TV once a year and it was just such a big event. We would sit in our pajamas and watch it. We'd sing along. I was allowed to stay up late so I could see the whole movie." She sighed. "It was fun."

Elle stood up and moved towards the door. I stood and walked over to her.

She smiled shyly at me: "Thanks for letting me play. It felt good. Now I know I'm good to play Saturday night. I hope you'll come see us. We have a reserved table you can sit at, it's right up front. Gen and Ricky will be there and probably Lenny & Danny will have dates."

"OOOO, are you inviting me to be your date?" I snickered at her.

She blushed furiously then said: "Sure, why not? I've already slept with you, I guess we could have a date."

I chuckled: "I like your style. You put the important things first."

We were at the door. Elle stood on her toes and leaned up to kiss me on the cheek. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close. I held her for a minute, then kissed her cheek and backed away.

"Good night, little girl."

Elle opened the door and turned around. She smirked: "Good night, old man", and went out the door. As the door closed, I could feel the emptiness in the room.

_**Elle**_

I walked back to my place and started getting ready for bed. As I brushed my teeth, I thought about how much fun it had been to play the piano again. House had been a very appreciative audience. I really liked jamming with him on that one song. Wish he had wanted to play more, as he is really good. Well, maybe another time. I turned on my nightlights and my sleep-inducing CD and crawled into bed. I couldn't stop thinking about House. I wondered what he really felt about me. If he sees me as just a friend, why is he kissing me and wanting me to sleep in his bed? Is it something more? Wilson said House wasn't good at verbalizing his feelings, that he would find some other way to express them. Is he showing me that he wants something more and is waiting for me to pick up on his signals? A big part of me says that he could have anyone, why would he want someone as damaged as me. I feel so confused. I don't want to mess up what we have right now. It's nice to have a friend across the hall to watch TV and eat with. I decided that I would talk to Gail about it tomorrow. I rolled over and drifted off to sleep.

_**House**_

After Elle left, I watched some TV. Actually I flipped channels for a while, as nothing was on. I had watched all my TIVO'ed shows and there was nothing remotely interesting on the tube. I finally landed on PBS and watched a repeat of 'Jeeves and Wooster' while sipping a glass of scotch. When that was over, I limped off to bed. I only had two chapters left of my Robin Cook novel. I read them as slowly as I could, but I still wasn't sleepy by the time I finished the book. I had neglected to buy another book, so I was in for some tossing and turning tonight. My thoughts went to Elle. Boy, she could really play. I was looking forward to seeing her play with the band in front of an audience. I bet she puts on a really good show if tonight was any example.

I can't believe how much she has told me about herself. The whole timeline was unreal. It must have been really rough losing her job, home and fiancée all in the same week, just a month after being brutally raped. She was still nursing her injuries when he kicked her out. I can see why Billy said she was really depressed for a while. I would be drinking myself into oblivion every night after all that. Hell, I was doing that after the infarction and I still had my home and job. That David is a real piece of work. Wonder what she ever saw in him. I'll kick the crap out of him if I ever meet him.

She seemed so happy tonight, playing the piano. It touched something inside of me. I haven't been happy in a long time, not since before the infarction. The last times I remember being happy were in the early years of my relationship with Stacy. We had started having problems during our last year prior to the infarction. I would get too involved in my work and ignore her. After the infarction, I was so angry with her for not trusting my medical opinion for my own care that I constantly lashed out at her. I really couldn't blame her for leaving. I don't know how she lasted the 6 months before she threw in the towel. She came to PPTH a few months ago. It had been 5 years since she left me. She came because she needed me to diagnose her ill husband. Once I got over the shock that she had moved on and married, I agreed. It's hard to turn down a puzzle. The only problem was I wasn't sure if I wanted to find the solution, impress her so that she would leave him for me, or not solve it and have him die so that she would suffer like I had. In the end, I managed to solve the puzzle although he has a long road of rehab in front of him. So far, she is sticking with him through his rehab. Stacy and I had a few moments together that told me that she still had feelings for me. There was some kissing and one night of sex. She almost left Mark for me, but I knew it wouldn't work. I knew I couldn't make her happy, and I told her to stay with him. They packed up and went back to Short Hills so Mark could continue his rehab and they could get on with their lives. That was 4 months ago. I've seen my favorite hooker, Paula, a few times since then. But that is a business arrangement, not a relationship.

I wondered if I could be happy with someone again. I thought of Elle. She's beautiful, talented and smart. I keep imagining her in my arms, my fingers tangled in her long hair. But I knew I couldn't do it. I would just end up hurting her after a while. She's been hurt enough in her life, she doesn't need any more pain. It would be best to keep her at arm's length. I can't let her breach my walls. I let Stacy in and look what happened. The long-term pain is not worth the momentary happiness.

I rolled over to my left side and grabbed the other pillow. I hugged it to my chest. Gawd, it still smelled like Elle. I threw it on the floor. If I couldn't have her, I didn't want her scent. I lay on my back with my arm draped over my eyes. It took a while longer, but I finally dozed off.

_**Elle**_

I got up at my usual time, showered and made coffee. I took the carafe over to House's place just like yesterday. Today, I didn't peek in the bedroom. I didn't want him to catch me doing that for one thing. And I didn't want him to get the wrong idea. I needed to sort out my feelings for him and try to figure him out first. I just left the coffee on the kitchen counter and headed out to work.

About 11AM, I sent him a text message to inquire when would be a good time to draw my blood for the HIV test. It took him about 15 minutes to text me back. His message simply said to meet him in the lab at 4:30. I texted back: 'OK' and heard nothing else from him. I lunched with Miriam again and the rest of the day went smoothly.

I got off work at 4:30 and headed right to the lab. I needed to be at Gail's office at 5:30, so I didn't have a lot of time to spare. He was already in the lab when I got there.

I said brightly: "Hi. Hope I didn't keep you waiting long."

He shook his head. Curtly he said: "Sit down here and roll up your sleeve."

I did as he requested. He was silent as he tied the tourniquet and gently slid the needle into my vein. He drew 3 vials of blood and then withdrew the needle. He placed a compression bandage on the puncture site and bent my elbow up to hold it in place. He had never been this quiet around me before and it worried me. He seemed OK when I left last night, so maybe he's just concentrating on a patient or something. When he finished labeling the vials, he unbent my elbow, removed the pressure bandage and applied a band-aid.

He said: "You're all set. We should have the results on Monday or Tuesday."

"Thanks for doing this for me."

He nodded. "I'm playing poker tonight. I won't be free for dinner with you."

"OK. I'm going to see my therapist now anyway."

His expression lightened just a little, but I noticed it. "If you want, come over for pizza when you get back."

"Thanks. Let me see how I feel. I may not be up for company. It's the first time I'm seeing her in several months and it might be a bit draining." I bit my lip and looked down. "But thanks for the invite. I had better get going. My appointment is at 5:30." I looked back at him and gave him a small smile and said "Bye." I turned and walked out the door without waiting for an answer.

_**House**_

I was distant when I met Elle in the lab this afternoon. I thought it would be best. I gave it a good shot at being detached and professional. When she told me that she was going to see her therapist today, I was glad, although I tried not to let it show. I let my wall down just a little, enough to invite her over for pizza. She looked scared when she told me that she might not feel up to company after her session. I wanted to take her in my arms and hold her, but I didn't. She left before I could even say anything.

I went home and set up the table and chairs for the game. I shifted the coffee table and TV off to the side and set the table up right in front of the fireplace. Then I set a couple of lamps next to the table. When the pizzas arrive, I usually just set them on the coffee table and we take a break from playing for a few minutes to eat.

Wilson arrived first as usual. He always brings pretzels and beer. He immediately goes into the kitchen, sets the beer in the refrigerator and hunts in the cabinet for the big red bowl. I move it around every week so he has to look for it. Finally he finds it and dumps the pretzels into it. I set out the ashtray. Wilson, Dry Cleaner Guy and I like to smoke a cigar while we play.

Wilson asked if Elle was going to drop by later. I told him that I had invited her for pizza, but that she was restarting sessions with her former therapist and might not feel up to company.

The guys showed up at 7:00 and we got down to business. We played until 8:00 when the pizzas arrived, so we took a break to eat. I was up 100 bucks so I was feeling no pain. Wilson decided to go over and see if Elle wanted any pizza. He got up and walked out of the door. I sat there, half-hoping she would say no.

_**Elle**_

The first session with Gail was rough. We had a lot of catching up to do. It had been 3 months since my last visit. I stopped seeing her right after the rape trial ended. I had run out of money for therapy. So I got her caught up on Thornton's trial, living in the motel and finally moving into my apartment and my new job. I told her that I was still having nightmares and how much that was stressing me. We were running out of time but I managed to tell her a little bit about House. She agreed that he was sending me mixed signals and I should probably back off for now. I was still too vulnerable to get involved with anyone. I agreed with that; also my self-esteem was at an all-time low and needed considerable work. I cried a great deal during my session and felt emotionally drained. I drove home slowly and carefully since my mind seemed a million miles away.

I changed into some blue jeans and a tank top when I arrived home. I opened the refrigerator and debated heating up some leftovers. I finally just pulled out a beer. I couldn't face food at the moment. I sat on the futon, propped my feet up on the coffee table and stared off into space while drinking my beer.

I was about halfway through my beer when someone knocked on the door. Remembering the poker game, I figured it was House. I got up, answered the door, and was surprised to find it was Wilson. I was sure he was looking at my puffy eyes and I could just feel the sympathy ooze out of him. He tried to act very nonchalant and said: "Hey, we're just having pizza next door. We wanted to see if you wanted to come over for some."

I smiled at him and said: "Thanks but I don't think I'm up for company right now."

He looked genuinely concerned: "Are you OK? House told me you were starting up with your therapist again."

"Geez, does he tell you everything?"

"No, not everything. But he did mention it when I asked him about you tonight. But we were alone, the other guys weren't here yet."

"Yeah, well, it was a little emotional, so I'm kinda drained and not really up to seeing people. Could you just tell the guys I said hi?"

He nodded and said: "Sure. I'll see you tomorrow. Sleep well." He turned to walk back to House's place and just then the door opened and one of the other guys poked his head out. "Hey, Wilson, we're getting ready to start again. Are you in?" Then he noticed me and said "Hey Elle, we were hoping you were around. Come on over and say hi to the guys." Before I knew what was happening, he had grabbed my arm and pulled me into House's apartment. House glanced up at me and then quickly lowered his eyes. He looked very serious. The other guys seemed happy to see me. They stood up and came over to me. Even though my eyes were red and puffy, I guess I looked a lot better than I did last week when I was wearing paint-stained overalls and my hair was stuffed up under a cap. I felt embarrassed that I didn't know any of their names. House had simply introduced them as Bus Stop Guy, Dry Cleaner Guy and Tax Accountant.

I was still clutching my empty beer bottle. Bus Stop Guy noticed and offered me a fresh one. I nodded in agreement and he went off to the kitchen to fetch one. He returned and handed me a cold Grolsch.

I stammered: "Hmm, thanks, Bus Stop Guy. Sorry, I don't know your name."

He gave me a sheepish grin: "Stan. And that's Paul." He pointed to Dry Cleaner Guy. "And Larry." He pointed to Tax Accountant.

A roar came from the table: "And I'm House and I want to win your money. Are you in or not? Are all 3 of you going to flirt with my neighbor? There's no point because she is already sleeping with me."

You could have heard a pin drop; the room went so silent. I could feel my face flush; I'm sure I turned very red. I couldn't believe he said that in front of all these guys. Even if it were true, it was an incredibly rude thing to say. I couldn't just deny it since the color of my face gave away the truth.

My anger boiled over and I said in a harsh tone: "Falling asleep NEXT to you is NOT the same thing as sleeping WITH you, AKA a euphemism for having sex. Which we are NOT having."

I turned and headed for the door without saying another word. As I was walking out the door, behind me I could hear Wilson say: "House, you are such an ass."

_**House**_

_Crap, I may have really pissed her off. Wonder if she'll cut off my food and coffee. _

The guys were staring at me; they seemed completely stunned. Wilson looked really angry. I was going to hear about this later.

Bus stop guy said: "That was incredibly rude."

I shuffled the cards and said: "I was just trying to get you guys to shut up and get back to the game. So, are we playing or what?"

Dry Cleaner Guy looked at me and said: "That was cold, House, even for you. But I'm down 100 bucks and I want it back." He sat down and the others followed.

It was not my best night. I had difficulty keeping my mind in the game. I was only 75 bucks ahead when we decided to call it a night. It was only 10PM, which was early for us. Wilson stayed behind as usual while the other 3 guys went home. I took the ashtray to the kitchen and dumped it. When I came back, Wilson was just staring at me with his hands on his hips.

"Was that really necessary to embarrass her like that? Three days ago, you didn't want to tell me what was going on. Now you blurt it out in front of everyone."

I ignored him and started cleaning up the table, putting away the cards and chips.

Wilson grew increasingly exasperated: "I thought you liked her, House."

I exploded: "Yeah, and what if I do? Where is that going to go? Oh, it might be fun for a while, but then something will happen and someone will get hurt. Believe it or not, I'm not into pain, and I think Elle has had enough for one lifetime. I don't need to make a contribution to the amount of crap she has taken in her life. Better to back out now."

"Did you ever think about just being friends? You know, you could have more than one."

I thought about last night and how much fun it had been making music with her. I could tell by Wilson's look that he had seen a change in my expression. I covered up by smirking: "She's too damn pretty to be just a friend. She has gorgeous hair and a hot little bod. Wish her boobs were bigger, that would be nice."

He threw his hands in the air, completely exasperated. "Forget it, House. Push her away. You are a moron, and you don't deserve any happiness. I'm outta here." He turned and walked out of the door.

I walked over to the stereo and put on some Muddy Waters. I cranked it up loud. Nothing like some blues to take your mind off of a woman.

_**Elle**_

I was fuming when I got back to my place. I was feeling emotionally drained after my session with Gail and now this! I was so mad that I wanted to break something. I had to settle for pounding the pillow with my fist. I pressed my face into the pillow and screamed as loud as I could. That really seemed to help and I felt a bit calmer after that. I finished the Grolsch and grabbed another beer out of my refrigerator. It was still too early to go to bed, so I turned on my laptop and spent some time on the computer. I e-mailed Nina and got her caught up on my life. I searched for concert tickets, but no one was coming to the area that I was willing to spend that kind of money on tickets. I saw that Jackson Browne was doing a benefit at Radio City Music Hall to benefit Hurricane Katrina victims. Bonnie Raitt, and John Prine were going to appear with him. The tickets were hugely expensive and they were already sold out. I would have loved to see that show, but 500 bucks a ticket was a little too steep for me in my current circumstances. Scalped tickets would cost even more. Well, the show wasn't until September. Maybe my circumstances would improve by then and I could afford a scalped ticket.

It was a little after 10PM when I logged off and got up to go brush my teeth. A knock at the door caused me to change direction and I headed over to the door. I looked through the peephole and saw it was Wilson. I took a deep breath and opened the door. Wilson had a sheepish look on his face.

"Hi, can I come in for a minute?"  
I shrugged: "Sure." I opened the door wider so he could enter.

He looked down at the floor and then said: "Look, I'm sorry about what happened. House is an ass."

"Yeah, I think I've figured that out. And you have nothing to apologize for. He's the one who said it. I just don't get him. I mean; he was so nice to me last night. He came over for dinner and he WASHED the dishes."

Wilson looked stunned by that.

I continued: "Yeah, really, he did. Then we went back to his place and I played his piano. He seemed to really enjoy listening to me and he even joined me on one song. He played guitar while I played the piano."

Wilson looked even more stunned if that was possible. "Really?"

I nodded: "Yeah, he even sang the chorus with me. He hugged me goodnight and gave me a kiss on the cheek. It was nice. Then today in the lab he was distant with me."

"What were you doing in the lab?"

"He offered to do my last HIV tests for me. He said he would run the EIA, the Western Blot and an RNA test so I could be absolutely sure. He seemed so nice and concerned last night. Then in the lab, he was distant and barely said two sentences to me. And you saw how he was tonight! What happened between last night and today?"

Wilson shook his head. "I don't know. He didn't say anything to me. You won't believe me, but I think he really likes you."

I stared at him in disbelief: "RIGHT! And I'm the Queen of England."

He went on: "No, really. Remember I told you he isn't very verbal about his feelings and he may be letting you know in other ways. In some ways, he's like a 10-year-old boy, pulling your pigtails and making you cry. In other ways, he's like a dog marking his territory. That's what I think he was doing in front of the guys. He was saying: 'Back off, she's mine'."

"So you're saying House just peed on me to claim me?"

He grimaced: "Yeah, something like that. He will push you to see how much you can take. You need a thick skin to be his friend."

"You are his friend. Why do you put up with him?"

He sighed: "Sometimes I just don't know. He is funny, brilliant and endlessly entertaining. Sometimes I feel like I'm Watson to his Holmes. He was a different person before the infarction, but now there is a huge wall around him that is difficult to breach."

"The infarction? Is that what caused his leg problem?"

"He didn't tell you about that, huh? Well, long story short. He had pain in his right thigh, was told it was just a muscle spasm. The infarction wasn't diagnosed for four days, by then he was in terrible pain and experiencing muscle death. They wanted to amputate his leg and he wouldn't let them. He was sure if he could just ride out the pain, that the electrolyte imbalance caused by the muscle death would resolve and that he would be OK and still have his leg. He was put in a coma for 48 hours to ride out the pain. While he was unconscious, his girlfriend signed for him to have surgery to cut out all the dead muscle. Well there was a lot of dead muscle and he has a big hole in his thigh now. The pain has never left him and he can't do the active things that he used to do like play golf or run. He felt betrayed by Stacy and their relationship fell apart. She left him 6 months after the surgery. He's been miserable ever since."

He sighed: "I was out of the country at a conference when all of this happened. I would have tried to talk Stacy out of it. In her defense, she really thought she was saving his life by doing this. He had already coded once due to the electrolyte imbalance."

I nodded slowly: "Thanks for telling me what happened to his leg. I had been wondering what type of pain he was dealing with. So he has somatic pain as opposed to neuropathic pain?"

"Actually he has both. He has neuropathic pain due to some nerves being cut during the surgery and of course he has somatic pain due to the muscle death and post surgical trauma. He describes his pain as being both throbbing and burning."

"He sees someone for his pain, right?"

He shook his head. "Cuddy and I write his Vicodin scripts."

"That's all he takes? He should go see Chris and get a work-up."

"He won't go. I was actually hoping he would go talk to you and you could advise him. I was hoping you could convince him to try something else."

"Only if he's willing. I can't force him to talk to me. I asked him about his pain meds last night after the little scene in your office. He didn't want to talk about it."

"Yeah, that sounds like him. He wants to be in control, but the pain controls him."

I didn't want to continue this conversation with Wilson. I think we are going to have a difference of opinion about House's pain needs and I didn't want to get into that tonight. It was late, and I wanted to think about all this.

"Listen, Wilson. Thanks for coming over and explaining all of this to me. It really helps me to understand him better."

We said our goodnights and he left. I finally went into the bathroom and brushed my teeth. I thought about everything Wilson had told me. It seems like House was in considerable pain and it was barely being managed with Vicodin and scotch. He felt betrayed by his former girlfriend. No wonder he had walls around him. I could certainly understand that. I felt that David had betrayed me by dumping me when I was so vulnerable. It made me wary of getting close to someone again.

I often had nightmares when I was feeling stressed and I was afraid that I would have one tonight. I had his key and an open invitation. I wondered what he would do if I had a nightmare tonight and went over there for his comfort. Would he let me in or would he send me away? I hoped I wouldn't have to find out so soon what he would do if I came over.

As I crawled into bed, I wondered what to do. Should I continue to bring him coffee in the morning? What about the meals I "owed" him? I had plans the next few nights so the soonest I would be cooking dinner again would be Sunday. I suddenly realized that the times he had been really snarky to me were in front of his poker pals. Maybe Wilson was right. Maybe he was 'peeing' on me. Wilson said that you have to be really thick-skinned to be his friend. If a person hung in there through all his snarks, maybe they would get to see the other side of House, the side that was nice.

There was just too much for me to work through at this time of night. I figured the times he had been nice to me outweighed the mean times so far.

I decided that I would back off a bit, but take him coffee in the morning as usual and see how it goes. I turned on my CD player and drifted off to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

The Elle Word Chapter 7

_**House **_

I woke up with a groan. I wasn't sure what hurt more: my thigh or my head. I couldn't get to sleep last night so I drank a serious amount of scotch. Now I was going to pay for that. Elle was right; I should get some liver function tests performed. Between the Vicodin and the scotch, I was probably killing my liver.

_ELLE_. Crap. I was a complete ass last night. Wonder how mad she is at me? Wonder if I'll ever see her coffee again? Wonder if I'll ever see HER again?

I tried to convince myself that pushing her away was best for both of us; neither of us needed to get hurt again. I was really protecting both of us. Why did I keep saying 'us'? My brain wasn't working well due to my tremendous hangover. I curtailed further discussion and limped into the bathroom.

I took the longest hottest shower I could, and felt somewhat revived afterwards. With a towel wrapped around my waist, I headed to the kitchen to make some coffee. When I saw the carafe on the counter, I stopped dead in my tracks. _She made me coffee after I was such an ass last night?_

I couldn't believe it. I removed the lid and poured a cup. It was the same delicious coffee that she had been leaving for me all week. I sipped it slowly, savoring it.

I couldn't believe that she left me coffee. Why was she being so nice to me after I was such a jerk? She was so angry when she left last night. What would have made her continue to,,,,oh. Wait a minute. Wilson.

I bet he went over to talk to her last night. He probably gave her a sob story about my poor leg and how Stacy left me a miserable shell of my former self. This is pity coffee. It still tastes good, and I'm going to drink it. I gotta talk to Wilson when I get in and find out what he told her.

With that, I limped down the hall to get dressed for work.

I strolled into the office, hoping to drop my backpack and head right out to Wilson's office. No such luck, as we had a case. The ducklings cornered me before I could escape. I limped over to the whiteboard.

"OK. 34-year-old male, presents with fatigue and bone pain. He says he bruises at the slightest bump." I talked as I wrote the symptoms on the whiteboard. "Differential, people."

They tossed out some theories, including, as usual, lupus.

I hissed: "It's never lupus. Cameron: get a complete history. Foreman: run some blood. Get a CBC, clotting times, ANA, complete electrolyte panel. Chase: talk to the family and see if you can get any further information out of them. See if anyone else in the family has similar problems."

They scurried off to do their assigned duties. I went to hunt down Wilson.

I went out on the balcony and carefully climbed over the wall. I barged into his office without knocking. Wilson was at his desk doing paperwork. He glanced up at me when I entered and then went back to work. I sat on his couch and tapped my cane on the floor. He endured it for a few minutes, then said: "You know, some people would find that really annoying."

I smirked and continued until he finally threw down his pen and I had his full attention.

He said: "OK. What's on your mind?"

I paused for a minute, letting him sweat: "You went to see her last night, didn't you?"

He played dumb: "Who?"

"You know who. Elle. You went to see her after you left my place. What did you say to her?"

"What makes you think I went to see her?"

"Because I acted like an ass last night, and she still made me coffee this morning. You must have said something to her to pacify her anger."

"She makes you coffee?"

"Do you have to answer everyone of my questions with a question? Yes, she makes me coffee. She leaves it in a carafe on my kitchen counter. Why would she continue to make it for me when I was such a jerk last night, unless you said something to her to appease the situation? What did you say to her?"

He leaned back in his chair. "Yes, I did go talk to her last night. I told her you were an ass and apologized for your behavior. She couldn't understand why you had been so nice to her and then you were distant in the lab and downright obnoxious in front of the guys. I told her that is how you are and if she wanted to be your friend, she needed to develop a thick skin and snark back."

I waited for more. He simply stared at me. Finally I said: "So that's all you told her? You didn't give her a sob story about what a great guy I was before the infarction and how the pain and betrayal have made me into a world-class jerk."

He smirked: "You weren't THAT nice before the infarction. I gave her a condensed version of what happened, as she wanted to know what type of pain you have, somatic or neuropathic."

I frowned: "Why would she want to know that?"

"Maybe she wants to recommend something for your pain, and she'll base her recommendation on the type of pain you have." He leaned forward on the desk: "I did tell her that I wanted you to talk to her. She said she would if you were willing, but she wasn't going to push the issue with you. And then we said good-night and I went home."

I sat back on the couch. I wondered if that was the whole conversation but I knew I wasn't going to get anything more out of him right now. And I wasn't about to ask Elle. I drummed my cane on the floor some more.

His phone rang and he picked it up. I heard him say: "Hi Jonathan, how are you?" Wilson looked at me and pointed to the cane. I stopped drumming it for the time being. Wilson kept talking: "Uh huh." Pause. "How bad is the pain?" Pause. "How many breakthrough tabs did you have to take? Uh huh". Another pause. This side of the conversation was pretty boring. Finally Wilson said: "I'll write you another prescription and drop it off downstairs at the pharmacy. You'll be able to pick it up later today. Call me on Monday and let me know how you're doing. OK. Bye." He hung up the phone with a pensive look on his face.

I cocked an eyebrow at him: "Patient?"

"Yeah, that was Jonathan Adams, the patient Elle saw on Monday; the one where we were converting fentanyl to morphine. It seems the morphine wasn't strong enough; he has needed a lot of breakthrough meds. So I just told him I would up his morphine dose to exactly what Elle had recommended on Monday. She was right. I should have listened to her."

I smirked: "Boosts your confidence in her, huh?"

He turned serious: "Yes, and I really think you should go see her. It would be interesting to see what she would suggest for you. Maybe one of the anticonvulsant drugs would help your neuropathic pain as an adjuvant to your Vicodin."

I scowled. She did seem to know her stuff, but I was extremely reluctant to open up about my pain to her or anyone. Even if I were willing to talk to Elle about it, she can't write the prescriptions, so Wilson or another doctor would need to be involved also. I didn't want to deal with that.

"Yeah, whatever. I have a case; the ducklings are running tests. Do you want to get lunch?"

"Can't. I'm having lunch with Elle and Chris Guskiewicz. And no, you can't join us. This is a serious discussion. I want to find out what Chris thinks of her recommendations, although after my conversation with Jonathan, I have less reluctance about her abilities than I did before."

I affected hurt and said: "Fine. Be that way. I'll just get my Reuben and go eat with Coma Guy. Have a lovely lunch." I heaved myself off the couch and limped out the balcony door.

Back in my office, I pondered what Wilson had said. He probably told Elle more details about my leg than he let on. I wondered if he mentioned anything about Stacy. I couldn't figure out any reason why she would continue to be nice to me after I was such an ass, except that she now feels pity for me. Pity is the last thing I want from anyone. I'd have to push her harder so she would back off. No one pities this cranky cripple. I grabbed my wallet and was about to leave for the cafeteria when the ducklings returned.

I limped over to the whiteboard and listened to their findings. The blood work showed that the patient had low platelet and red blood cell counts. I added these symptoms to the list on the whiteboard. The low platelets explained the easy bruising and the low red blood cells explained the fatigue. But what was causing these low blood counts? Chase had questioned the family and no one else had similar symptoms. Cameron discovered that he had had the bone pain for approximately 2 months now. The pain was especially severe in his left shoulder. He had seen his family physician about it. Nothing had shown up on the X-ray, so his doctor had prescribed ibuprofen and rest, which had not helped.

Something was missing; I tapped the marker against my chin as I pondered the board. "What about the ANA?"

Foreman spoke up: "The ANA was negative, so it's not lupus or rheumatoid arthritis."

Then Cameron said: "His shoulder pain has increased significantly but nothing showed up on the X-ray. Maybe we should do an MRI."

I nodded: "Do an MRI. Also check out his belly. See if his spleen or liver is enlarged. With his platelets so low, I suspect that his spleen may be affected."

The ducklings took off to run the tests and I headed to the cafeteria for my sandwich.

_ELLE_

I met up with Wilson and Chris in the cafeteria. We went through the line together. It was interesting to see what they chose to eat. Wilson seems to prefer healthy living as he chose a large salad. I could tell that Chris was still doing the Atkins Diet by his choice of a plain hamburger, no bun and a side salad. I was feeling a bit nervous and decided comfort food was in order so I went with a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup. Chris paid for all of our lunches and we headed to a table in a quiet corner.

Chris asked: "So Elle, are you getting settled in OK here?"

I answered: "Yeah, it's nice here. My co-workers are great. I'm enjoying the job so far. I'm looking forward to seeing some more patients today."

He nodded: "Yeah, next week, you'll see a couple of mine, too. I couldn't work them in this week." He turned to Wilson and said: "So, you called this lunch. What's on your mind?"

Wilson seemed uncomfortable. We were going to be talking about me, in front of me, so I guess that is somewhat weird.

He said: "Well, to start with, tell me how you two used to work together at PMMC."

Chris launched into the tale. I would see the patient and carefully question them about all aspects of their pain. I would also find out any social or financial issues that the patient might have that might be contributing to their pain issues. Perhaps they did not have insurance to pay for their meds, or they had a drug addict son who stole their meds. I would find out these things. The initial interview could be quite long; occasionally they had lasted over 1 hour. By having me do the interviews and just giving Chris a summary, it saved him tons of time. I would make the recommendations for which drug to start the patient on, or dose changes and generally Chris would follow my suggestions. Wilson seemed more relaxed as Chris finished talking. He then told me that Jonathan Adams had called and needed his morphine dose increased. "I should have listened to you, Elle. Your conversion was correct. If I had given him my original dose, he would have been in a lot of pain. I wrote him a new prescription and left it at the pharmacy for him."

I refrained from saying 'I told you so'. I have to get Wilson's trust and being a jerk won't do it. After Jonathan's phone call and talking to Chris, I believe he has a lot more confidence in me now.

We concluded our lunch and Chris headed off to his office. Wilson and I walked back to his office to get today's patient files. I had four patients today and I was seeing them alone. It was agreed that I would interview them and write recommendations. Wilson would meet me at my office at 4:30 and we would go over everything. I took the files from him and headed up to my office.

The afternoon went by quickly. We had allotted 45 minutes for each patient and that worked out well. Two of them needed the whole 45 minutes and the other 2 only needed 30 minutes. The last patient was one of the ones that needed only 30 minutes so I was finished by 4PM. I wrote up all of my recommendations and Wilson appeared at my door promptly at 4:30PM.

We went over all of the recommendations and he approved them. I was delighted. I finally felt like he had confidence in me.

I stacked the files on my desk and we relaxed and chatted for a bit. He surprised me by relating his earlier conversation with House. He told me what he had told House and that he had chosen to not tell House what he had told me about Stacy. He asked me to keep that quiet and let House tell me in his own time if ever. I agreed to keep the story straight.

Wilson went on: "I'm sure he suspects that I told you more, but I think I bluffed him well this morning. Just be on your guard, he may get even snarkier now. He's very puzzled about why you made him coffee this morning after he was such a jerk to you. And once House has a puzzle, he can't put it down until he solves it."

I snorted: "Well, he can just ask me and I'll tell him. But I bet he won't. He will try some sort of diabolical plan to figure it out."

We had a good laugh about it. I hadn't seen or heard from House all day. I decided to go with Wilson down to his office and see if House was around. It would be interesting to see his reaction to me. I figure there is no point in wondering what is going to happen. I may as well jump right into the fire. After all, if I didn't see him at work, I would surely see him around the apartment building. I grabbed my purse, picked up the files and followed Wilson to the elevator.

_HOUSE_

It was around 5PM when the ducklings came back. Chase had discovered that the patient's spleen was definitely enlarged and the liver was slightly inflamed. Foreman had managed to get the MRI done by bumping another patient. The patient's shoulder showed signs of necrosis, which accounted for the severe pain. I added the new symptoms to the list on the whiteboard.

Fatigue---low red blood cell count

Bone pain

Bruises easily---low platelet count

Enlarged spleen

Bone necrosis

I paced around the room slowly, tapping the marker against my chin. As I turned around, I noticed that Wilson and Elle were walking towards his office. Elle was carrying a small stack of files. Wilson noticed that I was staring and he stopped walking but continued his conversation. He checked out the whiteboard, one eyebrow rose quizzically apparently wondering if I needed a consult. I shrugged and he walked in. To my surprise, Elle followed him.

Wilson read the whiteboard then looked around at my fellows and asked: "Did you need a consult?"

Foreman shook his head: "34-year-old male presents with these symptoms, but I don't think it is cancer. I think he has a bleeding disorder and osteomyelitis, just don't know what caused the osteomyelitis."

A quiet voice piped up: "Is he Jewish?" All heads swung around to stare at Elle. A light bulb went on in my head, but I let her continue. I was curious to see where she was going with this.

I looked at Cameron for the answer to the question, since she had taken the patient's history.

Cameron shook her head. "I didn't ask him that. He doesn't have a Jewish last name, so I didn't consider it."

I snarked: "Well, 'Wilson' isn't exactly a Jewish last name either, but he is."

The pieces were starting to come together. I wanted to see if Elle was on the same wavelength that I was on. I looked at her, one eyebrow raised and asked: "Why are you want to know if he is Jewish or not?"

Elle replied: "The symptoms sound like Gaucher's Disease, and it's common in Ashkenazi Jews. That's why I was wondering if he is Jewish."

Cameron was miffed, most likely at herself for not asking the patient that question and she took it out on Elle. She snarked at her: "So where did you get your medical degree, _Doctor Kaplan_?"

Elle's eyes narrowed as she turned towards Cameron. "I had a choice between the ad in People magazine or from the back of a Crackerjack box. The one from People magazine had more cachet, so I went with that one."

The corners of my mouth turned up at her clever snark. Wilson put his hand over his mouth to cover his grin. Chase snorted with barely repressed laughter. He held his fist to his mouth to try to contain it. Foreman had a smirk on his face as he slowly shook his head back and forth. Cameron seemed shocked at Elle's snarky comment. She sat there staring at Elle with her mouth open.

Elle looked at me and then spoke in French: "_What crawled up her ass and died?"_

My lip twitched and I longed to grin but I needed to maintain discipline in front of the ducklings. I noticed that Chase was still repressing laughter with his fist in his mouth. He turned and gave Elle an admiring look that I didn't care for. I wondered if he understood what she had just said.

I replied to Elle in French: _"She pissed that she didn't ask that question herself and she is taking it out on you."_

I glanced at everyone: Wilson, Foreman & Cameron had blank expressions, but Chase was still trying hard not to laugh. He understood French. I filed that away for future use.

Elle shrugged and said: "I should go. I have a class tonight. I'll just set these files on your desk, Dr. Wilson. I'll see you tomorrow. Good luck with your patient, Dr House. Good night, doctors." With that, Elle walked out of the room. She went next door to Wilson's office and disappeared inside for a moment, and then she exited and headed towards the elevator.

I turned back to the whiteboard and stared at it while tapping my cane on the floor.

"Well, kids, our new pharmacist may be right. Gaucher's would fit."

Cameron burst out: "You are just going to take her opinion? She's not a doctor!"

I turned to face her and snarked: "Duh! I know that. But the symptoms fit the disease no matter who comes up with the diagnosis. The blood test will confirm it or not, and then we can start the enzyme treatment if it is indeed Gaucher's."

I looked at Chase and Foreman: "You two, go. Draw some blood and run a glucocerebrosidase level on the lymphocytes. By the way, you could ask him if he's Jewish for the file. You know, to complete the history."

They left hurriedly to go draw the blood.

I looked at Cameron: "What the hell is wrong with you today? That time of the month? I have never seen you be so mean to a colleague."

"She's not a colleague. She's just a pharmacist".

"Oh, pardon me. She is a fellow health-care worker, here for the good of the patient, just like you and me. Why the snarkiness? Didn't like being shown up by a mere pharmacist?"

"House", growled Wilson in a warning tone.

Cameron stood up and snarked: "I guess you're rubbing off on me, Dr. House." She strode out of the room, presumably following the boys.

Wilson looked at me: "That went well. Good job pissing off Cameron. Are you trying to push away all the females that you know? Is Cuddy next, cuz if so, I'm selling tickets."

_House_

The ducklings returned around 7PM. Foreman informed me that the blood test was positive. Our patient did have Gaucher's Disease and he was Jewish. The family name had been americanized at Ellis Island from Cohen to Caan. Cameron couldn't look me in the eye. She just stared at the floor.

I said heartily: "Great! First thing tomorrow, call the drug company and get a supply of the enzyme to start him on the treatment. Keep him on the antibiotics for the shoulder necrosis and get an ortho consult to see if he needs surgery. Now, go home."

Chase asked: "Are you going to inform _Dr Kaplan_ that her diagnosis was correct?"

Cameron shot him a dirty look.

I snarked at Chase: "Why? He's not her patient. The ball was in the air and she snagged it on the fly. Lucky guess."

I turned my back on all of them and limped into my office. I tossed my I-Pod and my PSP into my backpack, shrugged on my jacket and headed out. It was a pleasant night and I decided to take a nice long ride. After 40 miles, I found myself in Clinton and headed over to Route 173. There is a great diner there called Louise's. They make the thickest juiciest burgers and terrific hand-cut French fries. I pulled into the parking lot, went in and found an empty booth. After stuffing myself with burger, fries and homemade apple pie, I headed home.

It was a nice ride. I love the long days of summer. It had just gone dark as I pulled up in front of my building. I saw a light on in my apartment. I heard the piano as soon as I got to my door. Elle had used her key.

_ELLE_

I walked to my car thinking about that encounter in House's conference room. He didn't seem overly friendly but he wasn't rude to me either. Dr Cameron, on the other hand, was not happy with my input. A lot of doctors can't handle input from other health-care professionals. I guess she is one of them. I expect that type of behavior from older male doctors, but I was surprised to hear it from her. I thought she would be more open-minded being a young female doctor. Well, I was wrong.

The comment about where I got my medical degree really cracked the guys up. Dr Chase was really having trouble controlling his glee, and even House almost cracked a smile. I saw it creeping around the edges, but I guess he feels he has to maintain his image as a cranky guy. And he has to work with her every day so it wouldn't be good to have issues between them.

Well, time to put that behind me and get to my yoga class. I was looking forward to it.

Two hours later, I was heading home feeling very relaxed. I warmed up some leftovers and had a quick dinner. I really felt like playing the piano again and wondered if House was home, and if he would mind. I stuck my head out into the hallway and checked his door. No stethoscope. I went back in and called his landline. The machine clicked on and I started talking as he had instructed. "Hey House, it's Elle. I was wondering if I could come over and play the piano tonight. If you're there, please pick up. If you're busy, please hang the stethoscope on the door. I'll wait 5 minutes and see if it appears. Otherwise, I'm coming over. Bye."

I waited 5 minutes and checked again. Still no stethoscope, so I grabbed his key and some sheet music and let myself in. It was very quiet and I couldn't sense that anyone was here. I called his name a couple of times just in case, but there was no answer. I turned on the lamp by the piano, set up my music and started to play. I was really in the mood for classical tonight, so I brought over some Mozart and Beethoven. I warmed up with a few scales, and then got lost in the music. Sometime later I heard the door open, and House walked in. I glanced at him from the corner of my eye and he didn't seem pleased to see me. There were only 2 pages left of this piece so I decided to ignore him until I finished it. I always hate to stop in the middle.

_House_

I unlocked the door and walked in. She was playing some classical piece; I believe it was Beethoven. She didn't look up as I came in; she just kept on playing. I tossed my jacket and backpack onto the couch and went into the kitchen for a beer. She was playing so beautifully that a part of me wanted her to continue, but the snarky side of me wanted her out. I stood in the kitchen with my beer until she finished the piece and then I walked over to the piano.

She gave me a small smile: "Hey. I called first, and you weren't home so I came over. Hope you don't mind."

"How can I mind if I'm not home? Look, you play very well, but I'm not in the mood for company tonight."

She nodded and stood up, gathering her sheet music. "Of course. Thanks for letting me play. I hope I didn't bother you too much." She headed towards the door and I got a look at what she was wearing. She had on a black tank top and clingy black stretch pants. The tank top only came to her midriff and left a couple of inches of tantalizing white skin showing. The pants were mid-calf length and seemed to have been painted onto her body. Her ass looked incredible and I squeezed the beer bottle hard to get a grip on myself.

I wanted her to go and yet I wanted her to stay.

The words popped out of my mouth before I realized it: "Did you really have a class tonight or was that just an excuse to get out of the conference room?"

"No, I really had a class."

I looked her up and down: "You were at class dressed like that?"

"It's a yoga class, need stretchy clothes for that."

YOGA class. My mind went into overdrive wondering about the many different positions that she could get into. Yoga and the Kama Sutra have a lot in common; they are both from India and involve a lot of flexible positions. I could fantasize about her in a whole new way now.

"Have you been doing yoga a long time?"

"About 15 years. I like it. I find it very relaxing, yet energizing."

"Show me a pose."

She smirked at me, but kicked off her purple flip-flops and set down her sheet music. She raised her left knee towards her belly. Her left arm snaked over her thigh and her hand across her foot. Then she slowly raised her leg until it was straight up in the air. My eyes popped. It was like she was doing a cheerleader's split, but doing it standing up.

"This is called Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana." She lowered her leg and proceeded to do the same pose with the right leg. "You always have to do both sides or you will be out of balance."

I muttered: "I wouldn't want you to be out of balance." I couldn't believe how flexible she was.

As she picked up her sheet music, she said: "My shoulder still bothers me enough that I can't do shoulder stands or head stands. I just can't put that much pressure on the joint. Hopefully it will improve."

She turned towards the door, but I grabbed her by the wrist before she could take a step. She flinched. I realized it was the wrist that had been broken and I released my grip.

"Why did you bring me coffee this morning?"

She looked at me, puzzled: "We have a deal. I have your key in case I get scared. In return, you get coffee every morning. Has something changed? Do you want your key back?"

I shook my head. "No."

"OK. I'll let you be. I'm going to dinner at Avi's tomorrow night, so I won't bother you about the piano. Let me know if you're coming to Satchel's and I'll have Gen save you a seat at our table if you want."

She touched my arm and simply said: "Good night House."

As she opened the door, I said: "You were right. He is Jewish and he has Gaucher's Disease."

She nodded and said: "Thanks for telling me." And she closed the door.

_ELLE_

It was finally Friday and payday. My check would be automatically deposited in my checking account and I would have some money again. I breathed a sigh of relief; it was good to be flush again. And since I was playing tomorrow night, there would be some cash money too. Billy gives us half the door money and there are tip jars scattered around the bar. Of course, we split it 5 ways, but we usually get around 100 bucks each. Obviously we don't play for the money, but it's nice to have a little extra.

As I got ready for work, I mentally calculated what bills I needed to pay to see if I might have enough for the TV this paycheck. Sadly I figured it would have to wait until the next one. Oh well. I wondered how my lawsuit against PMMC was going. If I win that, it could be a big chunk of change, a really nice nest egg. I should call my lawyer next week and check on things.

I finished getting dressed, left the carafe of coffee on House's counter and headed out for work. I pulled into the parking garage around 7:45AM. As I headed towards the hospital, I hear a voice call my name. I turned around and was surprised to see Dr. Chase. I waited for him to catch up to me.

He was smiling and seemed quite happy to see me: "Hey, how are you today?"

"Great. It's Friday and it's payday. Can't get much better than that." I laughed and he laughed with me.

"Hey, I'm glad I ran into you. I wanted to tell you that you were fantastic last night about the patient's symptoms. We ran the test and he does have Gaucher's."

I nodded: "I heard."

He looked puzzled: "How did you heard?"

"Dr. House told me."

His eyes popped open wide: "House told you? When did he tell you?"

_OOPS, maybe it wasn't a good idea for people to know that I see him outside of work. Well, too late now._

I said: "He's my neighbor, lives across the hall. I ran into him last night and he told me."

He nodded slowly: "Uh-huh." I could see the wheels turning in his head and I floundered around to change the subject.

"Gee, I hope Dr. Cameron isn't too pissed at me. I wasn't trying to show off or anything. It just hit me as I read the symptoms."

"Oh, no. Don't worry about her. She'll get over it. She's always trying to prove herself to House and doesn't like to look bad, even the tiniest bit. He jumps all over us if we miss anything."

I nodded in understanding. By now, we had reached the entrance of the hospital, and I was feeling a bit anxious to get rid of him. I was hoping I hadn't said too much to him. I didn't want House to feel like I was parading his personal life around the hospital. God knows, there was plenty he could say about me that I would rather keep private.

We got to the elevators and I pushed the button. Chase said: "Hey, I know this is short notice, but if you're not busy tonight, why don't you come out with us? The three of us usually go to one of the local pubs after work on Fridays. Join us."

"Oh, thanks, but I can't. I have dinner plans tonight. Thank you anyway."

He was persistent. "Well, how about tomorrow? Doing anything on Saturday night? We could see a movie or have dinner."

I felt a bit of panic settle in. He was actually asking me for a date. Oh, I was so not ready for this. Fortunately I had a good excuse to turn him down.

"Sorry, I can't. I'm playing tomorrow night."

He frowned: "What do you mean, playing?"

"I'm in a band, and we're playing tomorrow night."

He perked up: "Oh. Well, maybe I could come and see you there. Where are you playing?"

I couldn't think how to avoid answering that, so I truthfully told him: "We're playing at Satchel's. It's on the corner of Guyot Ave and Harris Road."

"Yeah, I know the place. What time do you play?"

"From 9 to 1."

The elevator arrived and I moved to enter it and as the door was closing he said to me: "Well, maybe I'll see you there."

I gave him a small smile and nodded as the door closed. My cheery mood had diminished. I hoped that he wouldn't show up. It was hard enough playing again for the first time in 6 months. After Wilson's warning about Chase, I felt like it would be trouble if they were both there. Maybe I should ask Wilson to discourage Chase somehow. I pondered that as I got off the elevator on the 6th floor.

_CHASE_

I was early so I headed over to the coffee stand. It was more expensive than the cafeteria coffee, but so much better. One cup would hold me over until Cameron came in to make a pot.

Foreman walked up behind me as I was standing in line. "Mornin'," he said hoarsely. He sounded like he was still sleepy.

"Mornin'. Hey, remember last night when I asked House if he was going to tell Arielle about the patient and he said no? Well, I saw her this morning and guess what? He's her neighbor, and he did tell her.

He shrugged: "So what? He probably just ran into her, and she asked about him so he told her. What's the big deal?"

I ordered my coffee and stood to the side to wait for it: "I don't know. Just think it's weird that he told her after saying he wouldn't."

"Pffft. He just meant he wasn't going to call her up or seek her out to tell her. But if she asked him, I could see him answering. Again, what's the big deal?"

"I don't know. I think it's weird. It's not like House. And that little conversation in french that they had. That was interesting."

"Well, I don't speak French, so why don't you enlighten me?"

I told him. He laughed at what Elle had said to House, and then turned serious after hearing what House had said. "Hmm, that was a weird answer coming from him. It was like he was trying to mitigate what Cameron had said."

"Like I said, it's weird. Listen what are you doing tomorrow night? It turns out Arielle is in a band and she's playing at Satchel's. Why don't we go?"

"OK. You're telling me this hot girl is House's neighbor and she's a musician? And he is already talking nice to her. You realize that he might be interested in her. You want to get in the way of him and this girl? Are you nuts? 50 bucks says he will be there to see her."

"Yeah, I'll take your money. I don't believe he is interested in getting involved with anyone. I think he had one love of his life, that Stacy. And since she's married to someone else now, he's given up. Look at how Cameron has been pining for him. And he hasn't jumped her. The man is crackers. Any other man would have hit on her in a second."

"Yeah, well it could just be that Cam is not his type or the fact that she works for him and that would be a complication. But this girl might interest him. She's confident, smart, a musician and she doesn't work for him. There are possibilities here."

"Well, are you in? Are you coming to Satchel's?"

"Yeah, I'll go but you can buy the drinks and pay the cover charge too. I'm positive that House will be there. You'd better play it safe. Wear a cup."

He laughed as we walked over to the elevators.

_ELLE_

We were busy for a Friday and I never got the chance to talk to Wilson. I decided not to worry about it. I wasn't interested in Chase and if he showed up I would be polite but disinterested. We don't take very long breaks anyway, so there is very little time to talk to people while we are working.

I stopped on the way home and picked up the challah for tonight's dinner. We were having a traditional Shabbat dinner tonight. Avi gets in the mood to do this about once a month and he always invites me along with his brother and family.

I got home and took a quick shower. I decided to wear my favorite denim jumper and some sandals. Grabbing the challah, I headed over there. I was the first to arrive, so I helped out by setting the table. Adam, Gen and Audra arrived about 10 minutes later

Avi and Ricky made brisket, carrot tzimmes, noodle kugel and salad. It looked wonderful. We said kiddush and the motzi, the blessings over the wine and bread, and we dug in. It was delicious. Ricky does most of the cooking and he is quite good at it. I ate until I was stuffed. Adam commented that my appetite was back. I quipped that if Ricky were cooking for me all the time, I would weigh 200 pounds. That brought a laugh.

It was pleasant to sit and chat after dinner. The wine flowed and I felt relaxed, more like myself than I had in months. We talked about the play list for tomorrow night and Adam jotted down some ideas. We improvise a lot, but we usually start each set from a list.

Audra dozed off in Gen's lap, so we said goodnight around 11PM. I noticed House's apartment was dark, so I figured he was out for a Friday night. I hoped he was having a good time. I put on my PJ's and poured myself two fingers of scotch. I sat on the couch and sipped while I listened to some soft classical music. After I finished my scotch, I changed the futon into bed mode and crawled in. I had had a good day, felt very relaxed and drifted off to sleep completely untroubled. I would have never suspected that tonight I would have one of my really bad nightmares.

_HOUSE_

I drank some scotch and tinkered on the piano after Elle went home. She looked damn good in that clingy outfit. When she demonstrated that yoga pose, I thought I would lose it. I couldn't help imagining her in bed in all kinds of flexible positions. Then I thought of my leg and realized that the chances of me participating in those amazing positions were next to none. That was a depressing thought, so I hit the scotch. I poured a couple of fingers and put the bottle away. I didn't want to have a repeat of today's hangover tomorrow. I limped off to bed around 1AM. Damn, I still forgot to buy a new book. I really have to get something tomorrow. I got into bed and realized I was missing a pillow. Then I remembered tossing it off the bed the other night. I reached over and snatched it up off the floor. I pressed it to my face; it still smelled like her. I sighed, rolled over onto my left side and fell asleep hugging the pillow to my chest.

Friday was fairly uneventful. The ducklings called the drug company and got the enzyme treatment drop-shipped to us. Wilson and I lunched in Coma Guy's room and watched General Hospital. Julie had one of her charity meetings tonight, so we decided to go out for dinner and a movie. We headed out to the Main Street Bistro. It is one of our favorite places. It has an excellent Kansas City strip steak for me and there were enough choices of frou-frou food like salmon or pasta for Wilson to choose. Tonight he selected spinach Gorgonzola ravioli. I snagged a piece; it was actually pretty good although I would never admit that to him. Then we headed over to the Cineplex and caught the 10:15 showing of "X-Men: The Last Stand". It had already been out for a month, and we just hadn't found time to see it yet. You can't go wrong with a movie that has lots of action and yet also contains Halle Berry and Famke Janssen. Rebecca Romijn is also lovely to watch, but she spends too much time being blue for me to enjoy her in this particular series. We had each driven our own cars so we parted ways after the movie. I was amazed to find a spot right across the street from my building. As I limped across the quiet street towards my darkened building, suddenly the lights came on in Elle's apartment. That surprised me. I let myself in the outer door, and then I paused by her door. I heard loud sobbing, then the sound of breaking glass followed by a loud gasp. Then I heard her say '_idiot!' _followed by more sobbing. I tried the doorknob, but of course, it was locked. I rapped loudly on the door with my cane. Then I heard a scream.


	8. Chapter 8

**The Elle Word Chapter 8**

_**ELLE **_

I woke to the dog growling. Someone was in the house. I crept out of bed and quietly locked the bedroom door. I picked up the phone to call the police, but the line was dead. My cell phone was in my purse, downstairs. I could only hope it was a burglar and he would just steal the electronics and leave me alone. I was terrified. I could hear the footsteps on the stairs and they stopped right outside my door. Rocco's growling grew louder. I was paralyzed with fear. Suddenly the door was forcibly kicked open. I screamed and the dog lunged at him. Rocco grabbed him on his right forearm and hung on. The guy yelled in pain. I watched as he pulled a knife out of his back pocket and stabbed my brave dog in the chest. Rocco whimpered and collapsed. The guy clutched his arm and spoke his first words: "You are going to pay for this."

I backed away as far as I could: "Look, just take the stuff. I don't know what you look like. Take anything you want. My purse is downstairs. Please don't hurt me."

He hissed: "But that's what I came here to do. This is a warning to you. Stop sticking your nose where it doesn't belong."

With that he lunged at me and grabbed me by my left wrist. He twisted it hard and I heard it snap. I screamed in pain. I pulled really hard trying to get away despite the pain. My adrenalin was pumping. I twisted the other way trying to escape, but he had a death grip on my arm. He pulled on my arm and I screamed as I felt a severe pain in my shoulder. My shoulder had separated although I didn't know it then. The pain was so overwhelming that I just collapsed onto the floor. He laughed and gave me a kick in the ribs. It hurt so bad that I couldn't even scream anymore. I just groaned. Then he proceeded to tear off my pajamas. I kept moaning: "No, stop, please stop."

It was to no avail. He stripped me naked and stared down at my body. He laughed and then flipped me over to my stomach. The sudden movement made the pain worse and I moaned. He laughed again, and suddenly I felt his hands on my butt, spreading my cheeks apart. Forcibly he entered me and I screamed. The pain was staggering as I felt my body tear from his force. It seemed to take forever, but he finally finished and climbed off of me. He kicked me in the ribs a couple more times, and then he grabbed me by the hair and lifted my head off the floor. "Now, listen and listen good. This is a warning, the only one you'll get. Stop talking. Retract everything you have said so far or this will seem like a walk in the park compared to what's next."

He slammed my head into the floor repeatedly until I blessedly passed out.

It was as if it were happening all over again. I couldn't escape the dream. I woke up screaming.

I managed to scream myself awake. I lay there panting with exhaustion. I gripped the bed tightly trying to ground myself. I glanced around trying to reassure myself that I was alone, that this was not happening, it was only a dream. I looked around the room at my little nightlights and knew I needed more light to feel safe. But I had to get out of bed to flip the lights on and I was scared to move.

I kept telling myself: "there's no one here, there's no one here." Finally I summoned the courage to jump up and run over to the light switch and hit it. The room flooded with light and I burst into tears. I stood with my back against the wall and glanced around. No one was here. I crept to the bathroom and flipped on the light. The small room was empty. I did the same to the bedroom and looked in the closet too. All empty. I was truly alone. Relief flooded my body and yet I couldn't stop sobbing. I staggered into the kitchen for a glass so I could pour myself some scotch. My hands were shaking so badly that I dropped the glass on the floor and it shattered. I was so startled by the noise of the breaking glass that I jumped and landed on a shard, cutting my foot. I gasped loudly from the pain and called myself an idiot for being so stupid. My foot was bleeding and my hands were shaking and I couldn't stop crying. I felt so pathetic. Suddenly there was a loud knocking at the door and I screamed in terror.

Then I heard his voice: "Elle! Elle! It's House. Are you OK? Open the damn door." Then he pounded on the door some more. I was never so happy to hear someone's voice, as I was that minute. I managed to choke out: "Coming" as I made my way to the door. A trail of blood followed me from the kitchen. I looked through the peephole to reassure myself that it was House and then I opened the door. I knew I looked like hell, but I was so glad to see him. I needed his comfort. As soon as I cracked the door, he pushed his way in. He looked around wildly; I could see him taking in the blood on the floor. He leaned down and brushed my hair away from my face. Gently he asked: "What happened, sweetheart?" His gentle tone overwhelmed me and I started sobbing again. He put his arms around me and held me while I soaked his shirt with my tears.

_**HOUSE **_

I knew she must have had a nightmare, but I couldn't figure out the blood on the floor. I needed to wait for her sobs to subside before I could get an answer from her. I held her until her sobs slowed down. I brushed her hair away from her face and caught a few of her tears on my thumb.

"A little better?" She nodded. "Wanna go sit down?" Another nod.

I steered her over to the dining table and guided her into a chair. She sat hunched over, elbows on knees, her head in her hands. I sat across from her and laid my hands gently on hers so she would know I was still here.

"Was it a bad nightmare? The kind that you wake up screaming?"

She nodded. I kissed the top of her head and whispered: "I'm here."

Her breathing hitched for a moment and then she said: "Thank you."

After a minute, she asked: "Could you please go in the kitchen and get a paper cup and pour me some scotch? Watch out for the broken glass."

"OK." I stood up and went into the kitchen. I stepped around the broken glass, found some paper cups and the scotch bottle and brought them to the dining room table. I poured her a cup and gave it to her. Her hands were shaking so badly that she could barely hold it. I ended up helping her hold it so she could take a sip. After a few sips, she wasn't shaking as much, and could hold the cup herself. I poured myself a shot and drank with her.

After finishing her cup, Elle seemed much calmer. I asked her if she wanted to tell me about it. She nodded and held the cup out; I poured her another shot.

"You know these nightmares are really strange. If I have a stressful day, I'll go to sleep afraid I'll have one. And then I don't. Today, I had a fine day; no stress and I have a whopper of one. I relived that whole night. It was so awful. I was so scared and in so much pain. It was a relief to finally pass out. That's how far the dream went tonight, all the way until I passed out. And I woke up screaming and didn't know where I was. I wanted to get up and turn all the lights on, but I couldn't move. I was so scared. Finally I just jumped up and did it. I ran around crying and turning on every light in this place and checking the closet to make sure no one was here." She stopped to take another drink of the scotch. "Then I went into the kitchen to pour myself a shot and I dropped the glass. The noise scared the crap out of me and I jumped and landed on the glass and cut my foot. That's why there's blood all over the floor. When you knocked, my nerves were so on edge, I screamed again. I was so relieved to hear your voice. I don't know how you knew to come over, but I'm so grateful that you did. I was so out of it that I'm not sure I would have had the presence of mind to find your key and go over to your place." She finally looked up at me. "Thank you so much. I'll owe you like a hundred dinners for this."

"Naw, not that many. We'll just make it an even 50, OK?" That got a little smile out of her. I felt a little encouraged. "Hey, at least, you didn't drop the scotch."

"Geez, if I'd dropped that expensive bottle of scotch, I would have used the broken glass to slit my wrists."

Those words hit me like a slap in the face. I remember what Billy had told me on the day she moved in about how depressed she had been and they had worried she could become suicidal.

I asked: "You're kidding, right?" She didn't answer me. The silence hung there between us. I put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up so she had to look at me. I repeated myself: "You're kidding, right?"

She looked into my eyes for a moment. She looked so incredibly sad. Then she shook her head. "I'm not going to do that. Sometimes I just say those things if I've had a bad time. Sorry."

"It's OK. I just wanted to be sure that you didn't mean it. After all, I'd miss your coffee and you owe me a lot of dinners now." I was happy to get a smirk at my remark.

"Let me see your foot." She picked up her left foot and set it on my lap. I examined the cut. It was on the bottom of her foot, but not so deep that it needed stitches. It just needed to be cleaned and bandaged.

"Do you have any gauze or bandages?"

"I think so, in the bathroom cabinet."

I limped into the bathroom to see what I could find. I opened the medicine cabinet and found some peroxide and a roll of gauze. That would do. I also found a round plastic case. I opened it up. Birth control pills. And she was current on them. Friday's pill was gone, and Saturday's was still in its little compartment. I filed that information away for future use. I went back out and sat down. I cleaned her cut with the peroxide and bandaged it. It had stopped bleeding and would be fine. I squeezed her hand and asked: "You OK?"

"Yeah, I'm much better. Thanks."

I tilted my head towards the door: "Ready for bed?"

She nodded: "Is it OK if I sleep with you?" Her voice trembled a little.

I was about to make a snarky remark, but she looked so scared that I couldn't do it. I merely nodded: "Yes."

Relief washed over her face. "Thanks. I really appreciate it. You have no idea."

"It's OK. Hey, have you got anything I can read? I finished my Robin Cook novel and I keep forgetting to buy another book."

"Oh, sure. I've got lots of books. I don't really know what you would like."

"Pick me out something that you liked a lot."

"Um, OK." Elle walked gingerly over to the bookcase and scanned the shelves. "Oh, here, I thought this was one of his best." She pulled a book off the shelf and brings it over to me.

I glance at the cover and chuckle: "Skinny Dip? But I'm not sure we know each other well enough yet."

"Sure, we do. After all, we have already slept together."

That made me smile. She was getting some of her snark back.

"Well, I'm game if you are."

She smiled and said: "You haven't read Carl Hiaasen I presume? He is a columnist for the Miami Herald. His novels are hysterical. They are about crazy things that happen in South Florida and they usually have a pro-environment slant to them. This is his latest and it's very good. I think you'll like it."

"I'll give it a shot." She slipped her flip-flops on, grabbed her keys and we headed over to my place.

_**ELLE **_

I don't know how he ended up at my door tonight, but I'm so glad he did. I was in such a terrified state and his presence was so comforting. He said and did all the right things, all the things I needed. It's hard to believe that he is the same man who was so cold and cruel to me just two days ago. But I'll let bygones be bygones, since he was here when I so badly needed someone.

We went back to his place and he asked if I wanted some more scotch. I shook my head; I'd had enough back at my place and I was feeling much less shaky than before. We headed to the bedroom. He grabbed his PJ's and went into the bathroom presumably to change and brush his teeth. I crawled under the covers. In a few minutes, he limped back into the room with a glass of water, his Vicodin and the book. His limp seemed more pronounced than before. He sat down slowly on the side of the bed and set the items down on the nightstand. He twisted off the top of the Vicodin vial and shook out 2 tabs, which he washed down with a little water. He fluffed up his pillows and reclined next to me. He reached under the bed, grabbed his heating pad and arranged it precisely on his thigh.

I watched him try to get comfortable, but didn't say anything. What could I say? There was nothing I could do to make him feel better. It was inane to say: 'are you OK' when it's obvious that he is not.

When he was finally settled, he turned to me and said: "I left the light on in the bathroom for you, OK?"

Warmth flowed through my body at his caring words: "Yeah, thanks."

He merely smiled and reached over to the nightstand for the book. I said the only thing I could think of that would perhaps give him a small measure of solace: "Would you like me to read to you?"

He turned back to me and I saw a flicker of light in his eyes. It was only there for about 10 seconds, but I saw it. He nodded and handed the book to me. I fluffed my pillows up against the headboard, and reclined on them. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer, saying: "You need to be over here, so I can see the pictures."

I laughed at him: "There aren't any pictures in this book."

"Well, there might be, so you need to be close so I can see them."

I did as he requested; I didn't know if he wanted the closeness for himself or for me and it didn't really matter. It felt nice, better than nice, actually. His right hand moved back to his right thigh and he rubbed it through the heating pad. He kept his left arm draped around my shoulders. Our bodies were touching from the shoulders all the way down our legs. The warmth we generated felt really good. I opened the book angling it so that he could see the pages. He chuckled that the book was dedicated in memory of Warren Zevon. I flipped to the first page and started reading. After a few pages, I could feel his cheek leaning up against my hair. When he chuckled at the funny bits, I could feel his breath tickling my skin. When we reached chapter 5, he stopped me. He said he felt sleepy and wanted to turn off the lights. I handed him the book and he placed it on the nightstand and turned off the lamp. He rolled over to face me and draped an arm over my waist. Kissing me on the forehead, he whispered: "Goodnight Elle."

I said: "Night, House."

And we drifted off to sleep.

_**HOUSE **_

I woke up before Elle did. I was aware of her warmth before I opened my eyes. When I did open them, I was surprised by our sleeping positions. We were curled up as close as lovers. We faced each other; my left arm was under her neck and my right arm draped over her waist. Her face was pressed against my left shoulder and her left arm was around my waist. She was breathing very softly. I shifted slightly to ease the ache in my thigh and I realized that there was an ache elsewhere. My erection was pressing into Elle's thigh. Oh, boy. I tried to roll over onto my back, but she gripped me harder and I couldn't move. I wondered how she would react if she woke up and felt Mt. Gregory pressing into her leg. She's not naïve; I'm sure she knows that men often wake up with an erection. But it would be kinda embarrassing for me and I wasn't sure, considering her history, how she would take it. I tried thinking of other things to calm it down; her soft warm body made that extra difficult. Also her tank top had shifted a bit and I had a very nice view of her breasts. Finally I imagined Vogler in a Speedo and things calmed down pretty darn quick after that.

I closed my eyes again and let my chin rest against the top of her head. I was just about to doze off when the phone rang. Elle jerked awake and I groaned at the sound. I hoped it was just Wilson leaving a chatty message about weekend plans, but it was not to be. It was Cuddy. The answering machine is in the living room so I could hear her voice, but not the entire message. She got a little louder on certain words; I could hear 'VIP', 'unknown', and 'NOW'. I groaned. There was a case and she expected me to come in on a Saturday. This must be some VIP.

A sleepy voice said: "Hey."

"Hey yourself."

She stretched and said: "Was that Cuddy on the phone?"

"Yeah, it sounds like she wants me to come in for a case."

"Oh, bummer. That sucks on a Saturday."

"Yeah, tell me about it." Just then, my cell phone rang. Fortunately, I had left it in the living room so the ringing wasn't terribly loud. I hear the beep as a message was left. I rolled over onto my back. I didn't want to get up.

Elle said: "Do you have to go in right away? I could make you breakfast if you have time."

A smile crept across my face: "Oh, I think I have time. What are you going to make me?"

"Do you want a menu or shall I just tell you the daily specials?"

"Oooooo, being a little smart aleck, aren't we?" I poked her in the ribs and she doubled-over.

"Hmmm, sensitive or ticklish, that is the question."

"Oh, no, no, don't tickle me." Elle started backing away from me, but I was too quick for her. She was still lying on my left arm, so I merely pulled her closer with it and tickled her ribs with my right hand. She squealed and tried to get away, but I had a good grip on her.

"Stop." I ignored that request. She was giggling and squirming; it was really quite fetching. I was enjoying myself. She continuing to squirm and verbally request that I stop, but I was relentless. Finally she managed to gasp out: "Stop or I'm going to pee my pants!" I immediately stopped and she squirmed across the bed, jumped up and headed for the bathroom. "I'm going to get you back," she cried as she ran out of the room. I chuckled as I lay there. I heard the flush and the faucet run. I kept my eyes closed, one arm draped across my forehead, waiting to see how she would continue this game. Suddenly, I felt the bed bounce as she landed on it. My eyes popped open in surprise as she straddled my hips and pinned my arms above my head. She leaned all her weight on my arms to hold them down. I knew I could break her hold, but this was fun.

I teased her: "Little minx. What are you going to do now?"

She secured both of my wrists under one hand, and proceeded to tickle my armpit. I'm not ticklish there so I just lay there looking up at her. I could see her frustration and her hand slipped down to my ribs and she tried again. I just grinned at her; she was not finding the right spots.

"Having a problem?" I teased her.

"Just need to find the right spot."

And suddenly she did. Her hand roamed down and found my sensitive spot just below my left hipbone.

I roared in surprise, and quickly freed my hands and flipped her over onto her back. I rolled on top of her and easily pinned her hands above her head with one hand. I had her very effectively pinned.

I menacingly wiggled my fingers at her. Her eyes got wide and she shrieked: "No! No! Mercy!"

"Mwwwhhhaaa, there is no mercy from the dreaded claw." I wiggled my fingers at her some more and then slowly lowered them to her ribs. Tickling ensued and she shrieked and giggled in such a lovely manner I found myself getting turned on. After all, I was actually lying on top of her, and she was squirming in such a lovely manner. I stopped for a minute and let her catch her breath. Her skin was flushed and she was panting from laughing so much. She was just so beautiful. I was so tempted to kiss her. I watched her face while she calmed down.

As her breathing normalized, she teased me: "Giving up, old man?"

"Oooooo, those are fighting words, little girl." I resumed my assault on her ribs and she was giggling and squirming all over again. I pushed her tank top up and exposed her belly. I discovered her tummy was extremely sensitive and she laughed and struggled harder. I had just decided I was going to plant a huge raspberry on her belly when we heard a loud pounding on the door. That stopped us quickly. We looked at each other in surprise. Then there was more pounding and I hear "House!" being shouted through the door. I groaned and dropped my head. I recognized that voice.

It was Chase. Cuddy must have sent him to get me for the case when I didn't answer my phones. This must be some big ass VIP.

I looked at Elle: "Stay here while I get the door. Don't come out unless you want it all over the hospital on Monday that we're sleeping together. Chase is a huge gossip."

Elle was still catching her breath and just nodded. I eased off of the bed, grabbed my cane and limped out of the bedroom. I shut the door behind me. As I headed down the hall, I shouted: "Stop the pounding. I'm coming."

I got to the door and opened it. Chase looked surprised at my appearance.

I growled: "What? I was sleeping, hence the PJ's. Why are you here?"

He stammered: "You didn't answer your phones. Cuddy wants us in right away. Cameron and Foreman are already on their way. She asked me to stop here and get you."

"It's Saturday. I don't feel like coming in. You three can run the differential and call me. Who is this VIP anyway?"

"She's the vice-governor's mistress. He really wants this taken care of before his wife gets back into town."

I smirked: "Well, he's a naughty boy, isn't he? Go run the differential. Call me." I tried to shut the door in his face, but he planted his foot by the jam and refused to budge.

"Cuddy said I had to bring you, I couldn't leave here without you."

"Oh, no. You're not waiting around here."

"Cuddy'll fire me if I don't bring you with me!"

"No, she won't. But I might fire you if you don't leave. Go. Start the differential. Take a history. I literally just woke up. I want to shower and have coffee, and then I'll be there."

Damn if my cell phone didn't ring again. I limped over to the couch where I had dropped my backpack last night and dug it out. Chase took the opportunity to step inside the apartment.

The caller ID told me it was Dr. Funbags. Before she could start to scream, I cut her off. "I just woke up. I need a shower and then I'll be there. The wombat doesn't have to baby-sit me while I shower. I'm sending him in to start the differential and take a history. I'll be there in an hour, OK? Good."

I closed the phone before she had a chance to say anything. It was difficult to deal with her before coffee.

I turned and noticed that Chase was staring at the floor. Or to be more exact, he was staring at Elle's purple flip-flops that she had left near the door. He glanced down the hall and then caught me staring at him.

Smirking, he asked: "Got company? I didn't think you let your hookers sleep over."

I smiled a particularly nasty smile and said: "This one's special. After she has her morning 'sausage', she makes me pancakes."

He grimaced: "OK. Too much information. I'll leave now. See you in an hour."

I smirked and closed the door after he departed.

I headed back to the bedroom. Elle was sitting cross-legged on the bed.

"So you have to go in, huh?"

I nodded: "Could you hear all that?"

She nodded: "Why did he think you had a hooker here?"

"He noticed your flip-flops. You left them by the door."

"Oh. Sorry about that."

I shrugged. "It's not a big deal. He'll think I got laid and be in a good mood for a change."

"Why would he think you need a hooker? You're a one FINE-looking doctor. I doubt you need to pay for it."

I was stunned by her compliment. "Uh, I make a lot of hooker jokes. That's all."

She chuckled and rose from the bed: "Well, I'm sorry that you have to go to work. Want me to make you breakfast before you go?"

"Got bacon?"

She nodded. "How about toast, bacon and a couple of fried eggs?"

"Can you make the eggs a little runny?" She nodded.

"That would be great. Thanks."

"Well, you shower and dress and come over. It will be ready by then."

Elle headed over to her place and I hit the shower. I dressed in jeans, a Rolling Stones t-shirt and a blue long-sleeve shirt over that. Her door was unlocked and I walked on in. She was in the kitchen plating breakfast as I came in. "Have a seat." I headed to the table and complied.

She set down a cup of coffee and a steaming plate of bacon and eggs in front of me. She went back to the kitchen and returned with a plate of toast and some strawberry jam. I took a sip of coffee and sighed. She made such good coffee and she already knew how I liked it, with 2 sugars.

"Where's yours? I'm not eating alone."

"It's in the kitchen. I wanted to serve you first." She headed back into the kitchen and returned with her own plate and cup of coffee. I started eating and watched her slather jam on her toast.

She took a bite, chewed and swallowed, then said: "It sucks that you have to go to work today. Do you think you'll still be able to come to Satchel's tonight?"

"I don't want to spend my Saturday night at PPTH, unless it's really necessary. I'd like to come hear you sing."

"I'd like that. So if you don't have to work late, does that mean Chase won't be working late either?"

I frowned, wondering why she was asking about Chase. "No, sometimes I'll have one of them stay to monitor the patient or something. Why do you ask?"

She looked embarrassed and said: "Well, he asked me out. And I told him I was busy and he wanted to know where I played and I guess if he's not working, he might show up. Um. I didn't know if that mattered to you or not. I mean, if he were there at the bar. Um. I just thought I should tell you."

So Chase was hitting on her. _SHIT._

I feigned nonchalance and shrugged. "It's not a big deal. Are you interested in him?"

I tried to be very casual about asking that.

She shook her head. "He was nice to me that day, carrying in my box for me. But he's not my type. I can't go out with a guy who has prettier hair than I do."

I choked on my coffee. I couldn't believe she said that. As I coughed the coffee out of my lungs, I looked at her and she had this faux innocent look on her face. And then she giggled. "I thought you were going to snort the coffee out of your nose."

"I almost did, you little wench. You're evil."

She just grinned and chomped on her bacon.

I finally stopped coughed. I cocked an eyebrow at her and asked: "So he's too pretty for you, is that it?"

"Yeah, he has that pretty-boy, model look going. That was never my thing."

The words were out of my mouth before I realized it: "So what is your type?" I cringed internally; _did I really just ask her that? I'm such an idiot._

She thought about that for a minute. "I don't know exactly how to describe it but more manly than boyish. Chase looks like he doesn't have a single chest hair, like he's not hit puberty yet". She giggled.

"Celebrity preference?"

"Hmmmm, George Clooney, Clint Eastwood, Kris Kristofferson, Sean Connery, Gregory Peck, Cary Grant. I know Cary Grant was supposedly gay, but in the movies, he was a man's man. What about you?"

"Hmmmm, Angelina Jolie, Selma Hayek, Racquel Welch, Greta Garbo, Lauren Bacall."

She wiggled her eyebrows at me, and kept eating.

I asked her: "So what are you going to do today?"

She puffed up her cheeks with air and blew it out: "Well, not much, really. I got paid yesterday so I need to figure out what bills I need to pay and write checks. I'll take a nap later. We play until 1AM, when we have to turn off the amps due to the noise ordinance. But we usually hang around afterwards, either drinking or maybe playing some acoustic music. So I'll probably be there until 3AM. So I usually take a nap on Saturday afternoons." She shrugged and gave me her crooked smile: "Maybe I'll play your piano while you're gone."

"Sure." I sighed and stood up. "I gotta go. Thanks for breakfast."

She stood up with me and walked me to the door. "House,,,"

I stopped just before I opened the door. "Yeah, Elle?"

"Thanks for last night." She stood on her toes and wrapped her arms around my neck. I wrapped my arms around her waist and held her for a minute. I enjoyed the feel of her body pressed against me.

I whispered into her ear: "I didn't really do anything."

"Oh yes, you did. You did everything I needed." She held on to me for a minute, and then backed away. She smiled at me and said: "Hope I see you later."

I nodded: "Me too." I walked out of her apartment and back into mine. I grabbed my backpack and headed out to the hospital.

_**ELLE**_

I smiled as I closed the door. Whether he realized it or not, he had been really good to me last night. And this morning had been fun. I wasn't sure how the whole tickling thing got started, but it was nice. I was surprised by how playful he could be. I felt sure I was seeing a side of House that very few people ever saw. I heard people talking about him at the hospital and almost everyone did their best to stay out of his way. They secretly called him 'Dr Crankenstein' behind his back. I guess he preferred that persona since he had told me that he had an image to uphold when I told him he was nice. And he certainly was cranky in front of others when I was around. Well, he was here last night when I needed him and I was very happy about that. I'll keep his niceness a secret if that's what he wants.

I cleaned up the breakfast dishes and mopped up the bloodstains. Then I sat down and paid the bills. When those tasks were finished, I went over to House's apartment to play the piano. Around 4PM, I decided that I should take a nap for 2 hours so that I could stay up most of the night. House wasn't home and I didn't think he would mind. I walked down the hall to his bedroom and crawled into his bed. After setting my cell phone alarm, I pulled his pillow over to me. I pressed my face into it; the pillow had his scent. I breathed it in deeply and as I hugged his pillow to my chest, I relaxed into a dreamless sleep.

_**HOUSE**_

When I arrived at my office, I found Cuddy was sitting in my chair.

She snarked: "Took you long enough. Hooker tie you up or something?"

I motioned her to get out of my chair: "There was no hooker."

"That's not what Chase said."

I scowled: "What did the wombat say?"

"He saw some purple flip-flops by your door that were clearly not yours judging by the size. You were in your pajamas when he got there. And he said you alluded to there bring a hooker in your bedroom."

"I was in my pajamas because I was STILL sleeping at 10AM on a Saturday morning. If there had been a hooker present, I would have been naked."

She finally removed her butt from my chair. "Frankly, I don't care whether you had a hooker there or not, just work on this damn case before holy hell breaks loose. This is the vice-governor's mistress." She picked up the file and handed it to me. "He's very worried about her, but more worried about his image. She is insisting that he not leave her alone, which he'll have to do when his wife comes back to town. This has the potential to be very ugly, so just solve it quickly so all the players can go home." With that last remark, she stormed out of my office.

I sat down in my chair that had been nicely warmed by her lovely butt and opened the case file. Amy Spencer was a 26-year-old female complaining of severe itching, nausea and vomiting, fever, chills and muscle pain. Those were some fairly vague symptoms. It could be a lot of things. She had gone to the Emergency Room and I checked over their report. The idiots were unable to find anything as usual. Her history was short and incomplete by my standards. I hope the ducklings were doing a better job than the ER idiots.

I worked on my Gameboy for about 45 minutes before they reappeared. The three of them stood in front of my desk and Chase handed me some papers.

"These are her most recent lab results. Platelets and red blood cells are a little low, but everything else is OK. Her fever is around 101 and she is still itching and nauseous."

I glanced at the lab results to confirm what Chase had just said: "Great. So what's her history?"

Cameron piped in: "Amy states that she was fine when she went to bed last night, but that she woke up this morning with severe itching and nausea. When she developed a fever, they came to the ER. She hasn't been exposed to any toxins; her drug screen was clean; she hasn't been out of New Jersey in 6 months, and she doesn't have any pets or any exposure to any animals."

I pondered: "What about the boyfriend? Could he have exposed her to something other than scandal?"

Cameron continued: "He says no. They don't go out to eat in restaurants for fear of being seen, so they always eat in. So any type of food-borne illness seems unlikely. He's fine; he has no symptoms at all."

"Well, something's missing. We need more symptoms or more information. Foreman, go search her place. Cameron,,"

Before I could continue, their beepers all went off. Chase said: "It's Amy."

They all dashed out of there and I went back to my Gameboy.

An hour later, Foreman returned. I glanced up from my game and he said: "Well, we have a new symptom now. She has a very painful lesion on her butt. It's red and swollen. She claims it just appeared an hour ago."

"Hmmm, interesting. I think I need to take a look at this." I shut off my Gameboy and headed out to her room, Foreman following close behind me.

We got to Amy's room and there were security guards hanging around just outside. One of them stepped right in front of me blocking me from entering the room. Foreman said quickly: "That's Dr. House, he needs to go in to see her." Burly guy stepped aside and I entered the room.

Amy Spencer was lying on her right side, tears running down her face. The left cheek of her butt was uncovered and Chase was examining it closely. Cameron was watching him with a smirk on her face. A man who I assumed was the vice-governor sat at the side of the bed holding her hand. He looked up at me and demanded: "Who are you?"

I wasn't in the mood for political crap. I replied: "I'm Dr. House and I'm here to look at your girlfriend's ass." I moved around to the side of the bed and nudged Chase over. He looked at me and said: "It's getting bigger. It seems to be spreading. Could be necrotizing fasciitis."

The patient squirmed around and said: "What's that? Is it bad?"

I nodded: "Yeah, that would be bad, if that's what it is. Now are you sure, that you haven't had any little trips anywhere? I'm sure that big daddy here doesn't want the voters to know of any shenanigans that could be going on, but we are talking life and death here. Yours."

She shook her tear-streaked face: "I haven't been anywhere all year. We don't even go out to dinner or to a movie." Fresh tears started falling. Ugh. I needed to get out of here.

Politician Guy said: "Can't you hurry up and figure out what's wrong with her?"

I snarled: "Are you on a dead-line? OOO-Kay. This is what we are going to do. I'm going to take this marker and draw a line around the boo-boo on your tuckus. No, Chase, you can't do it. I told you that you are not ready to handle the markers yet. We are going to do this to see if it gets any bigger. Then we're going to run some more blood work and test for a few more things." I took the marker and drew around the lesion. If it were indeed getting bigger, we would be able to tell immediately. I motioned the ducklings to follow me.

We headed back to the conference room. I started jotting the symptoms on the whiteboard.

Itching

Fever

Chills

Nausea and vomiting

Muscle pain

Low red blood cells and platelets

Lesion on tuckus

I tapped the marker against my chin, lost in thought. I spun around suddenly: "She has a fever but no elevated white count?"

Cameron double-checked the sheet: "That's correct. White count is normal."

I faced the board again: "Hmm, interesting. OK. Maybe it's too early for the white count to perk up. I want you to check her out for STD's. Draw blood and run all the usual tests and do a vaginal swab. Be sure to check for herpes. Perhaps this is a herpetic lesion. And get a little piece of it and check it out under the microscope. "

They took off to do their assigned duties.

I walked out onto the balcony. It was a nice June day and I regretted being stuck at work on such a fine day. I glanced over at Wilson's office and was surprised to see him at his desk. I carefully climbed over the wall and barged into his office.

"Wilson, what are you doing here on a Saturday?"

He sighed: "I'm just trying to catch up on paperwork."

"Hmmm, me thinks that's not the whole story. Are we avoiding Julie? Did we have a fight?"

He shook his head. "No we haven't had a fight. She went to lunch with her sister and now she's at her tennis lesson. She's always busy lately. It seems like we never just hang around the house and watch TV or whatever."

Hmmm, that didn't sound good. Something was up there. I was just pondering whether Wilson was having another affair or not, when he interrupted my thoughts.

"So how's Elle? Are you two friends again?"

I thought of last night and nodded solemnly. "Yeah, we're fine. She made me breakfast this morning too."

He leaned back in his chair and said: "What's going on? You had a very serious expression on your face just then. Come on; spill it."

I sighed. "Elle had a really bad nightmare last night. As I walked into the foyer last night, I heard her scream. I think it took 10 years off my life." I gave him the short version of what had happened. I left out the reading and tickling parts. That was rather personal.

He was nodding his head as I finished. "You were there for her. You did a good thing."

I shrugged: "I can't have a screaming woman across the hall from me, can I?"

"You care about her." He said that as a statement of fact, not as a question.

I sat there tapping my cane on the floor. "Did you know that the wombat asked her out? She told him she couldn't cuz she was playing tonight. So he might show up at Satchel's and she wanted to tell me in case I minded."

He nodded his head slowly. "Interesting. DO you mind?"

I didn't answer him. I just continued to tap my cane on the floor.

Then he asked: "Do you think she likes him?"

"Naw. He's not her type. She said she couldn't go out with a guy who has prettier hair than she does." I said that just as he was sipping his coke. It did come out his nose. I chuckled. Elle would have liked that.

He looked at me in complete shock as he tried to mop up the damage with some tissues.

I grinned: "Yeah, I almost did that with coffee when she told me."

_**Wilson**_

I watched House as he crossed the balcony back to his own office. His attitude towards Elle was rather interesting. I felt sure that he really did care about her. He seemed to be nice to her most of the time. I wondered how he could sleep in the same bed with her and not want to have sex? I just didn't get that. I wonder if the Vicodin has caused his sex drive to go down the toilet. Maybe that was why he didn't want to get involved with anyone. Naw, that's not it. If he needed help, there's always Viagra. He's just too afraid of getting involved with anyone because he doesn't want to get hurt again. I think he really likes her, but I wonder if he will ever admit it to himself, much less to her. That's probably why he made that comment at poker. He really was marking his territory in front of the guys. Hmm, I wonder how Elle feels about him. Maybe I'll ask her next week.

_**House**_

It was almost 6PM when the ducklings returned. The STD tests were all negative. Scratch herpes, which was my number one suspect. The biopsy was also negative. However, she was still running a fever and the lesion had gotten a few millimeters bigger.

"OK, we need more information. Cameron and Foreman: you two check out her apartment. Too bad it is the weekend. We won't be able to get to her job until Monday. Look for all the usual suspects: pets, toxins, molds. Chase, you can stay tonight and monitor her. Put her on vancomycin 15mg/kg IV every 12 hours. Let see if that breaks her fever and shrinks the lesion."

Chase protested: "What, why me? I've got plans for tonight".

"Too bad. It's your turn to stay. The other kids have their job to do and they are not complaining."

You're just pissed at me cuz I disturbed you with your hooker.

"As I said before, there was no hooker at my place this morning. And it's still your turn".

"Yeah, well, what about those purple flip-flops? They certainly aren't yours"

"They belong to my cleaning lady if you must know. When my hooker comes over, she wears 4-inch spike heels, not flip-flops. Spike heels are so much sexier, don't you think so, Cameron?"

Cameron rolled her eyes at my comment. "Suck it up, Chase. It's not like Foreman and I have the night off. You can sit here and do crossword puzzles while you monitor the patient. We get to scrape mold and other fun stuff. A great Saturday night for all of us."

"Well, I'm going out. It IS Saturday night, after all. Good hunting, children." With that, I limped into my office, grabbed my backpack and headed out.


	9. Chapter 9

The Elle Word Chapter 9

_**HOUSE **_

It was almost 7PM when I pulled up in front of my apartment. As I headed up the walk, Elle stepped out of the building followed by Avi and a blonde guy. Elle and Avi were each carrying a guitar case.

She smiled when she saw me: "Hey, how's your patient?"

I shook my head: "Haven't figured it out yet. Got the ducklings working on it. They'll be busy all night." I smirked at the thought that Chase was going to miss out on the show.

She smiled knowingly. "Well, we're off to get set up. Oh, you haven't met Ricky." She pulled the blonde over and introduced him to me. We did the 'nice-to-meet-ya' routine.

The boys headed to the car and Elle touched my arm. "I'll see you there. If we're backstage, ask Billy to send you back if you want. Gen and Ricky will be at a table up front during the show if you want to join them."

I nodded: "OK. Thanks."

She walked over to Avi's car and got in the back seat. They drove off and I headed inside.

I felt grungy after being at the hospital all day, so I took a quick shower. I put on some black jeans and a black T-shirt. I debated which jacket to wear. I was going to take the bike, but if Elle needed a ride home, that would be difficult with 2 guitar cases. Since I was taking the car, I selected a dark gray blazer to wear instead of my leather jacket.

For dinner, I had 2 Vicodins washed down with a shot of scotch and then I headed out to Satchel's.

Satchel's is on the corner of Guyot Ave and Harris Road, not too far from PPTH, but far enough away from Princeton University that it is not a college hangout. It is basically a place for locals, a good drinking bar. They serve decent bar food, burgers and such. I drove over, and since it was still early, managed to score a decent parking space. As I approached the bar, I noticed a small marquee announcing: "Tonight: ORION. 9PM. Elle's back!" I wondered if she was embarrassed by the attention drawn to her return. I approached the door and was stopped by a young punk smoking a cigarette. He mumbled: "Five dollar cover tonight, man." I handed him a fiver and he stamped my hand. Finally I entered the cool darkness of the bar.

It was just 8:00 and the bar was about half full. I spied Billy behind the bar and I headed over there. He was wiping glasses, but stopped when he saw me. "Hey, House. Nice to see you again. What can I get you?"

"A Grolsch, thanks."

He popped the top and handed me the bottle. "Did you want a glass?"

I shook my head and reached for my wallet.

He held up his hand. "Naw. First one's on me, after that I'll run you a tab for the night."

"Thanks. That would be fine."

"The gang is in the back. You want to join them?" I nodded and he pointed towards a door that said 'employees only'. "The code on the lock is 7-5-3. Just let yourself in."

I thanked him and headed over to the door. It was one of those punch button locks and I punched in the code and walked in. I found myself in a dim hallway. To my left, there was a brightly lit room and I could hear voices so I headed that way.

Everyone was there, the five band members plus Gen and Ricky. There was a chorus of greetings as I stepped into the doorway. I acknowledged everyone and they went back to what they were doing. I wandered over to Elle and Gen.

Elle was sitting in front of a makeup table and Gen was messing with her hair. Gen was making a couple of small braids on each side of Elle's head. As she made each one, she had Elle hold it while she started another one. I must have looked puzzled cuz Elle started explaining: "I like to wear my hair down, but I don't like it in my face while I'm playing. So this is the compromise. Gen braids a couple of little braids like this on each side and then she pins the braids back. Keeps my hair out of my face this way.

I nodded in understanding. It was actually kinda cute watching the two of them work on her hair. Gen made 3 small braids on each side and then pinned them together in the back of her head.

Gen stood up and said: "All done. I'll leave you to get your makeup on."

Elle stuck her tongue out at Gen's back as Gen walked away. I raised an eyebrow and she went on to explain. "I don't like makeup, but Gen seems to really think I need it onstage so I don't look washed out. So I humor her."

As she talked, she took out some eye shadow, eyeliner and mascara. I watched as she applied it.

"So what's up with your patient? How big a VIP is he or she?"

"She's the mistress of a politician and it would be a HIPPA violation to tell you more. She has a fever, nausea, severe itching and a really ugly lesion on her tuckus."

"Hmmm, cellulitis?"

"Naw, doesn't explain the nausea and the itching."

Elle pursed her lips as she continued to apply the eye makeup. I could see the wheels turning in her head. "Did the lesion start as a white blister? Is the skin around the lesion blistering now?"

" 'I don't know' to the first question and 'not when I last saw it' to the second question. Why? Where are you going with this?"

She affected a Southern drawl: "Well, if we were down South, I might think it was a brown recluse spider bite." She went back to her normal voice: "But this is New Jersey and they don't live up here. Could it be some other kind of spider bite?"

I shook my head: "There aren't any spiders that live in New Jersey that inflict that type of damaging bite. What made you think of brown recluse spider?"

"When I did my internship, I saw a patient who had been bitten by one. He had a huge wound. I was so amazed that such a large wound could be the result of a bite from such a small spider. Has the patient recently been down south?"

"She says no."

Elle shrugged. "Well that was my clever idea for the night. It probably would have flown if we were in Texas instead of New Jersey."

She stood up and I got a good look at her. She was wearing tight black jeans, a black tank top and black boots, which made her two inches taller.

The makeup really enhanced her big blue eyes. She looked fantastic and I told her so.

She blushed and softly thanked me. Elle shyly gave me the once-over and said: "You know, you look pretty damn hot yourself tonight. Good thing you have the cane. You'll have to beat the women back with it. They'll all be trying to jump your bones."

I was surprised. This was the second time today that she told me I was looking good. I think of myself as just average looking, so I was taken aback by her compliments.

I watched Elle as she walked over to her guitar cases. She removed the acoustic guitar and sat down next to Danny to tune it. As I watched her, I continued puzzling over my patient and thinking about what Elle had said. Finally I took out my cell phone and rang Chase.

When he answered, I asked: "How's the patient? Any changes?"

"No. She still has a fever. She's had her first dose of Vancomycin, some Benadryl for the itching and ibuprofen for the fever. The lesion is a bit bigger and there is some blistering around the edges."

"Hmmm, that's interesting. Ask the patient if the lesion started as a white blister?"

I heard him asking the question and he replied in the affirmative when he came back to the phone. "Ask her again if she has done any traveling lately."

He asked her and told me that she has not left New Jersey at all this year.

"Ask her when she LAST left the state."

He replied: "She said at Christmas. She went to visit her mum in Texas."

Interesting that her mom lives in Texas, so do brown recluse spiders. But Amy hasn't been there in 6 months. How could one have bitten her?

I needed to chew on that for a while, so I told Chase I'd call him later.

Gen and Ricky were heading to the door when I finished my call. Gen told me to come and sit with them. I nodded and said I'd be there in a minute. I walked over to Elle and said: "The questions that you asked me before have an affirmative answer to them now. However, the patient has not left New Jersey since Christmas when she went to Texas to visit Mama."

Elle looked thoughtful: "Hmmm, really. When's her birthday? Maybe Mama sent her a package that had a hitchhiker in it."

I looked at her in amazement. How clever. I needed to check with Foreman and Cameron and see what they found at her apartment and then tell them to look for a box from Texas. First, I called Chase back. "Hey, ask her when her birthday is."

Chase sputtered: "House, what does that have to do with anything?"

I was getting irritated: "Just ask her."

He replied: "I don't have to ask her. It is right here in her file. Her birthday was last week."

"Good. Now ASK her if mama mailed her a nice little birthday present from Texas."

He sighed: "Alright, just hold on. I'd walked down the hall to get a coffee. I'm walking back now."  
He was really getting on my last nerve: "I thought you were monitoring her. You are not even in her room."

He got defensive: "I AM monitoring her. I just walked down the hall to get a coffee so I can stay awake all night. I'm back in her room now. Amy, I need to ask you something. Did you receive any packages from Texas lately?"

There was a pause where I assumed she was responding to his question, but I couldn't hear her. Chase came back with: "Yes. Her mum sent her a package for her birthday. She sent 2 dresses, a set of sheets and some antique table linens that had belonged to Amy's grandmother. And before you ask, the dresses are hanging in the closet, the sheets are on her bed and the linens are still folded up in the box that they came in."

"Great. Did she put the sheets on the bed yesterday?"

Chase conferred with Amy and came back with: "Yes. She changed the bed linens yesterday. She knew they were clean, so she took them straight out of the box and put them on the bed. What does this have to do with her symptoms?"

"Don't know yet. I'll get back to you." I closed the phone and thought for a minute. Elle and the boys were gathering their instruments and heading out the door. I called to Elle for a minute and told her what Chase had told me.

She nodded thoughtfully: "I'll bet you that there is a dead spider in the bed. After it bit her, she could have rolled over and squashed it. I'd check out those linens in the box. If they are old, maybe they were stored in the box for a long time and the spiders used it as a nest. And then some crawled into the sheets or dresses while it was in the mail. That could be how she got bit by a brown recluse spider in New Jersey."

That sounded very reasonable. I needed to call Foreman and tell him what to look for to confirm this. Elle tilted her head towards the door: "I gotta get going. We're going to start."

I held up a finger: "One phone call and I'll be out there."

She smiled: "OK." Elle turned and headed out the door.

I didn't want to miss any of the show. I quickly called Foreman and told him to check the bed and to look for the box and examine the linens. I told him what we were looking for and to be careful not to get bit. Then I told him that I would call him back in an hour or so. I didn't want him calling me in the middle of the show. I'd wait until they took a break and call him back.

I hurried out to the front, spied the table where Gen and Ricky were sitting and headed over to it. I sat down just in time. The band walked on stage to thundering applause. The crowd was really going wild. I was impressed by their popularity.

Elle and the boys took their places on the stage and without any introduction immediately launched into Stevie Ray Vaughan's song, "The House is Rockin'." Adam sang the lead and the others backed him up on the chorus. Elle was really rocking on the piano. Avi was banging away on the drums and Danny and Lenny were rocking out on their guitars. They were really good. Adam has a great voice and his guitar skills are excellent. I was already impressed and it was only the first song.

It was clear that the audience was enjoying it as people were clapping along and dancing between the tables. As soon as they finished that song, they immediately segued into another of Stevie Ray's songs: "Look at Little Sister."

Every time Adam sang the chorus: "look at little sister", the guys all glanced over at Elle. She had her head down concentrating on the keys and didn't notice what they were doing. When they finished the song, Adam made an announcement: "In case you haven't noticed, our own little sister, Elle is back!" The boys all turned and pointed to Elle and the crowd went wild clapping and cheering.

Elle looked momentarily stunned, but then managed to compose herself. She stood up, grinning, took a small bow and blew a two-fingered kiss to the audience. She sat back down and tilted her head at Adam as if to say 'let's move on'.

He grinned back at her and launched into yet another of Stevie's songs: "Pride and Joy." Adam was looking at Gen as he was singing the song. It was like he was singing it right to her.

I watched their interaction for a moment, so I didn't see the two men walk up to the left side of the stage near Elle. When I glanced back at her, she was looking at the two of them and had a big smile on her face. I wondered who they were. Then they turned and headed for our table. They were both dark-haired, had muscular builds and were expensively dressed. Even with the distance and the dimness of the bar, I could see they were both wearing Armani suits. As they drew closer to the table, I recognized the shorter man. I had not seen him in more than a year. It was Bill Arnello.

It was strange seeing him in this setting. And Elle obviously knew him and was happy to see him. Interesting. I knew he had mob connections, and I wondered about the man with him. They approached the table and greeted Gen and Ricky. Then both sets of eyes settled on me. I felt immensely uncomfortable.

Then Bill said: "Dr. House. What a surprise. It's nice to see you again."

He leaned across the table to shake my hand. Then he turned to his friend and said: "This is the doctor that I told you about, Joey's doctor. This is Dr. House."

A glimmer of recognition shone in the other man's eyes. He extended his hand to me and said: "Tony Russo. I've heard a lot about you. Nice to meet you, Dr. House."

I shook his hand and said: "House. Just call me House."

He nodded and then turned his attention to Gen. "So, Gen, how's our girl doing? She's looking a lot better than the last time I saw her."

Gen nodded at him: "She's doing great, Tony. She's been at her new job for 2 weeks and in her new apartment for one. In fact, House is her neighbor."

Tony shifted back in the chair and he took a good look at me. "Yeah, really? You're Elle's neighbor?" I simply nodded.

He looked over at Bill: "He's Elle's neighbor. Is that a good thing?"

Bill nodded: "Oh, yeah. House doesn't put up with any shit. I'm sure if someone were messing with Elle, he'd straighten 'em out, right, House? You'll be watching out for our girl, won't ya?"

There was only one way to answer a question like that from a person like Bill, and that is in the affirmative. I quickly said: "Absolutely. I have a cane and I know how to use it." They all chuckled at that remark.

The band started the opening bars of the next song and Tony remarked: "Oh I love it when she does this one." He turned his chair around so he could easily watch Elle. Adam's guitar opener led into Elle singing Greg Allman's 'I'm No Angel'. This was the first song tonight where she was the lead singer and I leaned forward to watch her. She seemed totally in her element. I glanced at Tony; he was smiling as he watched her. I wondered what was the relationship between he and Elle. His name was nudging my brain, but there was no response. I mentally shrugged; it would come to me.

They kept singing; we kept listening. There was very little conversation at our table. Everyone was focused on the band.

Around 10PM, Theresa came over with several beers and a glass of water. She set the water and a Heineken down in between Tony and myself. "That's for Elle. They'll be taking a break after the next song. The other beers are for the guys." She set down 4 bottles of various brands down in the middle of the table. I guess after all these years; Theresa knew what each band member drank. Tony and Bill both ordered a drink and I asked her for another Grolsch. Theresa was back in a few minutes with our drinks. As she handed my beer to me, she said: "So, you met my cousin Tony here?"

I nodded and then the light bulb came on. Tony is Theresa's cousin. Tony is Elle's OLD BOYFRIEND! Holy Crap. Her old boyfriend came to see her play on her first night back and he didn't bring the wife. Wonder if that was significant or not.

It was Danny's turn to sing lead and he was doing a great job on Meatloaf's 'I Would Do Anything for Love'. Elle, of course, sang the girl's part of the song. Her part was hauntingly beautiful and I was again impressed at her talent. They finished the song to tremendous applause and announced that they were taking a break. They headed off the left side of the stage into the back. After a minute, they all trouped through the 'employees' only' door into the bar. They walked through the bar chatting and shaking hands with the patrons. They seemed to know most of the people here.

I watched Elle weave her way through the masses. The crowd was constantly stopping her to talk or shake hands. People were obviously delighted that she was back. Finally she made her way to us. Tony and Bill stood up at her approach. Elle had a huge smile on her face; she seemed genuinely happy to see these guys. I heard Tony say "Bella Ella" as he wrapped her up in a big hug. I felt my chest constrict and I wasn't sure why. I watched Elle gave Tony a kiss on each cheek. Then Tony placed both hands on Elle's ribs and gave her a little squeeze. "You're still too skinny. Aren't you eating?"

She replied: "Of course, I'm eating. Ask House. I've been cooking for him." Tony spun his head around quickly and asked: "She's cooking for you?"

I shrugged: "Yeah. She's made me a few dinners. She is a great cook."

He smirked: "Oh, yeah, did she make her famous garlic bread yet?"

Elle playfully slapped his arm: "Don't start on my garlic bread. House liked it, didn't you?"

I grinned and answered honestly: "Yeah, I did. It was very good, along with the baked ziti and the chicken cacciatore. Oh, yeah, and can't forget the brownies. Those are amazing."

He nodded and said dreamily: "Yeah, they are. So she's cooking, but is she eating?"

"Tony, stop being a mother hen. I'm eating. House doesn't have to report to you about every bite I take."

"Bella, you lost 20 pounds in 2 months. I'd just like to see you put it back on, that's all. You got too skinny."

She waved her hand to dismiss him: "It will come back." Elle stepped away from Tony and gave Bill a hug. "It's good to see you. I'm glad you came tonight. I was planning to call you next week to see how my case is going."

Bill nodded: "I'm expecting to hear something about my motion no later than Wednesday afternoon. Can you meet with me sometime late on Wednesday?"

Elle replied: "Yeah, why don't I meet you here for dinner, say, 7:30?"

Bill pulled out his Blackberry and checked his calendar. Then he nodded, "That works for me. I'll put you on my calendar."

Elle came and sat down in between Tony and myself. She turned back to me and asked: "How are you doing? Enjoying the show?"

I smiled at her: "Oh, yeah. You guys are really good. Can't wait for more."

Gen butted in with "Oh, you'll really like the next set. Elle sings lead the entire time. The second set always belongs to her."

Elle blushed and mumbled: "Well, anyway, I hope you're having a good time." She took a long drink of water.

I brushed my hand against hers and assured her that I was. I needed to call Foreman back so I excused myself and headed through the door into the back so I would have a quiet place to talk.

I punched his number on my cell and he picked up on the second ring.

I was direct: "So, what did you find?"

"You were right. We found the box with the linens and there are several spiders in it. We captured 3 of them in specimen cups. I think Cameron is afraid of spiders; she is completely freaked out."

I could her in the background saying: "I am NOT! They are just so disgusting!"

Foreman chuckled: "We checked the bed and we did find a dead spider. It is also in a specimen cup."

"Good. We need to ID them and determine if they are really brown recluse spiders. There's no antivenin for that bite, but at least we will have the correct diagnosis and can treat her accordingly. Head back to the hospital and ID the little critters. Text me when you find out and I'll get back to you."

He seemed surprised: "You're not coming in?"

"Nope. Busy. Text me." And I hung up.

Then I called Chase: "So how is she?"

"She's asleep, seems to be resting comfortably. I think the Benadryl knocked her out. She still has a bit of fever, but not too bad."

"Foreman and Cameron are heading back with specimens. They are going to work on them and get back to me. Continue monitoring her until I call you back."

I closed the phone before he could reply. I wanted to keep them busy until at least 1AM, so Chase wouldn't show up here. I headed back out front.

I sat back down next to Elle. She was engrossed in conversation with Tony. For an ex-boyfriend, she seemed pretty close to him. I knew he was married, but I wondered if they still had something going on. He had called her 'Bella', which means 'beautiful' in Italian and he had said it as if it were her name. Wonder if he called her that in front of his wife.

She shook her head at Tony and said: "No, I'm not ready for that yet".

_Hmm, sorry I missed the first part of that conversation. Wonder what she is not ready for yet?_

Then she turned to me and asked: "So, did they find any spiders?"

"Yup. Foreman and Cameron are taking some bodies back to the hospital to be identified as we speak. You might be two for two in solving my cases. I may have to put you on my team, _Dr. Kaplan."_

Elle giggled: "Oh, yeah, right. Dr. Cameron would just love that."

I smirked: "Too bad. She's just jealous cuz you're smarter and prettier than she is."

Elle looked embarrassed: "No, I'm not. She's really pretty, and she's a doctor, so I know she's smart."

I looked at her sternly: "Hey. You are drop-dead gorgeous and you're really smart. You could have gone to med school too."

She just shook her head. The guys had stood up and were heading back to the stage. "I gotta go."

Elle took off before I could say another word. I was puzzled by her reaction.

Tony caught my eye: "Hey. Don't let her reaction bug you. It used to bother me too, but I got used to it. You'll never convince her that she's pretty or smart. She lived with too much shit when she was in foster care. It did something to her. Complement her music, that she will accept."

"What happened to her while she was there?"

He shook his head: "Bad stuff. Abuse. It's not my place to tell you. She'll tell you if and when she's ready. But that may take a while. I know for a fact that she never told David and she was with him for 2 years. Ah, they're getting started. The boys are going to play an intro for Elle. Sit back and enjoy. I think you will be very impressed."

With that, he turned to face the stage and I did likewise.

_**Elle **_

The first set went well. I was a bit nervous, but once we got started, I was OK. I was surprised at Adam for making the announcement that I was back. I didn't expect that. It was nice, but I was embarrassed. Hope I covered up OK. I was happy to see that Tony and Bill came tonight. Last time I saw Tony had been about 3 months ago at Theresa's place for dinner. Nancy and the boys were there, of course. I could tell he was shocked at how much weight I had lost. I had never had much meat on me, but after losing 20 pounds, I was practically skin and bones. I had gotten used to just eating a few mouthfuls at each meal. I could tell Tony was really worried about me. But there is only so much concern that he can express in front of Nancy. It wouldn't be right. He called me a few days later and I met him at Satchel's for lunch. I needed someone to talk to and I knew he would listen and understand. I told him how hard it had been and about the nightmares. He held me and let me cry on his shoulder. He really wanted to go kick David's ass for dumping me, but I told him not to. He had already done that for me with Charlie, but that had been a different situation. I really didn't care about David anymore. I felt so apathetic about him, that I didn't even want him hurt for hurting me. I was actually happy that I found how what he was truly like before I married him. What if all of this had happened after we were married? That would have been 10 times worse. I was really glad that I had the chance to talk to Tony alone that day. He made me feel better. Sometimes I wonder if I had been a fool to let him go, but I knew he was happy with Nancy and the kids, so I'm sure it was for the best.

House went into the back to phone his fellows about his patient and I took the time to catch up with Tony.

"So where's Nancy? I thought she was coming tonight."

"Little Mickey is sick, so she wanted to stay home. She knew I wanted to see you on your first night back, so she told me to come anyway. She sends her best."

"I hope it's nothing serious with Mickey."

"Naw, just a really bad cold. Little Joey will probably end up with it next. You know how that goes."

He gave me the once-over. "So, really, how are you doing? How's the new job and the new place?"

I smiled at him: "The job is going better than I'd hoped. I'm doing oncology and I'm doing pain management 2 afternoons a week. I have my own little office for that. That was a surprise. It's great. If it goes well, they might expand my office hours. And I get to work with Chris Guskiewicz again. He came over to PPTH a couple of years ago. So he's been a big support for me with the other doctors. The head of oncology is actually House's best friend, so I'm getting to know him pretty well."

He nodded: "So House is your neighbor? Is he really an OK guy?"

I snorted: "Well, he has his moments. He can be really blunt sometimes. He likes people to think that he is really a nasty guy. But there's another side to him, and he's been nice to me."

"You cook for him?"

"Yeah, it's nice to have someone to cook for and eat with, ya know. He plays piano too. He lets me play his piano. We talk music and books. Watch TV. We get along OK."

He nods his head: "So are you going to get your own piano again?"

I shook my head: "Not right away. This apartment is really too small and I have so many other things I need right now. Plus I can use House's piano, so that works out. I want to get a TV first."

"Listen, if I can help you out with a little cash,,,"

I interrupted him: "No, Tony. Thanks for the offer, but I'll be OK."

He looked at me skeptically.

"Really, I'm fine. I just got my first paycheck yesterday. I'll get some tip money tonight. I'm a little behind with things, but I'll catch up soon. If Bill has good news about my lawsuit this week, maybe I'll catch up even sooner. But I appreciate the offer."

"You know if there is anything I can do, I will."

I nodded my head: "I know. Thanks." I knew he meant it sincerely.

We were silent for a moment. There was a whole novel of words we didn't dare say to each other. We still cared for each other deeply, but he was married now, and I wasn't crossing that line. But a part of me would always love him.

He cleared his throat: "So, have you gotten a new dog yet?"

I shook my head: "No, I'm not ready for that yet."

House returned from his phone call and I turned to ask what happened. He filled me in about the spiders and mentioned that he would put me on his team. I made a comment about Dr Cameron not liking that, and he actually told me that I was prettier and smarter than Dr Cameron. I couldn't believe it. He told me that I was drop-dead gorgeous, who, ME?! I couldn't believe it. I was really embarrassed and fortunately it was time to get back on the stage, so I hurriedly got up and headed to the back.

The boys went on stage and cranked up the intro. I have always sung lead for the entire second set and tonight would be no different. I was a bit nervous. I let them play the intro for a full two minutes to get the audience good and psyched, and then I strutted onstage to the open mike in between Adam and Danny. I smiled at the audience and raised my hands up in the air over my head. They gave me a standing ovation. I gave them a minute to cheer, dropped my hands and then the band segued right into "Midnight in Memphis." I started singing, the crowd roared, and I knew I was home.

_**House **_

The band was playing a very catchy instrumental number that I didn't recognize. I asked Gen if she knew this number.

She laughed: "Oh, yeah, this is always Elle's intro. It's 'Camellia' from the movie, 'The Rose'."

I nodded vaguely as I'd never heard it before or seen the movie.

Tony chuckled at me: "If you have not seen the movie, you need to see it pronto. It's Elle's favorite flick. She sings all the songs from it. I swear she knows the whole movie by heart."

Gen piped in: "She does. I've heard her do entire monologues from the movie."

Tony went on: "If you really want to know Elle, you need to know this. She's totally into this movie and she thinks that she is Janis Joplin reincarnated."

My jaw dropped at that, but before I could ask anything, Elle sauntered onto the stage and the crowd went wild. Everyone stood up to cheer. We stood along with the crowd and clapped loudly. Elle raised her hands over her head and smiled broadly. After a minute, she dropped her hands and the band started another number. Elle took the mike off of the stand and started singing. This song was "Midnight in Memphis"; Gen told me it was also from the movie. Elle was moving all over the stage as she sang. During one instrumental part of the song, she pulled a harmonica out of her back pocket and played it. She was amazing, really a born entertainer. She had the audience in the palm of her hand. The song ended and they immediately went into the next song. Again, Gen told me that it was from that movie. This one was called: "Sold my Soul to Rock and Roll." Elle sang and moved with so much energy that I briefly wondered if she had snorted some coke backstage before starting. I dismissed that thought immediately, but I couldn't believe the energy she had.

It was amazing watching her sing. She was so brassy and confident, quite a contrast to the scared little girl crying in my arms last night.

Next she sang that Bon Jovi song that she and the boys had sung on moving day, "It's My Life". As hot as she looked singing it in the apartment, she was 10 times hotter singing it on stage. I surreptitiously wiped my chin to make sure I wasn't drooling. I swear I could feel her eyes right on me when she sang the lines:

_Better stand tall when they're calling you out_

_Don't bend, don't break, baby, don't back down_

And then those hip thumps. I just sat there in amazement at her energy and talent.

Tony nudged me: "What do you think? She's really good, huh?"

I heartily agreed: "Yeah, she's fantastic. Amazing."

We just sat back and enjoyed the rest of the set. At some point, Elle took out her acoustic guitar and played while she sang. She did some Janis Joplin. The crowd went nuts for 'Piece of my Heart'. She sang it with just the right amount of anguish in her voice.

Elle introduced the next song as "the last recording Janis made before she died". Elle sang 'Mercedes Benz' a cappella, just taping out the beat with a drumstick against the mike stand, just the way that Janis recorded the song.

It seemed to be a favorite as the crowd sang along with her. When the applause died down, she swung her guitar around from her back, and played 'Me and Bobby McGee'. She really did sound a lot like Janis.

I looked over at Tony and asked: "Does she really think she's reincarnated?"

He chuckled: "I don't know for sure, but she acts like she believes it. She was born on Janis' birthday, 3 months after Janis died. That's why Elle tells this story. I think Elle just really likes her music and it's a coincidence that they share the same birthday. But she will get right in your face and talk it up until you just about believe her."

I filed all of this information away for future ponderings. Elle played 2 songs by Melissa Etheridge that were quite good. Then she set the guitar down and said to the audience: "Just one more and then we're going to take a break"

The music started and Gen turned to me and said: "This one is also from the movie. This one is something else. And you'll hear a bit of monologue too."

Tony chimed in: "Yeah, if you were amazed before, you'll be on the floor now."

The opening bars started and Elle stood there holding the mike in her left hand and swaying a bit to the music, while looking down at the ground. As she started singing the lyrics, she lifted her head and looked off at the distance. The song started low and slow and the intensity picked up within a few lines. If I had thought Elle sang with a lot of emotion on 'Piece of My Heart', it was nothing compared to this song.

Stay with me, baby.  
I'm beggin' you to stay with me, baby.  
Yeah, stay with me, baby.  
I can't go on.

The passion Elle packed into this song was just absolutely amazing. She sang as if her soul was in total anguish over her lover leaving her. And maybe it was considering what happened to her 6 months ago.

_  
Oh, stay with me, baby.  
Why don't you, why don't you just stay with me, baby?  
Yeah, stay with me, baby.  
Remember, you said you always gonna love me.  
Remember, you said you'd never ever leave me.  
Remember, remember, I'm asking you, begging you._

_Oh, Oh, Oh._

_Stay with me, baby, baby, baby._

_Why don't you just stay with me baby?_

_Stay with me baby_

_I can't, I can't go on._

_Ohhh, no._

At this point, Elle looked down at the crowd and started talking to them:

"Well, I'm a young woman, and I can get plenty of men.

But honey, keeping them is the hard part, ain't it?

Yeah, sometimes, sometimes I try so hard,,,"

_Maybe this time, I should be the one to go away_

_Cuz honey, ain't it my turn to have somebody_

_grab hold of me and say _

_NO, don't go, you can't go,_

_Don't go, STAY_

_Stay with me, baby_

_I'm begging you to stay with me, baby_

_Stay with me, baby_

_I can't , I can't, I can't, I can't_

_Stay with me baby_

_Why don't you stay with me, baby?_

_I can't, I can't goooooo onnnnnn!_

The crowd was on their feet as she stretched out the last notes of the song. She sang that song with such rawness and passion. It was as if someone had torn her heart out and was waving it around for all to see. I hated to think of her being in that much pain. I remember how raw my pain was after Stacy left me. Five years later, it had subsided to a dull roar, and then she appeared in my life again. Things got stirred up as I realized that I still had feelings for her, and she for me. I pushed her away again, only this time at least I did it directly. This time I told her to leave as opposed to pushing her away by being so mean to her. Four months later, I was still doctoring that wound. Elle and I had both been badly betrayed by our lovers. The wounds ran deep and healing would take a while. In my case, 5 years had not been long enough. How long would it take her?

I came out of my musings to hear the crowd chanting: "Rose, Rose, Rose."

Elle and the band had started to walk off stage when the chanting started. Adam grabbed Elle by the elbow and tilted his head towards the piano.

I looked over at Gen and asked what this was about.

She replied: "The crowd wants her to sing 'The Rose' from the movie. Usually she plays it at the end of the night. I guess they want it now."

I saw a guy approach the stage with a large bouquet of white roses. He held them up in the air. Elle walked over to him and took the bouquet. She said a few words to the man and walked back to the piano. She laid the roses down across the top of the piano and sat down on the bench. She started with a few chords and the crowd immediately quieted down. It was a very quiet, yet emotional song.

It's the heart afraid of breaking  
that never learns to dance.  
It's the dream afraid of waking  
that never takes the chance.  
It's the one who won't be taken,  
who cannot seem to give,  
and the soul afraid of dyin'  
that never learns to live.

When she finished the song, the crowd erupted with applause. Elle stood, picked up the roses and walked to the edge of the stage. She held up her hand and the crowd quieted. "It's good to be home. Thank you. And we'll be back after a short break." She took a bowand walked offstage while the crowd roared.

The boys made it back to the table first. Danny explained that Elle was putting the roses in some water. They all started working on their beers and chatting about how great Elle sounded.

After a few minutes, Elle came out into the barroom. She made her way through the crowd, stopping to chat here and there like she had before.

Tony & I both stood up as she approached, but I wanted to get to her first. I sidestepped him and intercepted her. She stopped right in front of me, actually rather physically close to me. She was glistening with sweat and looked a little tired. I looked into her eyes and cupped her cheek with my left hand. I looked deeply into her eyes and said simply: "You were fantastic."

She smiled sweetly and said: "Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I enjoyed watching you." I stroked her cheek with my thumb and bent down and kissed her gently on the lips. I felt her hands grasp my biceps as she leaned into the kiss.

We broke apart after a minute and she smiled at me shyly. "I need a drink." I stood aside and steered her to the table with my hand in the small of her back. Theresa had placed a glass of water and a Heineken at Elle's seat just like before. Elle took a long drink of water. I noticed Tony giving me the eye, but I just ignored him.

Everyone was talking around us, but Elle was quiet. Finally I asked her if she was OK.

She glanced over at me and gave me a big smile: "Oh, yeah. I feel great." She stared at her beer. "I feel like I've come home. I've missed being here and singing. It feels really good to be back. I should have done this sooner."

Lenny yelled at her, in a teasing manner, from the end of the table: "Yeah, sister, you should have done it months ago."

Elle stuck her tongue out at him.

He called back: "Hey, don't stick that out unless you plan to use it."

Elle glanced at me: "Hmmm, where have I heard that line lately?" Then she hollered back to Lenny: "I'll stick it out if I feel like it, buddy." And she waggled her tongue obscenely at him. The whole table cracked up.

Despite the humorous exchange, Elle still seemed introspective and I wondered what was up. But before I could pursue it further, my cell phone beeped indicating that I had a text message. I pulled it out and read the message.

_House: confirmed it is brown recluse spider. Awaiting your instructions. Foreman_

I showed the message to Elle and told her: "You were right. You are two for two on my cases, sweetheart. Welcome to my team."

She blushed: "I can't join your team. I'm not a doctor. But I will consult if requested." She looked at me. The blush was gone and a mischievous look was on her face.

I grinned at her: "I'll have to come up with a reasonable consultation fee. Can't have you solving my cases _gratis"._

She smirked back: "I'm sure you'll come up with something."

Elle leaned back in the chair. "So what are you going to tell Foreman now?"

I replied: "I'm not going to tell him anything just yet. I'm going to let them sit and stew for a while. Let them hang out at the hospital for a few hours, then I'll call and give them instructions."

"Oh, you're mean. You could tell them now, and they would be done for the night. You're really going to leave them hanging?"

"Yep, just because I can. It keeps them out of mischief."

'_And it keeps Chase from showing up here'_, I thought.

After resting for about 10 minutes, they got up to back for another set. After they had walked away, Tony looked and me and said: "She's really something, huh?'

I nodded: "Yeah, she is really amazing. How did you ever let her get away?"

He smirked: "It wasn't my idea. She's the one who wanted it, thought it was for the best."

"Really? She gave me the idea that it was a mutual thing."

"Oh, yeah, what did she tell you?"

I repeated what she had told me.

He smirked, but didn't say anything.

I asked him: "There's more to it than that, huh?"

He shook his head: "Naw, it happened just like she told you, just leave it at that."

I could tell that there was more to the story, but I wasn't going to get it from Tony.

The band walked onstage and started playing again. They performed two more Bon Jovi songs, and then Adam made a big show of putting on a black cowboy hat. The crowd started cheering wildly.

Then Adam announced to the crowd: "Elle doesn't know this, but I haven't worn this hat in 6 months. I just couldn't sing Lynyrd Skynyrd without my keyboard player."

I glanced at Elle. She had a stunned look on her face. She put her hand over her mike and said something to Adam, but he just grinned. Then he said: "Crank it up" and they crashed into 'Sweet Home Alabama.'

Tony glanced at Gen: "For real? Adam loves Skynyrd. He really hasn't played it in 6 months?"

Gen nodded: "It was his way of mourning what happened to her. He swore he wasn't playing any Skynyrd until she came back. And he never told her either cuz he didn't want to pressure her too much."

Tony cocked one eyebrow, but didn't say anything more. We sat back to watch them rock out. From that song, they rolled right into 'Gimme 3 Steps' and then to 'What's Your Name?' The crowd was loving it. They were on their feet and clapping along. The last song they did was 'Freebird'. The band was obviously having a really good time jammin' on this one. They stretched this song out for about 10 minutes. I was actually itching to join them. 'Freebird' is such a great song to jam on.

I was amazed. They were so good together. It was hard to believe that they had not played together in 6 months.

After they finished that song, Adam announced they were taking a short break and would be back for the last set. I glanced at my watch. It was midnight. I figured I should call the ducklings with instructions. It was late enough now that Chase would not have time to get over here. I needed a minute to think about what I wanted them to do. I excused myself and walked into the back to make the call in a quieter area. I bumped into Elle as she came out of the restroom.

"Hey, I was just going to call the kids about the patient."

She nodded: "Are you going to use dapsone?"

"Hmm, I could. It is within the 36-hour window. But the side effects are so severe that I'm not sure it is worth it. Let me check with Chase and see if it is getting worse."

I phoned him and he assured me that the wound was not any bigger. I told him that it was a brown recluse spider bite and that I was considering using dapsone but only if the wound got any worse. I told him he needed to stay and monitor the patient until 9AM tomorrow. That would be the end of the 36 hours window. If the wound were still the same, I wouldn't start the dapsone. In the meantime, he was to give her a tetanus booster and change her antibiotic to Rocephin 1 gram IV twice a day. Now that we knew it wasn't cellulitis, a broad-spectrum antibiotic would provide better coverage.

He reluctantly agreed to stay with the patient until tomorrow. I told him I would call him back in a couple of hours to see if there were any changes.

Then I phoned Foreman and told him and Cameron that they were finished for the night and that they could go home. I let them know that Chase was staying until 9AM. I was sure that they would not want to switch places with him and in fact, would sneak out of the hospital without saying goodbye to him. I closed the phone, feeling pleased.

I walked back to the table. The band was just getting up to go back on stage. I quickly told Elle that the patient wasn't any worse, so I was holding off on the dapsone until the end of the 36-hour window. I also told her that I was leaving Chase at the hospital to monitor her until tomorrow. She smirked at me and headed off to the stage.

The band finished the night with some Don Henley, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen. The very last song was appropriate. It was Jackson Browne's 'All Good Things Gotta Come to an End'. Elle sang the lead and played acoustic guitar on this one. When they were finished, the band got a standing ovation that seemed to last for 5 minutes. They stood together on the front of the stage, locked hands and took a bow. Then Avi pushed Elle forward and the cheering got even wilder. The boys were applauding for her too. She took a bow and then gestured at the boys in appreciation. They all locked hands again and took another bow. Finally Elle spoke into the mike: "Thank you all for coming tonight. We'll see you in 2 weeks." And with that, they walked off the stage. The crowd kept clapping and cheering, calling for an encore. Gen and Ricky got up and motioned me to come with them. We headed to the back, and Tony and Bill followed along.

As we walked down the hallway, Gen said: "The crowd is too wild for them to start breaking down. We'll have to wait for most of them to leave before they can go back out."

We walked into the room and the band was already sprawled out. Everyone looked happy but tired. A bottle of scotch was being passed around. A paper cup appeared in my hand and was topped off. Avi proposed a toast: "To Elle on her first night back, and to the rest of us, for having her back!" Everyone whooped and chugged down the scotch. The bottle passed around again and everyone got a refill.

Tony and Bill walked over to Elle and said a few words. She gave them both a kiss and said goodnight. They obviously needed to leave and said goodnight to the rest of us. As Tony passed me, he said quietly: "Try to get her to drink a lot of water. She always sweats off like 3 pounds when she plays." Then he looked straight in the eye and said in a very serious tone: "It was nice to meet you, House. Take good care of Elle."

I couldn't tell if there was a hidden threat in that look or not, as in 'take good care of her or else'. I merely nodded and said: "I will."

He returned the nod and with that, Tony and Bill walked out of the room.

We hung around in the back room drinking until almost 2AM. By then, the place had cleared out enough for the band to go back up front. The band went back onstage and starting breaking down the equipment. The rest of us sat down back at our usual spot. Billy walked over with 4 large jars filled with bills.

"The band's tips," he said in response to my curious glance. Gen and Ricky each took a jar and started counting the money. I grabbed one and started helping. We stacked the singles and fives in piles of 20-dollar increments. There were a few larger bills and we just piled them separately. When we finished counting, we were surprised to discover that there was 600 bucks there. People had been very generous tonight. Billy came over and exchanged the singles and fives for larger bills. Then he gave Gen some more money, which he said, was the band's half of the door charge. That was another 250 bucks. Gen was happy; she said that was a good night for them.

The band had finished packing up and came back to the table. Gen happily told them how much money was there. Avi exclaimed: "Excellent!" With that he picked up the whole wad of cash and placed it in Elle's hand.

She looked at him as if he were nuts. "What are you doing? We need to split this up."

Avi smirked at her: "No, we don't. We all decided to give you the first night's take. And no arguments from you. We've been splitting the money 4 ways for the last 6 months. We wanted to give you your cut all that time, but you said NOOOOOOO! You wouldn't take the money if you weren't playing. So now, you're taking this. We all agreed, right, guys?"

There was a chorus of yes's from the others. Elle looked at the money and then back at Avi.

"Avi, I can't take all of this. It's not right." I could see her lip tremble. She seemed really uncomfortable by all of this.

Avi put his arm around her shoulders and said: "Yes, you can. It's what we all want. You don't want to disappoint us, do you? And now, we can go TV shopping tomorrow, right, Ricky?"

They all laughed at that, even Elle, but I could see the tears in her eyes. She seemed to have trouble handling this type of affection even from her own tribe.

Adam said: "Come on, Elle. It's what we all want. Take it. Don't make Avi go all drama queen on us. It's too late at night for that."

Elle glanced around the table and everyone was nodding. She caught my eye and I nodded encouragingly.

She looked down, so obviously embarrassed. Finally she said: "OK. Thank you. You guys are the best." She bit her trembling lip.

Avi whooped: "Yeah!" and hugged her. She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. Then she went around the table and gave everyone a hug and kiss, even me.

Then she set the money down on the table and walked off to the bar, saying: "I need another drink."

Gen looked around at the guys and said: "I don't think she's handling this so well."

Even Avi looked worried. "House, are you taking her home, or shall we?"

I responded: "I can take her home. After all, she practically lives with me."

They smirked at my attempt at humor. Avi said: "Just keep a eye on her, OK? She just doesn't seem quite herself."

I nodded. Elle came back from the bar with a glass of scotch in her hand. She sat down so close to me that her leg was pressed up against mine.

Everyone was quiet while we watched Elle sip her scotch. It seemed no one knew what to say.

Theresa walked over and noticed the lack of conversation and the pile of money in front of Elle. She shot Avi a questioningly look and he just shrugged.

Theresa gave Elle a playful slap on the arm: "Hey, what's with you tonight? You didn't beg me to make potato skins like you always do."

Elle snarked back: "Well you didn't nag me to play your damn song, either."

They stared at each other for a moment and then Theresa said: "Fine, I'll make your damn skins. Go play."

Elle said: "FINE!" She stood up and taking her glass of scotch with her, headed up to the piano.

I glanced around the table; everyone was grinning.

Lenny said to Theresa: "Excellent job."

Danny agreed: "Now things are getting back to normal here."

Adam explained to me: "You see, they do this every week. Elle wants her potato skins after she plays and Theresa wants her to play a certain song before she'll make them. They fight about this every week. And Theresa always gives in first cuz she really wants Elle to play. So life is truly back to normal."

As Elle walked up to the piano, Theresa stuck her head in the kitchen and called to the cook. Then she came back to the table and sat with us.

Elle had sat down at the piano and she took a long sip of scotch before setting the glass down. She looked over at our table and nodded to Theresa.

Then she started playing a beautiful, haunting melody. I found out after the song was over that it was called 'A Broken Hallelujah'. It was mesmerizing. I could see why Theresa loved it. Everyone applauded when she finished.

Elle raised her glass in salute and took another drink. Then to everyone's surprise she started playing another song. It sounded a lot different hearing it played just on piano when one usually hears it with a full band, but somehow it made the words even more poignant. The song Elle sang was Don Henley's 'The Heart of the Matter'.

_There are people in your life whom come and gone_

_They've let you down; you know they hurt your pride_

_You better put it all behind you, babe, cuz life goes on_

_You keep carrying that anger; it will eat you up inside_

I could feel her emotion singing that song. The song kept talking about forgiveness. I wonder if she had been able to do that; I know I hadn't with Stacy.

We applauded when she finished that song also. This time, she simply got up, grabbed her glass and walked off the stage. By the time she walked to the table, the cook had set down her potato skins. Her eyes perked up.

She said: "Yum!" as she sat down between Theresa and I. She took a bite and made happy noises as she chewed. After she swallowed, she gave Theresa a kiss on the cheek and thanked her.

Theresa smiled at her and said: "You're welcome, sweetie."

Everyone seemed to relax again and chatted while Elle ate. After she gobbled the first one, she turned to me and said: "Want one? They have bacon on them."

Damn woman already knows my weakness. I took one and joined her in eating the tasty skins. We finished the plate in no time. Elle surprised me by leaning on my shoulder and asking: "Are you taking me home?"

"Sure, I'll take you home."

"Good. Cuz I'm tired and I'm ready to go, OK?"

"No problem." I glanced at my watch; it was just after 3AM. Oops, still need to call Chase again. I decided to get Elle home first and then I would call him.

Elle stood up and announced to the gang that I was taking her home. Danny went over to the stage, picked up her guitars and brought them over to her. Elle gave everyone a kiss goodnight, picked up both guitars and started to head towards the door.

Adam called after her: "Elle. You forgot something." He pointed at the pile of money still sitting on the table.

She looked embarrassed: "Oops. Think I might be just a little drunk. Why else would I forget 850 bucks?" She giggled and scooped up the money. It was a big wad and she was trying to figure out where to put it. I finally solved it for her by shoving it into her backpack purse. I shut it securely and we said goodnight and headed for the door.

We were outside walking towards my car when I remembered the flowers.

"Hey, what about your roses?"

"Oh, I told Theresa to take them. She loves them. Everyone thinks they are my favorite cuz of the movie, but they're not."

"What is your favorite flower?"

"Tulips and sunflowers. One day I want to go to Holland in the spring and see all the tulips in bloom. And then go to Tuscany in the summertime and see the fields of sunflowers. Silly, huh?"

"No, not silly. If that's what you want, you should do it."

"Um, maybe after my lawsuit is over. Hopefully, I'll win some money and can afford to do it."

We reached my car and I unlocked the doors. I helped her place the guitars carefully in the backseat and I opened the passenger door for her. She reached up and caressed my cheek.

"Such a gentleman", she whispered. She placed her hands on my shoulders, tiptoed up and gently kissed the corner of my mouth.

Before I could respond, she turned and settled herself in the car. I carefully closed the door for her.

I could still feel her lips on mine and as I walked around to my side of the car, I realized I was smiling.


	10. Chapter 10

The Elle Word Chapter 10

**_House _**

We didn't talk much on the way home. Elle seemed to be tired. Her elbow was propped up on the door and she was supporting her head with that hand. I glanced over at her and her eyes were closed.

"Really tired, huh?"

Elle opened her eyes, looked over at me and smiled: "Yeah, I'm tired. But it's a good tired. It was really fun tonight."

"You were amazing. You had the crowd in the palm of your hand."

She chuckled: "Thank you."

We were quiet for a few minutes and then I said: "So, I hear that I should call you by a different name. I hear that you are really Janis Joplin reincarnated."

She laughed: "Tony told you that, didn't he? I saw your heads together a lot. What else did he tell you?"

"He told me to make sure that you drink a lot of water after playing cuz you sweat off 3 pounds and you can't afford to lose any more weight."

She laughed: "That Tony. He can be so protective, sometimes. What else?"

I replied: "He told me to take care of you, or else!" I said that last bit with a dramatic flourish.

She playfully slapped my arm: "No, he didn't."

"Yeah, he did. And he's got mob connections so I gotta listen."

She went silent. Then quietly she said: "Yeah, he does. And how do you know Bill? You two seemed acquainted with each other."

"I treated his brother a while back. He was, uh, very involved with the case."

She smirked: "Yeah, I bet he was. He can be a barracuda. That's why he's my lawyer with my lawsuit against PMMC."

"How's that going?"

"I don't know exactly. I'm meeting him for dinner on Wednesday and he'll update me then."

"What is the basis of your lawsuit?"

"Unlawful termination and privacy violations. Bill is going to get JCAHO involved with the privacy violations. He's hoping that the hospital gets a hefty fine for that in addition to my damages. I'm suing for back pay plus damages due to emotional distress. Asking for 2 million, hoping to get 1."

I didn't know what to say to that, I merely reached over and squeezed her hand. She squeezed back, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a small smile on her face. She held onto my hand for the rest of the ride home.

I found a decent parking spot across the street from our building. We got out and each took a guitar and walked across the street. Elle had a free hand so she opened both the doors for us. We walked inside her apartment and set the guitars down.

"Thanks for the lift. It was good for me that you didn't bring your bike tonight."

"Well, when I saw you leaving with two guitars, I thought if you needed a ride, the bike would be impractical. And the Corvette doesn't have a back seat for the guitars. I hate putting guitars in the trunk."

She looked surprised: "You have a 'Vette? I've never seen it."

"I don't keep it parked on the street. It is garaged. It's a classic '65, cherry condition. It was actually a gift from the Arnello brothers."

I checked out her reaction. She seemed quite impressed. "Wow. I had heard that a doctor at PPTH had saved Joey's life, but I didn't know it was you. And I never heard about the gift. Wow. Will you take me for a ride sometime?"

"Sure."

"Cool. Well, thanks again for the ride tonight. I'll make dinner tomorrow night if you're interested."

I nodded: "Yeah, dinner would be great. But aren't you coming over to my place tonight?"

"Oh, I'm all sweaty and sticky. You don't want me in your bed."

_(Oh, Yes I do.)_

"Go take a shower and come over. You just had a nightmare last night. Come stay with me."

She seemed reluctant: "OK. But I sleep really late on Sundays, usually until noon. And I gotta shower before I come over cuz I'm really gross."

"So shower and come over. I'll be sleeping late too. That's no big deal."

She nodded: "OK. I'll be over in a few minutes."

"I'll leave the door open." With that, I left and went over to my apartment.

I took the opportunity to call Chase to check on the patient. He sounded groggy when he answered the phone.

I snarked: "Sleeping on the job?"

Chase replied hurriedly: "No, no. She's doing fine. She's sleeping comfortably and the wound hasn't changed. It is the same size and there is no further blistering."

"Excellent. Stay until 6AM. If everything is still the same, don't start the dapsone and you can go home. IF, and I mean, IF there are any changes, call me. I'll be asleep so only call me if it is really necessary. Got it?"

"Got it? You're up late. Hot night with your hooker?"

"Naw, I was out at a club. Did you know that our Dr. Kaplan plays in a band? I watched them perform tonight. They are quite good. Really enjoyed my night."

There was silence on his end. I would have loved to see the expression on his face, but the silence said it all.

I repeated my instructions to him: "Stay until 6AM, only call if it is absolutely necessary. Good night." I closed the phone.

I headed down the hall to my bedroom. Stripping off my clothes, I pulled out a clean T-shirt and some pajama bottoms. Realizing that she would be squeaky clean when she crawled into my bed, I decided a fast shower was in order. I turned on the water and waited for it to get hot.

_**Elle **_

I was surprised that he wanted me to stay with him again tonight. I would think one night of dealing with a crying woman would be enough for him. I guess he figures if I start out sleeping with him my chances for having a nightmare are lower. It would be less likely that I'll interrupt his sleep by coming over in the middle of the night after having one. Well, whatever his reason, I was happy. I felt safe sleeping with him.

I stripped off my sweaty clothes and waited for the water to get hot. I thought of this morning and our little tickling session. That had been really nice. It felt good to be touched and to laugh with someone. It felt so _intimate._ I thought he was going to kiss me at one point, and I found myself hoping that he would. But fate had intervened. I wonder what would have happened this morning if Chase hadn't shown up.

I got into the shower and started shampooing my hair. He had kissed me tonight after my set. I touched my lips as I remembered how that kiss had felt. His soft lips made an interesting contrast with his scruffy beard. It was dawning on me how attracted I was to him. I wondered if he was attracted to me. After all, he had kissed ME, not the other way around.

As I soaped my body, I felt the flutter in my belly. Thinking of him was turning me on. For the first time in months, I felt a sexual urge and it made me smile. It had been hibernating; it wasn't dead. Now, what to do about it?

He's a guy; what guy would turn down a roll in the hay? It would probably kill our friendship though. That 'friends with benefits' thing rarely works for long. And we have only known each other for such a short time. I decided it was best to let it be and let him make the first move. Guys usually like to be the pursuer anyway. I let my soapy hands run down my body, imagining that it was House's hands on me. And I wondered how long I could keep up my resolve. It would get harder sleeping with him without going further. I sighed as I thought about curling up next to him in bed. I wondered what he looked liked naked and how big he was. Then I shook my head, laughing at myself. I thought my resolve isn't going to last very long judging from my thought patterns.

I finished my shower and toweled dry. It would take too long to dry my hair, so I just braided it into one long braid. I put on my Tweety bird tank top and some yoga pants for PJ's. It was almost 4AM when I grabbed my keys and headed over to his place. I didn't need an alarm clock so I left my cell phone on the dining room table.

The door was open so I let myself in and dropped my keys on his coffee table. I figured he was already in the bedroom so I walked down the hall. Just as I got to the bedroom, the bathroom door popped open and out strolled House with just a towel around his waist. He still had water droplets in his hair. He smiled when he saw me and lowering his head, he shook it vigorously in my face, splattering me with water.

I smacked his arm: "You nut! Thanks for getting me wet."

He merely grinned, planted a loud raspberry on my forehead and went into the bedroom. In a daze, I followed after him. Seeing him naked from the waist up was quite a treat after my shower daydreaming session. He had a muscular chest and flat abs. The hair on his chest was a light brown with just a sprinkling of gray in it. I longed to run my fingers through it. His shoulders were broad and his arms were really toned. He had incredible biceps.

He smirked as he started to remove the towel: "I'm going to get dressed now. Did you want to watch?"

Stunned out of my reverie, I turned my back to him, embarrassed, and headed out of the door, apologizing as I went.

I could hear him chuckling: "Could you pour me 2 fingers of scotch? Help yourself if you want some."

I headed to the bar and poured two scotches. I quickly slugged mine back and poured another one. After seeing him like that, I really needed to calm down.

_**House**_

I chuckled at her reaction to seeing me in a towel. She looked so hot in those PJ's of hers. I wanted to peel them right off. But I restrained myself. I knew she hadn't been with anyone since she had been raped, and I didn't want to push myself on her. I wanted her to take the lead if and when she was ready.

I knew that was the best course. It didn't stop me from desiring her, but I convinced myself it was the best thing. Of course, if that ever happened, I was sure that it would wreck our friendship. We'd have fun for a little while, and then I would do something stupid to push her away. Better to just keep imagining what she would be like.

I threw on my PJ's and limped out to the living room. Elle was standing by the bar sipping on her scotch. She turned as I approached and handed me a glass.

"Thanks, Janis" I snarked at her.

She smirked: "You're welcome. I'm actually surprised that Tony told you about that. He used to always make fun of my opinions about reincarnation, but, of course, he's a good Catholic boy".

I plopped myself down on the couch and patted the seat on my left. She got the hint and came and sat next to me.

I sipped my scotch and then asked: "Do you really believe in reincarnation?"

She shrugged: "It makes a lot more sense than all the heaven/hell stuff. Are you going to tell me that all the people born over the last zillion years are all hanging out in one place or another after they have died? It just doesn't make sense to me. There is no happy place in the afterlife where we see all of our dead friends and family again. Recycling of souls by reincarnation seems much more logical, so I'm open to the possibility of the theory. But, personally, I believe that this is all there is. We get one shot to live and that's it. We had better use it well cuz there are no 'do-overs'."

She leaned back on the couch and looked at me: "What about you? What do you believe?"

I shook my head: "I do not believe in the existence of a god, therefore there can be no afterlife. This is no dress rehearsal; this is all there is."

I turned towards her: "So are you really Janis or not?"

She smiled: "I sound like her, don't I? We have the same birthday." She smirked: "It's OK, if you don't believe. I'm not sure what I believe it anyway."

"I don't think you quite made a believer out of Tony, either."

"Yeah, it was one of those things we would play-argue about. I would defend my position and he would tell me I was wrong, try to convince me that there was a heaven and all that. Like I said, he's a good Catholic boy."

"Why did you ever break up with him?"

"I told you that story. It was a mutual thing." She frowned: "Why, what did he say to you?"

"He said you wanted it, not him. I got the impression it wasn't mutual as far as he was concerned. When I pressed him on it, he backpedaled and said it happened just like you said."

She shook her head and looked away. "You boys sure bonded tonight, didn't you? Bill vouched for you, so I guess he approves of you being one of my friends. Lucky you. You don't want to be on the bad list."

"Do bad things happen to people on the bad list?"

She looked at me seriously and said: "You don't really want to know that, House. You see who Tony's friends are. They are the same people who gave you your 'Vette."

"O-Kay." I said, drawing that word out slowly. My mind whirled with what that could mean.

Elle was sitting with her head leaned back on the couch, eyes closed. She was sipping at her scotch. Why this came to my mind and out of mouth, I don't know. But I'm sure it was responsible for what happened later.

"He told me things were bad for you in foster care, that you were abused."

An expression of pain flashed across her face. I was instantly sorry that I had brought it up. Sometimes my curiosity gets the best of me.

She snorted: "Well you guys REALLY bonded, didn't you? Exactly what did he tell you about that?"

"Nothing. That was all he said. It was in the context of why it's hard for you to accept compliments about your intellect and your looks."

She stood up and walked to the bar, and poured herself another 3 fingers of scotch. With her back to me, she said: "Some of it was pretty bad. Let's not go there. I want to be able to sleep tonight." Then she proceeded to chug those 3 fingers in 2 gulps. _Shit. _She was a little tipsy when we left the bar and since we've been home she's had about 3 double shots. I needed to steer her to bed before she gets really drunk. I was floundering for something to say and Elle was already pouring herself another drink.

"Those songs you sang from the movie, they were really good. I've never seen that movie. Do you have a copy of it?"

She laughed: "Of course, I have a copy, and yes, you may borrow it if you like. I guess someone told you that I know the whole movie by heart, huh?"

Her eyelids were drooping as she slowly made her way back to the couch with her drink. She sank down on the couch but not as close to me as she had been previously. She leaned back against the couch and stared straight ahead. "So, were you picking everyone's brains about me tonight, or did they just volunteer this information for your listening pleasure?"

"A little of both, I guess."

"Look, if you want to know something about me, just ask me, OK? It makes me uncomfortable knowing people are talking about me."

I nodded. "OK. I understand. Well, tit for tat. Do you want to know something about me?"

She snorted: "Oh, lots of things."

"Well, it's almost 4AM. You have time for one question."

She turned her head and looked at me for a minute. Then she asked: "Has anyone ever hurt you?"

That question wasn't as simple as it sounded. I doubt she meant 'hurt' as in a childish fistfight or a common lovers' quarrel. I was sure that she meant 'hurt' as in some serious hurt, like what she has been through. There are things that I have never spoken about with anyone, not even with Stacy. I wondered if she would press me for more details, but I owed her an answer.

I simply said: "Yes."

She just nodded.

I waited for her to say more, and when she didn't, I asked: "Is that all?"

"You said one question."

"OK. You can have one more."

"Who hurt you?"

"My dad. And Stacy."

"Stacy is,,,"

"My ex girlfriend."

She nodded. Her head lolled over to the right so she was looking right at me. She reached over and picked up my hand and just held it. I closed my eyes at her touch. I had only said a few words, but it was more than I had ever admitted to anyone before. With Elle, it seemed no further explanation was needed.

We sat like that for a few minutes, then Elle said: "We should go to bed while I can still walk." We stood, and still holding hands, we walked down the hall to the bedroom. I flicked on the bathroom light on the way and she murmured "Thank you." She crawled into the right side of the bed and I sat down on the left side, swallowed 2 Vicodins and lay down beside her. I turned off the lamp on the nightstand and rolled over to face her. I gently touched her hand and said softly: "Good night, Elle."

She rolled over to face me and moved closer to me. She touched my face with her hand and looked at me for a moment. Then she moved even closer and kissed me gently on the lips. Before I had a chance to respond, she pulled away and rolled over with her back to me.

I heard her softly said: "Good night House."

Then I felt her foot press up against my calf like she had done the very first night we had slept together. I pressed my leg reassuringly up against her foot and I listened as her breathing evened out and she fell asleep. When I knew she was asleep, I pressed my hand against the small of her back for a little more contact. Within a few minutes, I found myself dozing off.

**House**

I was half-asleep, just on the edge of consciousness when I felt a hand slip under my shirt. I didn't move; I waited to see what would happen next. The hand crept up my torso and ever so gently played with my chest hairs. The fingers kept exploring; they found one nipple and then the other. Each one received a gentle caress. I was very aware of the warmth of her body along my left side. Her hand journeyed down my body, lightly stroking, stopping briefly for a quick exploration of my belly button and then slowly ventured under the waistband of my PJ's. I was commando under my pants so she easily moved down my happy trail to my pubic hair. Her fingers tangled in my hair for a few minutes; it felt delicious. Then I felt her hand move to my dick. I was already erect from her tender caressing. Her thumb circled the head gently, and then her hand encircled my entire shaft. I let out a soft moan.

I heard her say: "Hey."

My mouth was a bit dry, but I managed to say: "Found a new friend?"

She continued to slowly stroke me: "Yeah, I think so."

I reached around her back and lifted the hem of her tank top. My fingers stroked her bare skin and she shivered just a bit. I reached over with my right hand and raised her shirt in the front to expose her taut tummy. I did a small exploration of her belly button and then ventured higher. I teased up her belly and kept going until I touched her breast. There was a sudden intake of breath and then a sigh as I gently cupped her small breast. My thumb rubbed across her nipple. I felt her body relax even closer to mine.

I wanted to see as well as touch. Both of my hands slipped to the hem of her shirt and gently pulled it over her head. It was still tangled with the left arm as that hand was still inside my pants.

I whispered to her: "Let's get rid of this, shall we?"

Elle removed her hand and I untangled the shirt and tossed it on the floor. She leaned over me and I got my first look at her small perky breasts. She had beautiful pink nipples and I immediately leaned forward and took one in my mouth. She moaned so deliciously that I had to taste the other one too.

Elle quickly moved to straddle me taking care to put all of her weight on the bed and not on my leg. She planted little kisses all over my face as she grabbed the hem of my t-shirt and started pulling it upwards. I leaned forward to help her out and she pulled it over my head. She tossed the shirt onto the floor. I relaxed back against the pillows and let her set the pace. She slowly kissed her way down my chest. She rubbed her face into my chest hair and gently bit my nipples. She kept sliding down lower until she stuck her tongue into my belly bottom. I groaned at the sensation. I felt her smile against my skin.

She hooked her fingers under my waistband and slowly starting pulling down my pants. My erection was at full size and she carefully worked the pants off around it. She gasped when it was fully uncovered.

She whispered: "God, you're so big." She gave my length one long slow lick and then tugged my pants the rest of the way off.

She kissed her way back up my inner thigh and licked my balls. Slowly she rubbed her lips against my hard cock, her tongue darting out to taste. She kissed her way up to the head and starting making circles with her tongue. I groaned loudly; the sensations were incredible. Slowly she took me into her mouth as deeply as she could. Her mouth slid up and down as her tongue licked the underside of my shaft. Her delicate hands gently cupped my balls. The sensations were amazing, but I didn't want my first time with her to end this way. I put a finger to her throat to stop her and said huskily: "Your turn, little girl. Come up here."

She moved to lie next to me. I pressed my lips to hers and her lips parted to allow my tongue entrance. My tongue danced in her mouth and I felt her arms snake around my neck to pull me closer. I grabbed her ass and pressed my hips against hers. There was some annoying fabric in the way. I had neglected to remove her pants. I rectified that immediately. I tugged her pants all the way down her lovely legs.

I planted kisses every few inches as I moved my way up her thighs towards her core. I found her extremely wet and ready for me. I flicked my tongue over her most sensitive spot as she moaned in delight. My tongue moved in and out greedily, drinking her sweetness. Her breathing grew shallower. I could tell her passion was soaring.

She tugged at me: "Greg, I want you inside me."

I growled and slowly kissed my way up her body. I almost couldn't wait. My desire was so strong; it was almost out of control. There was a small part of my brain that nudged me to be gentle. It's her first time since she was raped. Plus she's so small and I didn't want to hurt her.

I slowly entered her just a little and pulled back out. She moaned and thrust her hips at me. I did it again, a little deeper this time and pulled back out. She gave a moan of frustration: "I want you, inside me, NOW." Her outburst sparked my desire to an even higher level. I entered her again to my full length. She gasped in surprise, but quickly recovered and thrust her hips up to meet mine. We immediately fell into a rhythm with each other. I was holding back a little, wanting her to reach her peak before me. She thrust harder against me, moaning and crying out: "Don't stop, don't stop."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

I woke to her cries: "No, Don't! Stop! Don't! Stop!"

I shook my head to rid myself of that fantastic dream, my cock fully erect.

I looked over at Elle. She was on the far edge of the bed, close to falling off and thrashing around in her nightmare.

"Elle! Elle!" I grabbed her to keep her from falling off of the bed.

"No!" She screamed and thrashed harder.

I managed to pull her to the middle of the bed. I kept calling her name, but I wasn't getting through to her. I threw my good leg over hers to keep them still. I wrapped my arms tightly around her and held her down. She whimpered and cried: "No, please don't do it." My heart broke listening to her relive her horrible nightmare.

Finally I pinched the delicate skin between her thumb and forefinger. The pain seemed to jolt her awake. Her body was wound tight as a drum. She continued to whimper.

I whispered to her: "Elle, it's House. You're safe. You're OK. You were having a nightmare."

In a strangled voice, she said: "Light."

"OK." I rolled over and turned on the bedside lamp. I turned back and looked at her. Her hair was disheveled and falling out of her braid. Her face was tear-streaked. I watched as she brought her knees to her chest, hugged her arms around them and curled into a small ball. She buried her face between her knees and started sobbing. I wrapped my arms around her, but she stayed curled in her little ball and didn't relax into my arms as she had in the past.

She sobbed for so long that I started racking my brain to see if I had any sedatives in the apartment. I kept forgetting to write her a script for Ativan. Damn it, I made a mental note to do that first thing tomorrow.

After about 5 minutes, her sobs started to subside. I stroked her hair and made what I hoped were soothing sounds.

She tried to pull away from me, saying: "I'm so pathetic. I'm so sorry that I woke you. I'm going home so I don't bother you any more".

I held on to her: "No, you're not. You're staying right here. I'm not having you alone and scared. You're scared enough with me right next to you."

"You don't need this."

"Neither do you, but here we are. Stay with me, baby."

She snorted: "Quoting my song to me?"

"Whatever it takes. If you go, I'll tell Tony that I tried to help you and you wouldn't let me. He won't be pleased."

Finally her body sagged into mine. She buried her face in my shoulder and I rocked her. I started humming an old song, hoping to soothe her further.

The next thing I know she's softly singing the words: "Yes, its gonna be alright, yes, the worst is over now. The morning sun is shining like a red rubber ball." She repeated the chorus again, and on the third time I joined in. We sang it together a couple of times. After the 4th go-round, she reached up and touched my cheek.

"Thank you", she whispered. I held and rocked her for a few more minutes. Then she moved to pull away and I let her this time.

Quietly she said: "I'm just going to go wash my face."

I nodded and she got off the bed and padded her way into the bathroom.

I just sat there. Between my dream and her nightmare, I was completely exhausted. I wondered if earlier I had pushed her too much by mentioning her life in foster care. Perhaps that had triggered the nightmare. She had never had one before when she was sleeping with me.

I glanced at the clock. It was 6:45AM. We had been in bed less than 3 hours. I sure hoped we would be able to go back to sleep.

Elle padded back into the room. She stood at the side of the bed and asked: "Are you sure that you want me to stay? I could go home so you could sleep."

I patted the bed: "Get in, little girl." She crawled in and pulled the covers up to her chin.

"Hold on", I said. I plumped up the pillows against the headboard and leaned back. I patted my shoulder and she came over and laid her head on my shoulder. I picked up the Carl Hiaasen book and said: "I think we left off on chapter 5, right?"

"Right", she answered softly. I opened the book and started reading. After a few minutes, her arm snaked around my waist and her head dropped a little lower on my shoulder. Her body felt relaxed next to mine. Chapter 5 was 12 pages long. That's all it took for both of us to get sleepy again. I closed the book at the end of the chapter and set it on the nightstand. I turned off the bedside lamp and rolled over to face her. She cuddled up into my chest and I wrapped my arm around her waist. I felt her hand clutch the front of my shirt and I pulled her tighter.

I whispered into her ear: "I got you. You're safe. No one's going to hurt you while I'm here."

She sighed and whispered: "Thank you. Good night, old man."

I smiled: "Good night, little girl."

I waited until her even pattern of breathing told me that she was asleep before I let myself drift off.

_**House **_

The incessant banging on the door woke me up. I groaned and opened my eyes. Elle was still curled up into my chest, still clutching my shirt. I smiled; at least she had been able to sleep. I carefully peeled her fingers away from my shirt and rolled out of bed. If this was Wilson or one of the ducklings, I was about to commit murder. I grabbed my cane and hobbled to the door. The pain in my leg is always at its worst first thing in the morning and I really hated to be awakened so abruptly like this. I needed some coffee and my Vicodin. I threw the door open and growled: "What?"

Avi and Ricky stood there with surprised looks on their faces. After a minute, Avi recovered and said: "We can't find Elle. She's not answering her phone so we came over. Her car is here, but she's not answering the door. We're worried. Do you know where she is?"

I groaned, but before I could answer, a little voice behind me, said wearily: "I'm right here, boys."

I opened the door and let them in for Elle to deal with. I limped back down the hall to retrieve my Vicodin. I dry-swallowed 2 tablets in the bedroom and headed back down the hall. They were in the kitchen. Elle had her head in my refrigerator.

She looked up, bleary-eyed, at my approach and said: "Water?"

I nodded and she handed me a bottle and took one for herself. We watched her guzzle half of it before she spoke again.

Addressing Avi and Ricky, she said: "So, tell me why you're banging on the door at the crack of dawn?"

Avi looked really frustrated: "Elle, it's not the crack of dawn. It's noon. I thought we were going to shop for a TV. I called and you didn't answer, so, OK, I got worried. We came over and you weren't answering your door. So I got more worried. Then we came over here. End of story. What are you doing over here 'at the crack of dawn'?" He put some emphasis on the last phrase. He glanced between Elle and me. "Are you two sleeping together?"

Elle leaned on the counter and buried her face in her hands. She moaned: "It's too early for this crap."

Ricky touched her shoulder: "Elle, you're both in pajamas. It looks like you ARE sleeping together."

She sighed: "It's not like that. I didn't want to tell you, but I'm still having nightmares. I've had a bad one these last two nights. House is nice enough to let me sleep in his bed so I won't be scared."

She was staring down at the floor as she said this; she seemed to be quite embarrassed.

Gently Avi said: "Elle, why didn't you tell us? You can always come back and stay with us."

"Oh, Avi. I didn't want to tell you. God, I'm embarrassed that I'm still having nightmares 6 months later. I knew you would invite me to come back but I didn't want to do that to you two."

"Do what to us? You're not doing anything to us by staying with us."

"Oh, yeah. Right. I spent the first month after David kicked me out sleeping in your bed IN BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU. I was so scared it was the only way I could sleep. I can't do that again. I'm not coming in between you guys again, if I can bloody help it."

"Elle,,,"

"Oh, Avi, please stop. I've got a hangover and PMS. I can't do this right now. I love you both and I so greatly appreciate that you want to help me, but I want to try to do it on my own. And I'm making it most nights. I've only stayed here a couple of times. I'm getting better, really."

She looked over at me, with a pleading look on her face: "Tell them, House. I only stayed with you," she looked down at her fingers for a minute, "Three times. Three nightmares."

I groggily thought for a minute: "Yeah, that's right. This was the third nightmare."

They still looked a little skeptical, but I think they were starting to buy it.

Elle went on: "Look, the first time was the night I moved in. I thought it was just nerves at being in my new place the first time and all that. So I didn't really worry about having just the one. Then I had another one Friday night, and again last night. I don't know what's triggering them. I started seeing my therapist again this week, so I'll talk to her about it. Please try not to worry so much. I really am doing much better."

Avi finally nodded: "OK. You can't blame us for being worried about our little sister, ya know."

Elle took his hand: "I know. And I appreciate it, more than you'll ever know."

Avi took her hand in both of his: "So, do you feel up to going shopping today?"

"I'm going to take a pass, OK? I'm exhausted. I drank a lot last night and I really have quite a hangover. Tomorrow starts my workweek and I think I should try to get some rest today."

Ricky reached over and squeezed her arm: "That's fine, sweetie. We'll do it another time. In the meantime, go on-line and do some research to see what you want. Let me know, and we'll price-shop, OK?"

Elle nodded and walked the boys to the door. She gave them each a big hug and kiss. I watched as Avi held her for a long minute. I was amazed at how affectionate she was with them. I thought about how she cuddled up to me in bed. Affection seemed so easy for her and that was even more impressive when you considered that she had been raped.

Elle closed the door behind them and walked back into the kitchen. She shook her head: "That was just great. Now Avi will tell Adam and then the other guys. And they'll all start worrying about me again. Oh God. Theresa will find out and she'll tell Tony."

Elle buried her face in her hands. "This is so freakin' embarrassing. It's bad enough crying in front of you. Now the whole tribe will be checking up on me again."

She looked incredibly sad: "Why do you think the nightmares are coming back? Nothing traumatic has happened lately. Why would I have one 2 nights in the row like this?"

I reached out and gently moved some a few stray strands of hair off of her face: "I don't know, sweetheart."

Before I could react, she swiftly wrapped her arms around my waist and buried her face in my chest. I put my arms around her and just held her. She wasn't crying; I guess she just needed to be held.

We stayed like that for a few minutes and then she backed away. She looked embarrassed. Then she smiled her little crooked smile and said: "Thanks, I needed that. Do you want some coffee and breakfast? I can make you some banana pancakes and bacon." She cocked one eyebrow at me, quizzically.

"Oh, yeah. I really could use some coffee right about now. And the breakfast sounds really good."

"OK. I should have the coffee ready in 10 minutes. I'll bring you a cup and then start breakfast."

"I'll just get dressed and come over. I like to watch you cook for me." I smirked at her.

She just grinned back. "Come on over when you're ready."

Elle grabbed her keys from the coffee table and opened the door. And ran smack into Wilson.

_**ELLE **_

Oh, this is great. It's not bad enough that Avi and Ricky get to see me like this. Now Wilson is getting an eyeful of me looking like hell leaving House's apartment in my PJ's. And he can plainly see that House is in his PJ's. Great. Time for cover story.

I said boldly: "Hi, I just came over to see if House wanted me to make him some breakfast. Have you eaten?"

Wilson stammered: "Uh, no."

"Great. I'm making banana pancakes and bacon. Give me a few minutes to get things going." I gave him a big smile and hurried over to my door. I quickly let myself in and headed to the kitchen. I started the coffee right away, and while it was brewing, I went into my bedroom and threw on some jeans and a t-shirt. I started the pancake batter and sliced up some bananas. I turned on the frying pan and got out the bacon. I stayed busy awaiting their arrival. But all the while, I was wondering what House was telling Wilson.

_**House**_

Wilson watched as Elle left my place and then slowly turned towards me.

"So, what was that all about?"

I closed my eyes, and sighed. "She had another nightmare, a really bad one. She spent the night with me again. And she's embarrassed about people seeing her like this. Hence the little fake-out that she just came over. Play along, will ya?"

He nodded: "Sure. It's good you were here for her. How bad are these nightmares, like the wake up screaming kind?"

"Yeah. She is screaming in her sleep. I can't wake her, and when I finally do, she is disoriented for a few minutes. OH! I gotta write her an Ativan script before I forget again."

I went out to the living room and found my backpack. I pulled my prescription pad out of it, and sat down to write her the script.

Wilson followed me: "What are you doing?"

"I told her I would write her a script for Ativan to help her sleep. And trust me, she needs it. She used to take it and says it helped her a lot."

He nodded: "Yeah, sounds like she could use it. Again, nice of you to do it."

I finished writing the script and tore it off the pad. I laid it on the coffee table, intending to give it to her at breakfast. I limped down the hall to my room to get dressed.

Wilson followed me. He asked: "So, how was the club last night?"

I found a pair of boxers and some clean jeans and started pulling them on. "The band is great. And Elle is amazing! You should come and hear her next time. She will blow you away. She has a fantastic voice and a really sassy personality up on stage. She's really something."

He got a strange smile on his face: "You really like her, don't you?"

I avoided his eyes as I pulled open a drawer searching for a t-shirt: "I like that she makes me breakfast and coffee. It mostly makes up for the screaming and thrashing around in my bed in the middle of the night. And I don't mean it in a good way. It's annoying when they scream and Mount Gregory's not the reason."

Wilson rolled his eyes at that.

I pulled out a t-shirt and put it on. I grabbed my socks and Nikes and sat down on the bed to put them on. "So, what are you doing here on a Sunday? Why aren't you spending the day with Julie so that you don't end up in the doghouse again?"

It was his turn to sigh. "She went to a ladies' brunch at the club and then she is taking an extra tennis lesson afterwards. She won't be home until 5:00. So I thought I would see if you wanted to go to the sports bar, catch the Phillies game and drink some brews?"

"We could watch the game and drink here, you know."

"Yeah, I know. I just wanted to get out somewhere, not just hang around the house or your apartment."

"So a bar is better than here? Drinks are more expensive so you're buying."

"OK. I'm buying, are you coming?"

"After breakfast. Pancakes and bacon, ummmmm."

I got up, grabbed my cane and limped back to the living room. I was wondering what was really going on with him. Julie seemed to be spending a lot of time not with Wilson lately and then ragging on him for not being home when she wanted him home. I figured it was only a short time before she became the third Mrs. Ex-Wilson. I wondered if he was having an affair yet.

"So have you checked out that new red-headed nurse in Peds yet? She's hot!"

"Pffft. House, I'm not having an affair. I'm not sleeping with anyone."

"Not even with Julie, right?"

He turned away and didn't answer. Yeah, their marriage was going south. It wouldn't be long. But if he wasn't cheating, why was Julie being so bitchy?

I limped over to the coffee table and picked up the prescription. Heading to the door, I asked him: "Coming?"

He nodded and followed me to Elle's place.

_**Elle** _

The guys walked in just as I was starting the pancakes. The bacon was already sizzling in another pan. Wilson walked into the kitchen to see if he could help. I instructed him to just pour himself and House some coffee, and then he could get out the silverware. I had everything else under control. House wandered into the kitchen and accepted his mug of coffee. He stood there leaning on the refrigerator watching me cook. I got the pancakes done in record time. I plated the food and Wilson helped me take it out to the table. House grabbed the syrup and took it to the table. I chuckled at that and he looked upset. "What? I helped!" That just made me laugh harder.

We sat down and discussed our plans for the day while we ate. The guys were going to a sports bar to watch the game. I told them I was going grocery shopping. When I mentioned that, House reached into his pocket and handed me a folded slip of paper. I opened it to discover it was a script for Ativan. I felt my shoulders sag in relief. He remembered.

I nodded at him sincerely: "Thanks. I'll get this filled while I'm out today."

He just gave me a brief nod of acknowledgment.

I looked at him: "Do you like pot roast? I was thinking of making that for dinner and of course you're invited to come over."

I couldn't exactly describe the look on his face. It was like a dog standing outside a butcher shop and looking through the window. Finally he cleared his throat and said: "Yeah, pot roast would be OK. I'll come over."

"Great. 7, 7:30, whatever. You're invited too, Wilson, if you're free for dinner."

He smiled at me and politely declined saying Julie would be home by then.

House had quickly eaten his food while Wilson and I ate a bit slower. As we chatted, I noticed House's fork sneaking closer to my plate. When I looked over at Wilson to invite him to dinner, House stole one of my pancakes.

"Hey, that's mine."

"It's on my plate. Must be mine."

"Your plate was empty a minute ago."

He shrugged and poured some syrup over the pancake and quickly ate it.

I just smiled and shook my head. He acts like such a kid sometimes. Oh well, at least he likes my cooking. I can't think of any other way to pay him back for being so nice to be about all the nightmare stuff.

Wilson looked at me and said: "House is a food thief. You gotta guard your plate better or the next thing you know he'll be stealing your bacon." As he was talking, House's hand was creeping closer to Wilson's plate. Wilson moved swiftly and attempted to stab House's hand with his fork, but House was too fast for him. House snatched the bacon and stuffed it in his mouth.

I laughed and he tried to take advantage of the moment by stealing a piece of my bacon. As he grabbed the bacon, my hand clamped down on his wrist. He looked shocked at my speed, and attempted to bring the bacon to his mouth. I kept a tight hold on his wrist and managed to bite off half of the slice before I released my grip. He stared at the half piece of bacon in his hand and then at me. I just smiled as I chomped on the bacon. Then he grinned and finished off the slice. Wilson sat there just shaking his head.

We managed to get through breakfast without House stealing all of it. Eating with him would certainly help keep your weight down, not that I needed that! Wilson helped me clear the table. I told him to just set everything in the sink, that I would take care of it later. He complied with my request.

They hung around for a few minutes while I was tidying up the kitchen, and then I shooed them on their way. I had too much to do today, and I wanted some space. House said he would see me later and they departed.

The apartment felt really quiet after they left. I stood there listening to it for a few minutes. The last 2 days had been intense between the lack of sleep, the nightmares and playing again for the first time. More people knew about my nightmares and that embarrassed me. Plus there was the whole tickling incident in House's bed yesterday. I still didn't know what to make of that. I put my thoughts aside for now and took a long hot shower. I felt immensely better afterwards. I put on some clean jeans and a Key Largo tank top. Stuffing the prescription into my purse, I headed out the door to the supermarket.

I was home 90 minutes later. The supermarket is one of those combo stores with an in-house pharmacy, so I dropped off my script and then did all of my grocery shopping. By then, it was ready, so I picked it up and went home.

After schlepping all the groceries into the apartment, I put on some instrumental guitar music and unpacked the groceries. I chopped up the vegetables and got the pot roast cooking. Then I whipped up some brownies and stuck them in the oven. After cleaning up the mess, I sat down with my laptop and started checking out TV's.

_**House**_

Pot roast. She's cooking pot roast for me. Jimmy was chattering away in the car as he drove us to the sports bar, but I couldn't hear him. All I could think about was pot roast.

Stacy wasn't much of a cook. She made great breakfasts, but most of our dinners were take-out, eat-out or something simple like steak or spaghetti. Most of the other women I had dated prior to Stacy didn't last long enough for them to start cooking for me. The last consistent source of home-cooked meals that I'd had was Mom. And pot roast was a special favorite.

It seemed like whenever my father went on one of his rampages with me, Mom tried to make up for it with food. The day after the storm, one of my favorite meals would be on the table. Meat loaf and beef stew were favorites, but the really big occasions called for pot roast. There was pot roast on the table the night after the hunting incident. Mom also made an apple pie that night too. She usually only made it on Thanksgiving and Christmas. I was afraid my dad would notice and say something, but he was so happy to have the pie that he just ate it and didn't comment on the lack of occasion.

We arrived at the bar and I shook my head to send the memories away.

We drank a few beers and snacked on pretzels while watching the Phillies win. It was about 4:30 when he dropped me back at my apartment.

I sat down and turned on the TV. I flipped through the channels searching for something to watch. I didn't want to go over to Elle's too early. It would look needy and I'm not needy. I couldn't find anything on TV, so I wandered around the apartment. I gathered all the things I needed for work tomorrow and placed them into my backpack. Then I wandered into the bedroom and decided to make the bed. As I fluffed the pillows, the citrus scent of her shampoo wafted towards my nose. It was a nice scent, not too girly. I could deal with it. I finished making the bed and picked up all the dirty clothes, stuffing them into the laundry basket inside the closet. There wasn't anything left to do in the bedroom, so I wandered back to the living room.

I plopped back on the couch. Thinking about the pot roast made me think of Mom. I picked up the phone to call her, but then set it back down. I didn't want to talk to him, and if he were home, he always answered the phone. She would call me when she had some time to herself.

My thigh gave me a little twinge and I rubbed it. I realized I had only taken 4 Vicodins today. Granted I hadn't gotten up until noon, and it was only 6PM now, but I considered that a really good day. And despite Elle's nightmare, I felt rested. I must have gone into some deep REM sleep last night. I chuckled; maybe having her nice warm body next to me made me sleep better. That's what I'll tell the nice pain management pharmacist: you help my pain by sleeping with me. You need to do it all the time. Wonder if I could get a prescription for that. Jimmy would probably write it.

I saw on the couch musing on various topics until 6:45. I decided it wasn't TOO early, so I got up and went over to Elle's place.

I knocked and she answered promptly. She smiled when she saw me. It made me feel strange. Normally, people aren't happy to see me, yet Elle was.

"Hey, come on in." She stepped aside and I entered.

I took 2 steps and groaned. I didn't realize that I did it out loud until Elle said: "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, it just smells really good. I guess I'm hungry."

She giggled: "When aren't you hungry?"

I smiled at her: "When I'm sleeping."

"Yeah, that's sounds about right."

We went into the kitchen and Elle started plating the food. She made pot roast with potatoes, onions and carrots. She served it with some French bread. I grabbed us each a beer from the refrigerator and we sat down to eat.

It was so delicious that I ended up having thirds. I felt kinda sheepish when she went back the third time to fill my plate, but it was so good and she didn't seem to mind. I told her it was as good as my Mom's; she seemed surprised but pleased by the compliment. After we ate I helped her take the dishes to the kitchen, but she shooed me out before I could help. I wandered over to the entertainment stand while I listened to the sounds of dishes being washed.

I flipped through her very extensive CD collection. Not surprisingly, she listened to a wide variety of music. I found Muddy Waters' greatest hits and put that on the boom box.

I heard "Good Choice" called to me from the kitchen and I smiled as I started looking through her DVD's. Elle had a lot of classic movies like 'Casablanca', 'Rear Window', 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and surprisingly, 'A Christmas Carol' and 'It's a Wonderful Life'. Christmas movies seemed like a strange choice for a Jewish girl.

"Are you a big Jimmy Stewart fan?" I called to her.

Elle walked into the living room, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. "Why do you ask? Oh, you're analyzing my movie collection. You can't do a complete analysis, you know, cuz David kept a bunch of them. But, yes, I do like Jimmy Stewart. I used to have 'The Philadelphia Story', but it got lost somewhere in the moves."

I continued rummaging through her collection: "So what's a nice Jewish girl like you doing with these Christmas movies?"

She shrugged: "I like Christmas movies. These two in particular and 'Scrooged', which of course is a modern version of 'A Christmas Carol', tell a great story. In those movies, the main character gets to see what life would have been like without him, or what could happen if he changes. I don't know; I just like them. I feel like they're saying everyone can have a chance to start over and try again no matter how badly they've fucked things up."

Her unusual use of profanity got my attention and I looked up at her. She was staring off at the wall with a distant look on her face. I waited a minute and when she continuing staring like that, I reached over and touched her shoulder. I startled her and she looked at me.

"Where did you go?"

She smiled and said: "The Twilight Zone. Did you find a movie that you want to watch?"

She was good at changing subjects; almost as good as I am.

"Do you feel like that, that you've fucked things up?"

She looked down for a moment, and then right back at me: "Yeah. Sometimes. But I'm doing better than Janis. I've lived longer than she did anyway. Maybe I'll get it right in my next life." She tilted her head towards the movies and asked me again: "Did you find something?"

I didn't know how to respond to what she had said. I looked down at the movies and continued to rifle through them. "Um, I was actually looking for 'The Rose'. I wanted to watch it."

Just as I said that, I found the movie. I picked it up, and waggling my eyebrows at her, asked: "Wanna come watch it with me?"

She chuckled: "Doing a little more psychoanalyzing of your neighbor, huh?

Sure, why not? Want some brownies and ice cream while we watch?"

"Ooooo, yeah. That would be nice."

She chuckled and headed back into the kitchen. I followed her and watched her place the brownies into bowls and microwave them for a few seconds. Then she scooped vanilla ice cream on top of the brownies. It started melting nicely. We went back to my place to eat dessert while watching the movie.

As I watched the movie, I wondered why she loved this movie so much. It's actually a rather sad movie, although the music is great and Bette is amazing in this role. Elle herself was rather entertaining during the movie. She did know most of the dialogue by heart and after watching a scene, I would rewind the movie and she would do the scene for me. She sang along with a couple of the songs. I told her I liked her voice better than Bette's. She was completely shocked by that.

"There's no way that I'm as good as Bette."

"I think you are."

She just shook her head disbelievingly and turned back to the movie.

The movie ends with the title song and I made Elle sing it for me. She leaned back against the couch, closed her eyes and started singing. I turned towards her to watch her. She seemed in her own little world. I reached out and gently stroked her hair while she sang.

When she finished, she just sat there, eyes still closed with a small smile on her face. I gave her a little kiss on her right temple and she turned towards me.

Still stroking her hair, I asked: "Why do you like this movie so much? It's pretty sad."

"I know. But I love the music. Bette has so much energy when she performs. I think she is just amazing to watch. Rose has to sing; it's like she can't stop, even though there is a part of her that wants to take a break. She really can't. It's who she is. I understand that. I love to sing. I could sing all night."

She laughed. "It was really good singing last night. I didn't realize how much I'd missed it. You know, this film is supposed to be about Janis. She grew up in Texas and felt like she never fit it. Bette had similar problems growing up in Hawaii. They had that in common. Other kids made fun of them growing up, made fun of their appearance. They were both thought to be funny-looking girls, not attractive in the style of the moment. Kids made fun of me growing up too. It's a stigma being in foster care, and I got moved around a lot. No one wants older kids, you know. You can see it in the movie that Rose had the desire to show those awful kids that hurt her that she had made it. She had become somebody. You're not that poor little girl in hand-me-downs anymore. You're somebody. And they can't hurt you anymore."

She seemed to move back and forth between talking about the Rose, Janis, Bette and talking about herself. Her hands punctuated the air emphasizing points as she spoke.

I listened between the lines and thought that her life must have been very rough after her parents died.

I had to ask. I can never let a puzzle go unsolved.

"What happened to you in foster care?"

She turned to look at me. "What did your daddy do to you?"

Before I could respond, she moved so close to me that she was almost in my lap. With a gentle smile on her face, she caressed my cheek and, almost seductively, said: "You tell me yours and I'll tell you mine."

Then her expression sobered and she said: "But not tonight."

She lightly kissed me on the lips and backed away before I could respond.

"The crap that happens to you when you're a child is so much worse than the crap that happens to you as an adult. A child doesn't have the coping skills that an adult has. So the crap sticks to you tighter, it doesn't wash off as easily, and it changes you. When the adults who are supposed to love you and take care of you are the ones hurting you,,,,"

She paused for a moment, lost in thought. Then she said: "It can really warp your perception of the world."

I pulled her back to me and pressed my face into her hair. I felt her hand caress my neck; it was so tender that it was almost too painful for me to bear.

After a minute, I whispered: "Yeah." I couldn't say anything else. But I didn't have to; Elle seemed to understand.

After a few minutes, Elle gently pulled away from our embrace. She glanced at the clock and said: "It's late. I really should go to sleep."

I tilted my head towards the back of the apartment: "Well, you know where the bed is."

She chuckled: "Well, I thought I'd try to sleep at home tonight."

I shook my head. "Nothing doing. You've had nightmares the last 2 nights, bad ones. You're staying here."

But, House. Tomorrow's a workday; I get up at 6AM. I don't want to bother you."

I mimicked her tone: "I don't want to bother you."

Switching back to my normal voice, I said: "Geez, if I had a buck for every time you've said that,,"

Elle interrupted me: "Yeah, yeah, you could buy a pizza. Big deal."

I snorted: "AGAIN, you're not bothering me. I want you to get some sleep. Go brush your teeth, take an Ativan if you want, get your alarm clock and come back over here."

She was hesitating, but I think I was wearing her down.

"Elle, you'll feel safer. You'll get better sleep. You know I'm right. I'm always right." I said with a smirk.

She playfully smacked my arm: "Smart ass."

I rubbed my arm: "Ow, don't beat up the cripple."

She placed her hand over mine and looked at me intensely: "You're not a cripple."

She continued to stare at me. I felt like she was daring me to contradict her, and for once I didn't feel like doing that. She wouldn't back down from her gaze and I didn't want to be the one to break it. So I leaned forward, never breaking our stare and kissed her fully on the mouth. No tongue, but a nice wet one. She closed her eyes, and I felt victorious. I backed away after a moment and when she opened her eyes, she saw me grinning at her.

"Now go brush your teeth and get back here, little girl."

She stood up and saluted: "Yes, old man. Be right back." She headed to the door. I smiled, watching her lovely ass walk away from me.

Elle was back in about 10 minutes. "I'm back, old man. Teeth brushed, Ativan swallowed and alarm set. You staying up or are you coming to bed?"

"It's too early for me to fall asleep. Come on, I'll tuck you in." I got up and headed down the hall and Elle followed me. She set her cell phone on the nightstand and I pulled back the covers. I majestically motioned for her to climb in, and with a giggle and a headshake, she did. I pulled the covers back up to her shoulders while she watched me.

I teased her: "Now stay on your own side of the bed and no stealing my pillow."

"Yes, boss."

Then hesitantly, she asked: "Would you lay with me for a minute, please?"

"Geez, are ya getting all mushy on me or what?" But I limped around the bed and lay down on top of the covers next to her. She edged over towards me a little, but wouldn't meet my eyes. She seemed suddenly shy. I pulled her closer and her head ended up on my shoulder. Her arm snaked around my waist and we lay like that for a few minutes. It felt good. I closed my eyes to better enjoy the sensations. Until I met Elle, I had forgotten what it was like to do this, to just lay in bed and hold someone. It had been so long since anyone had touched me or caressed me. She was so sweet and affectionate. I wanted more. I wanted to possess her. The feeling was strong and almost overwhelming. Fortunately I'm good at closing down my emotions. I've had years of practice at doing that. As I shoved those feelings down, I gently stroked her hair and kissed her forehead.

"Are you OK, little girl?"

She put her hand on my cheek and said: "Yeah, I'm good." She gave me a quick peck on the lips and rolled onto her back. She took a deep breath, and then said: "Thanks for letting me stay again. Good night House."

"Good night Elle." I rolled carefully off of the bed and headed to the door.

I paused and then turned to her: "I'll leave the light on."

She smiled sleepily at me: "Thanks. Night, night. Don't let the bedbugs bite." And she closed her eyes.

I looked at her for a long minute, and then left the room, leaving the door partially ajar. I headed back to the couch and picked up the remote control searching for something to watch to take my mind off of the beautiful woman in my bed.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

_**Elle **_

My alarm clock went off at 6AM. I quickly shut it off and lay back down. I looked over at House, and he was still sleeping. I was glad it had not disturbed him. I slept really well; I did not have any nightmares. Guess I should give the Ativan the credit. I lay there for a minute, watching House sleep. I wondered why he was being so nice to me. I put my hand on his cheek; I really liked touching his scruffy beard. He sighed in his sleep as a little smile formed on his face. He looked very peaceful. I left my hand there for a minute, and then quietly crept out of bed.

I went through my usual morning routine: shower, clean clothes, coffee and breakfast. I left the coffee carafe on House's kitchen counter as usual. Today, I also left him a note.

_Slept well. No nightmares!!_

_Dinner later??_

_Elle _

I headed out to work, arriving at my usual time. We stayed busy all morning, but not crazy busy. I lunched with Bonnie in the cafeteria. On my way to Wilson's office to pick up today's patient files, I received a text message from House.

_Test results back._

_My office, 5_

_H_

I suddenly felt nervous. Why wouldn't he just call me on my cell? Oh, crap, could this be bad news? I started to worry. I got off the elevator at his floor and headed right to his office. He could just give it to me now; I didn't want to wait. But his office was empty and so was the conference room. I felt so frustrated, but headed on to Wilson's office to pick up the files. Wilson wasn't in his office either. This was very strange that no one was around, but I shrugged it off. I grabbed the files I needed and headed back upstairs.

I settled myself into my desk chair and picked up the first file to familiarize myself with the patient who was due to see me in 5 minutes. I was having trouble concentrating on the file. I was wondering what House needed to tell me. I sent him back a quick text just saying 'OK', so that he would know that I would meet him.

I had 4 patients today. The first two patients needed their meds changed so that their insurance company would pay for them, just like Jonathan Adams last week. I wrote out my recommendations and sent them off to see Dr Wilson for the prescriptions. My 3:00 was Betty Schultz. She was much more relaxed than she had been on our first visit. The Oxycontin was helping, but she still needed 6 tablets of oxycodone for breakthrough pain almost every day. Her quality of life had greatly improved. She was sleeping better, getting about 5 hours of sleep a night, and she had cooked dinner twice in the last week. It was an improvement and she was happy about it. She had followed all of my recommendations about laxative use and keeping track of her medicines. I felt sure we could improve things a little bit more. I told her that I was recommending a small increase in her Oxycontin dose to 20 mg twice a day. I wanted her to continue recording her breakthrough doses and come back to see me next week. I gave her my recommendation to take back to Dr. Wilson. Mrs. Schultz seemed improved and I was happy about that.

I had about 15 minutes before the next patient. I checked my cell phone but there were no new messages. I was hoping that House would get back to me, but I guess I would just have to wait until 5PM.

My 4PM patient was a bit more complicated. He was a transfer from another doctor into Dr. Guskiewicz's care. He was on multiple pain meds and Chris felt it needed to be condensed down into 2 or 3 meds depending on his needs. I took those extra 15 minutes before he walked in to review his pain questionnaire and his current meds. He was on Morphine sustained-release, oxycodone and Dilaudid for breakthrough pain, Neurontin and Lyrica for neuropathic pain, Paxil for depression, Flexeril for muscle relaxant, Elavil and Ambien for sleep, and Celebrex and Motrin as adjunct pain meds. He complained of severe constipation and an inability to concentrate. I wasn't surprised that he was having issues! It turned out that he had seen 2 doctors in the same practice. They kept adding meds to his regimen and not subtracting any. One doctor didn't seem to know what the other was doing, so the patient had a lot of therapeutic duplication.

I spoke with the patient at length about his pain level and the quality of his pain. He said the Dilaudid helped more for his breakthrough pain than the oxycodone did. I decided that I would recommend to Chris that he up the patient's morphine dose so that he wouldn't need as much breakthrough medicine. I also recommended that he stop the oxycodone and only use Dilaudid for breakthrough pain, wean off of the Neurontin and when it was gone, bump up the Lyrica dose a little bit. The patient said that the Flexeril didn't really help very much and made him extremely groggy, so I recommended discontinuing that. I felt that if we could get his pain under control that he would not need 2 sleeps meds, so I recommended weaning off of the Ambien. We could always increase the Elavil dose in the future, if we needed to. He wanted to stay on both Celebrex and Motrin as he felt that they both helped him. I reminded him of the potential for stomach irritation and ulcer from using too much of those meds and he assured me that he always took them with food and was not experiencing any gastrointestinal side effects. I wrote up my rather lengthy recommendations and sent him off to see Dr. Guskiewicz.

It was now 4:55PM. I gathered up the files and my purse and headed to the elevator. I would drop off the files at Wilson's office and go see House for my results. The elevator was taking its sweet time coming and I repeatedly pressed the button trying to hurry it along.

_**HOUSE**_

It was 8:40AM when I woke up. Her side of the bed was empty, but I knew it would be. It was a workday after all. Still, I felt a tad disappointed. I pulled her pillow to my face and inhaled her scent. Then, feeling like an idiot for sniffing a pillow, I hauled myself out of bed. After heading into the bathroom to do my morning business, I limped to the kitchen, hoping for coffee. Elle didn't disappoint me. The coffee carafe was full. I poured myself a mug as I read her short note. I was happy that she had slept well, but I also felt a tinge of sadness. If she were to get over her nightmares, she might not sleep with me anymore. And although I barely could admit it even to myself, I liked her sleeping with me. I realized I was sleeping better on the nights that she slept with me. I woke up feeling more rested.

I tried to think of the reason for that. Was it her warm body creating heat on my aching thigh? Was the rhythm of another heartbeat somehow calming to my over-tired brain? Was it the soothing comfort of her body next to mine? It bothered me that I couldn't figure out the scientific reason for my better sleep. I would have to ponder this some more.

I headed back to the bathroom and turned on the shower. I stripped while waiting for the water to heat up. I like my showers really hot. The hot water makes my thigh feel better, if only temporarily. I showered, dressed and headed out to PPTH.

The weather was warm and sunny so I took my bike today. It felt good having the wind in my face. Being on the bike was one of the few times when I felt normal; the condition of my leg didn't bother me on the bike.

It was too short a ride to the hospital on such a glorious day. I would have liked to keep riding, but, alas, duty called.

Cuddy cornered me the minute that I walked in the door. "How's the patient doing? I thought you figured out what was wrong with her, so why is she still here?"

I kept walking towards the elevator, hoping she would go away: "She is still here, so I can look at her ass again. Once I deem it acceptable, I will discharge her."

I stopped in front of the elevator and hit the up button with my cane. Cuddy caught up to me there. "Please try to discharge her today. His wife comes home tomorrow and I don't want any fireworks at my hospital."

"Hmmm, well it IS almost the 4th of July, so why not? Don't you like fireworks? How un-American of you not to like them".

"House," she growled at me.

"If I discharge her today, I get two weeks off of clinic duty."

She frowned: "One week. And that's my final offer."

"Done." I said smilingly. "Barring any unforeseen complications, she will be out of here before the day is over. And I get a week off of clinic duty. Do I need a witness to hold you to your end of the bargain?"

She sighed heavily: "No witness. You can trust me. Now, go look at her ass and discharge her already." With that, Cuddy turned and stalked off to her office.

I smiled. I was planning on discharging her anyway, and I still get a week off of clinic duty. This morning was starting out very well.

I limped into my office and set my backpack on the floor next to my desk. The ducklings were all in the conference room. Foreman was reading a journal, Cameron was sorting my mail and Chase was just sitting and staring off into space. He looked quite sullen. Hmm, he's probably pissed at me about Saturday night. This could be interesting.

I headed over to the coffee pot, grabbed my favorite red mug and poured myself a cup. I added 2 sugars before I turned around and addressed the group: "So, how's the patient today?"

Chase answered in a sullen voice: "She's doing better. The itching has improved; there is no fever. The blistering is looking better."

I sipped my coffee: "Great. We'll just go look at her ass one more time and then send her and her boyfriend home."

Just then I saw a familiar white envelope with a blue stripe in the pile of mail that Cameron was sorting. That would be Elle's test results. I grabbed that envelope before Cameron could get to it. It was marked 'confidential' but she opened all of my mail for me anyway. I didn't want her to see this one. I shoved it into my jacket pocket.

Cameron gave me a look: "Why did you take that one?"

"It's for me."

Waving her hand over the pile on the table, she said: "This is all for you, and yet I open all of it except that one. What's with that?"

"Cranky, today, aren't we? Is it that time of the month again?"

Her face looked like a boiled lobster. No matter how she answered that, she would sound bad and she knew it. She made a frustrated growl and turned back to sorting out the mail. I escaped into my office.

I sat drinking my coffee and staring at the envelope. I really should just give it to Elle and let her open it. But, as her doctor, it was standard practice for me to see the test results first. Of course, I'm not really her doctor. But then, I did order the tests and I have written her a prescription, so I could make a case that I am her doctor. I let this flip back and forth in my mind for a few minutes, and then I tore open the envelope.

It was just as I thought. Everything was negative. Elle was HIV-negative. I let out the breath that I didn't even know I was holding. This would be a load off of her mind. I wanted to tell her right away, and I was debating if I should call her cell or just head up to the pharmacy, when Foreman walked in.

I looked up at him: "What?"

"Our favorite politician is raising a fuss. Cuddy just paged us to her room."

I stood up: "Well, let's go look at some ass."

He motioned to the others and they followed me out of the door.

We headed to Amy Spencer's room. Once again, the goons were guarding the door, but they stepped aside and let us all in.

Amy was lying on her right side, silently crying and Politician Guy was pacing around the room. He turned to face us as we walked in.

"So, can Amy be discharged yet? I'd like to get her home today."

Amy sniffled: "Yeah, he wants to get rid of me before his wifey gets home."

"Now, cupcake, it's not like that. Aren't you ready to go home and get out of the hospital?"

She wailed: "But who's going to take care of me? I have this big hole in my butt and I can't sit down."

I rolled my eyes at all of the commotion. I walked around to the far side of the bed and tugged at the blanket. She was holding onto it with determination.

"I need to see the wound and make sure it is healing properly."

Amy sniffled, but allowed me to pull the blanket down. I examined her tuckus. It was firm and shapely. It was a nice looking derriere except for the large hole in her left cheek. The blistering was improving and it did look a lot better than it had on Saturday.

"OK. I think you can go home today. Chase, give her one more dose of Rocephin before she leaves. She needs a prescription for Vantin 200 mg twice a day for a week. Give her the usual wound care instructions."

Amy wailed: "But how am I going to take care of it? It's on my butt! I can't see it. I need help."

Furiously, she looked at Politician Guy: "If your wife wasn't coming home, you could stay with me and help me. Now I'll be all alone." She started wailing louder. Politician Guy ran to her and started to try to soothe her.

The scene was more than I could bear: "If you are stupid enough to get involved with a married man, especially a public figure, what do you expect? You are going to spend a LOT of time alone. He won't be there for Christmas or Thanksgiving and you're going to have to take care of this little problem yourself. Do yourself a favor. Next time; find a single guy. For instance, Dr Chase here is single. You'd be better off with him, AND he's a doctor.

Chase shot me a dirty look and Politician Guy looked like he wanted to choke me. However, Amy was looking at Chase in a whole new light. I smirked and limped out of the room.

It was almost lunchtime. I went in search of my usual 'date'. After all, I could always count on Wilson to pay.

After lunch, I made my way back to my office. As I reached into my pocket for my Vicodin, I rediscovered the envelope containing the lab results.

Shoot. I could have had lunch with Elle and told her. It was almost 1PM now, and I knew she had pain patients to see this afternoon. I decided to send her a text to meet me in my office later. After a few minutes, I received a reply that just said 'OK'. She must be busy. Well, she got the message and I would see her later.

I had an hour to kill until General Hospital. So I put some Eric Clapton on the stereo and leaned back in my chair to enjoy.

After General Hospital, Chase came by to let me know the patient had been discharged without any further incident. He was still acting sullen and did not look me in the eye as he spoke. He said what he needed to say and turned to leave without waiting for a reply.

Before he made it to the door, I asked: "So did you get her phone number?"

He turned around slowly: "Whose phone number?"

"The patient's number."

"House, she's not giving me her number. Where do you come up with these things?"

"Hmmm, yeah, she's not going to give it to you in front of her boyfriend. Well, she knows where to find you. I'm sure you'll hear from her in a few days."

He smirked: "Yeah, right."

"I saw how she was looking at you. She'll call you. 50 bucks says she will call you within a week."

"Yeah, you're on."

"Or you could always get her number from her file and just call her yourself. Save yourself all that waiting time. I'm sure she would like you to come over and examine her ass, Dr Chase."

"I'm not interested in her, House. I've no reason to call her."

"That hot little number is interested in you. Maybe you should take advantage of that." _Yeah, and stay away from Elle who is definitely not interested in you._

He smirked: "I'll collect my 50 bucks from you in a week. Now I'm going to finish my clinic hours for the month." And with that last remark, he headed out the door.

I chuckled and brought up Spider Solitaire on my computer and played a couple of games. Even the advanced level was getting easy for me, so I dug out my PSP from my backpack and settled back in my chair.

At 4:30, Cameron dropped a load of charts on my desk. I stared at the pile and then asked: "What's all this?"

She huffed: "I did all your charting. All YOU have to do is sign off on them. Just open each folder and sign the top page. Easy. Now that I've done all of your work today, I'm going home." With that, she stalked into the conference room, grabbed her things and left.

I smirked. This was great. Cameron did 2 months worth of charts today. Cuddy would be pleased. I opened the top folder and started signing.

_**Elle**_

Finally the elevator arrived. I rode down to the second floor and quickly exited. I glanced at House's office as I passed; he had a big pile of charts on his desk and he looked busy. I hurried to Wilson's office and knocked once. There was no answer, but the door was unlocked, so I just set the charts down on his desk. I hurried back to House's office and walked in. He looked up as I entered. I thought I saw a small smile on his face, but it quickly faded to his usual expression of disinterest.

Well, I was hoping for good news, so I flashed him a big smile. "So, you have something for me?"

He grinned lasciviously at me: "Oh, yeah, baby, I've got something big for you."

I played along: "Oh, goody. I like 'em big." I leaned over his desk, threatening to make the pile of charts topple.

I saw the momentary surprise on his face at my comment, but he quickly recovered. "Good to know that. But as you can see I'm kinda busy for that right now, so I'll just give you some big news instead." With a flourish, he pulled the envelope out of his pocket and handed it to me.

The envelope was already open so he knew what the results were. They had to be good otherwise he would have to be one cold bastard to be acting like this if I were HIV-positive. My hands shook a little as I pulled out the paper.

I scanned the sheet quickly. Negative. Every test was negative. I felt the smile take over my face. I looked up at House. He had a full-blown smile on his face. I'd never seen him like that before, and he looked incredibly handsome. I so wanted to kiss him, but we were at work in his glass-walled office and the sensible part of my brain stopped me.

I bit my lip and said: "Thank you. This really takes a load off my mind."

He shrugged: "Hey, I just drew the blood and ordered the test. Any bozo could have done that."

"Yeah, but you did all the tests. This is 100. Not 95 or 97. 100 percent negative, and I can't tell you how good that makes me feel."

He squirmed a bit and looked down at his charts. I could tell I was making him uncomfortable.

"Are you free for dinner? I've got a big ass steak that's way too big for just little old me. I was hoping you might help me with that."

I could see the flicker of a smile in his eyes as he nodded. "Sure, I need about a half hour to finish this up and then I'll be outta here."

"Great. I'll head on home and get things started. Just come on over whenever you get home."

He looked at me with soft eyes and nodded. I threw him a big smile and turned and walked to the door. As I turned left towards the elevators, I could see, out of the corner of my eye, that he was watching me. I just kept going. There was no way I would be anything other than professional in the hospital. I didn't want any rumors to start and I didn't want to cause House any problems by hinting he might be a nice guy. I would uphold his 'cranky' reputation.

I got home and changed into some jeans and a t-shirt. I pulled out the huge porterhouse steak that I bought yesterday and seasoned it. Then I started on the potatoes. I was in the mood for fried potatoes with onions and I was hoping that House liked that. I also made an avocado & tomato salad, just so there was something green on the table. I opened a bottle of merlot to let it breathe before dinner. The potatoes were almost ready and I was about to put the steak under the broiler when there was a knock at the door.

_**House**_

I was really glad that I hadn't called her to give her the news. Seeing the expression on her face was priceless. I don't think I've ever seen anyone that happy. I found myself grinning like a fool at her joy. I wanted to take her in my arms and kiss her, but I couldn't move from my chair. She thanked me for doing the tests, but I waved that off. However, I did accept her dinner invitation, telling her I could be there in a little while. I watched her walk out of my office. She has a great ass and looks so sexy with that long hair swinging as she walks. I was beginning to get a hard-on watching her, so I was glad I was sitting behind my desk. I pulled the next chart towards me and went back to my signing.

Half an hour later, I was climbing on my bike to head home. I found myself looking forward to having dinner with her again. I realized that I really did enjoy her company. She was relaxed and easy to be around, well, except for the nightmare stuff. And her cooking was excellent. As much as I love Chinese take-out with Wilson, Elle's home-cooked meals were so much better.

I parked the bike and limped into my building. I could hear music from Elle's place. I smiled; she always had music playing. I couldn't smell the steak yet; maybe she was waiting for me to get there to throw it on. I hurried into my apartment and tossed my backpack onto the couch. After hanging up my leather jacket and putting my helmet into the closet, I headed into the bathroom. After doing my business and washing my hands, I checked over my appearance. I ran my fingers through my hair to smooth it down a bit and decided to put on a clean shirt. I limped into the bedroom, tore off my shirt and t-shirt and searched for something clean to wear. Ah, there was my favorite vintage 'The Who' t-shirt. That would do just fine. I tossed that over my head and headed over to Elle's place.

I knocked and she opened the door in a few seconds. She had a big smile on her face as she stood back to let me in. Again, I felt this twinge of surprise that she was actually happy to see me.

"Hey, come on in. I was just getting ready to put the steak on. How do you like it cooked?"

"I like medium rare, but I can live with medium if that's more to your liking."

"I think I can cook it to both our preferences. But, um, I wanted to do one thing first." With that, she threw her arms around my neck. I almost lost my balance and grabbed her with my free arm to steady myself. She pressed her cheek against mine, and then I felt her lips brush my cheek and then kiss the corner of my mouth. I turned my head slightly and lightly kissed her lips.

My lips were tingling as I asked: "And what was that for?"

"I wanted to do that in your office, but I thought it wouldn't be a good idea at work. I'm just, um, really happy about the results and I wanted to hug you to thank you." She was blushing now.

I found myself smiling at her and my left arm, of its own accord, cinched her closer to me. "It's probably good that you didn't do it at work since my office has glass walls. But really, you don't have to thank me. I told you that I just ran the tests; that's all."

"Well, I realize that it might not sound like much to you, but it's a big deal for me." She kissed my cheek again and stepped back. I let my arm drop from her waist. "Are you hungry? I'll go throw the steak on."

Without waiting for a reply, Elle headed into the kitchen and I followed. It was a huge steak and I watched as she placed it on a pan and stuck it under the broiler. Then she started sautéing some potatoes, which smelled divine. She glanced over her shoulder at one moment and chuckled. "You really do like to watch me cook, huh?"

I just nodded.

She laughed: "Well, I opened a bottle of wine. It's on the table. Glasses are in the cabinet to your left. Why don't you pour for us?"

I did as she asked, and then she passed me some silverware and condiments, which I set on the table. When the food was ready, she placed the steak on a large serving plate and took it to the table. The potatoes were in a large bowl and there was another plate with salad. She served me and then herself, and we dug in. It was absolutely delicious. We didn't talk much while we ate and I realized that was another thing I liked about Elle. There was no need for constant chatter. We could be quiet together and it was comfortable. There was some Beethoven was playing on the boom box and it was a relaxing evening.

We finished and Elle took care of the dishes. I did attempt to help, but she refused. I wandered around her living room. Every time I came over, she had hung up another photo or two. I liked looking at them. Then I noticed her laptop was open and running. She was on a site comparing TV brands.

Elle had just finished in the kitchen and had walked back into the living room when we heard a banging across the hall. She looked at me and said: "Sounds like someone is knocking on your door."

I glanced at my watch; it was 8:00. "Oh, yeah, it's Jimmy. He's coming to watch WWE."

Elle was closer to the door so she opened it and called to Wilson. He walked in carrying a 12 pack of Grolsch.

He glanced back and forth between Elle and me and then asked: "Am I interrupting? I thought we were watching wrestling."

Elle smiled and said: "You're not interrupting. We just finished eating."

Wilson looked stunned: "You ate already? We usually get Chinese on Mondays."

I shrugged: "You can still order Chinese. Golden Wok will deliver one dinner as easily as two." I couldn't see why he was making a big deal out of that fact that I had already eaten. He actually looked hurt.

Elle seemed to pick up on that and said: "Wilson, I have some leftover pot roast that I can heat up for you. It's from last night."

I snarked: "Hey, that's my pot roast."

She laughed: "Yeah, and you ate it last night. And tonight you had a porterhouse steak. Wilson can have some leftovers. Go park yourselves in front of the TV and I'll bring it over." She shooed us out of the apartment.

I grumbled as I unlocked my door: "She's giving you my food."

"Well you didn't finish it last night so it's fair game. Payback for all the times you've stolen my food. Want a beer?" He pulled two beers out of the pack and placed the rest in my refrigerator. We parked in our usual spots on the couch and I turned on the TV. We both propped our feet up on the coffee table and settled back to drink and watch. After a few minutes, Elle walked in with a plate for Wilson. Even though I had just eaten, it smelled wonderful. Elle handed it to him and he thanked her, propping the plate in his lap to eat.

Elle turned to leave and I said: "Where are you going?"

She pointed across the hall: "Home."

I tilted my head towards the TV: "Come watch with us. There's beer in the frig."

"I think I'll stick with my wine tonight. Let me just go get it. I'll be right back."

She headed out the door and I turned back to the TV. Then I felt Wilson's eyes on me. "What?" I snarled at him.

He swallowed his food and said: "You want her to watch with us? You likeeee her, don't you?"

"Oh, shut up. She made dinner, why shouldn't she watch TV with us?"

He smirked and went back to eating.

Then I heard this sing-songy voice: "House and Elle, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G,"

I hissed at him: "SHUT UP before she comes back and hears you."

"Ah, you don't want her to know you have feelings for her. Why the hell not? What's wrong with you? She's a hot babe who cooks and seems to like you. Go for it. Live a little, for crying out loud."

I could hear the doorknob turning. Between clenched teeth, I hissed: "Shut up, she's coming back." I gave him my meanest scowl.

He shut up and concentrated on his food.

Elle walked back in with her glass of wine and a plate of brownies, which she set on the coffee table. She started to sit in the chair and I patted the couch next to me. I wanted her next to me, but I didn't want to be so blatant about it in front of Wilson. I tilted my head towards the empty spot and she got the message. She had to step over my out-stretched legs to get to the spot, placing her hand on my shoulder for balance. My shoulder felt nicely warm where she held on for that brief moment. Finally she was settled on the couch between Wilson and myself. She propped her legs up on the coffee table too. Her legs were just inches from mine and I could feel the heat running down the entire length of my left leg. I could have sighed from the warm feeling but I restrained myself. Wilson has already noticed too much, I don't want to give him more ammunition.

Elle watched with us for a while. She had never seen the WWE before, so we did a little explaining about the main characters. We told her about Mr. McMahon and his son Shane, Triple H and Shane Michaels and all the others. There are a lot of competitors and she was having some trouble keeping them all straight. She seemed amused by the fighting though.

Sometime after 10, I felt her head resting on my shoulder. I didn't look down cuz I didn't want to draw Wilson's attention to her. Her body felt relaxed next to mine, and if Wilson hadn't been there, I would have wrapped my arm around her.

About 15 minutes later, Wilson said quietly: "House." I looked at him and he pointed at Elle. I looked down and she had fallen asleep resting on my shoulder and still holding her wineglass. I smiled. I couldn't help it even though I knew Jimmy was watching. Silently I cursed my leg. I badly wanted to just pick her up and carry her to bed, but there was no way that I could do that. I had to settle for gently waking her.

I wrapped my hand around the hand that was holding the wineglass so that it wouldn't spill and I whispered in her ear. "Elle. Hey, Elle, you need to wake up and go to bed."

She hummed and said "OK." But she didn't wake up. It was kinda cute. It would have been a lot more fun without Wilson watching.

I had to wake her up. I took my other hand and shook her shoulder a little bit while whispering in her ear. That worked, she woke up with a start.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep. I guess I was more tired than I thought. I should go."

We both took our legs off of the coffee table at the same time. I had to use both hands to move my right leg as it had gotten terribly stiff sitting for that length of time. Elle noticed but she was kind enough not to say anything.

"I'll leave you guys the brownies, OK? I'll get the plate back later."

I stood up and limped into the kitchen for another beer. My leg was really stiff and I needed to walk around on it. Wilson stood up and walked Elle to the door. He shot me a look and tilted his head towards Elle, obviously trying to tell me something. I chose to ignore his antics. So he brought it out in the open: "House, aren't you going to walk Elle home? You need to stretch your leg anyway."

Elle laughed: "It's right across the hall. Thanks for worrying about me Wilson, but you can just watch to be sure I get home safely."

"OO-Kay" Wilson drew that small word out so it lasted about 30 seconds.

I hobbled to the door and opened it for her: "I'll watch you walk. The scenery is nice." I raised my eyebrows suggestively.

She gave me a look that I couldn't describe. I wasn't sure what it meant, but I knew I was glad that Wilson couldn't see her face right at that moment.

I said in a low voice: "Thanks for dinner. It was really good."

She smirked: "You're welcome. Only 48 more to go. Enjoy them while you can." She playfully squeezed my arm and headed over to her place. Jimmy and I both watched her walk the few steps and unlock the door. She stepped inside, blew us a kiss, and then shut the door behind her.

I shut the door. Jimmy headed to the kitchen to get a fresh beer. I walked around the room for a bit, stretching my thigh. Then we both reparked ourselves back on the couch.

We were staring at the TV and then I heard him say: "You like her."

"Shut up, moron."

"Why don't you take her out on a date?"

"I said, shut up. Watch TV and be quiet or go home."

"I know you like her. You want to do her."

For some reason, that phase sounded really vulgar connected with Elle. I growled at him: "I want to DO Angelina Jolie, but you don't see me doing that, do ya?"

"Everyone wants to do Angelina, but that's unrealistic. This is a real possibility. You could DO Elle. You just need to make the first move, you jerk."

"Leave me alone, you idiot."

"You're the moron. You have a hot babe, living across the hall from you, who cooks for you, has slept in your bed and you haven't put a move on her. What's with you? Is the Vicodin affecting your sex drive?"

I was furious with him for mentioning that. "No asshole, it hasn't affected that. Thank you very much for your concern!"

"Then what is it?"

I just shook my head. "Do I have to say it again? Don't you get it by now? She is young and beautiful. She can do so much better than this old cripple."

Now he looked pissed. "Fuck. I'm so sick of your whining. You'd rather be miserable than to try for happiness. You're so afraid of getting hurt again that you won't make a move. Stacy left 5 years ago, House. It's time to move on."

"I have no interest in Stacy anymore. Proved that back in February." I took a long swig of my beer. If he kept this up, I was going to hit the scotch pretty soon.

"Riggggght. So Stacy is out of the picture. What's holding you back? Elle knows who you are. She realizes that you have some physical limitations. It's not like she knew you before and can make comparisons like Stacy could. Elle really seems to like you. So, come on. Spill it. Being a cripple is not an excuse."

I slowly shook my head: "I'll just end up hurting her. I was doing it to Stacy before the infarction, getting lost in my work and ignoring her. I don't want to do that to Elle. She's has enough pain in her life."

"You don't know that you'll do that again. Elle's a different person than Stacy."

I repeated myself: "I don't want to hurt her. Now shut up and watch TV or go home."

He shut up. We continued watching Monday Night Raw. The Spirit Squad got green paint dumped all over them courtesy of Triple H and Shawn Michaels. That was gross. Then Coachman got his head put through a wall, and his pants pulled down revealing a very thin thong. It was not a pretty sight, so HBK and the Game spray-painted DX on his exposed derriere.

After that, Wilson called it a night. He grabbed one of the brownies to take with him, and headed out the door. Thankfully, he didn't say any more about Elle. I think he knew I had reached my limit with that conversation.

I sat there drinking my beer. I wanted Elle in my bed tonight. If Wilson hadn't been over, I'm sure I could have convinced her to sleep here. It was late, almost 11. She was probably asleep by now. I decided to text her just in case. The little beep that the text message makes wouldn't be enough to wake her if she was already asleep. I kept the message short: _U asleep?_

Her reply came back in a minute: _Just crawled into bed. What's up?_

_Wilson's gone. Come sleep here. And you're not bothering me; so don't start with that._

A minute went by and then another. I wondered what she was thinking.

Then I got the beep: _OK. 2 minutes._

I smiled. I would have warmth in my bed again tonight. Maybe if she kept sleeping with me, I would figure how why I was sleeping better with her here. Yeah, that's it. I need for data to figure out the question, just like a DDX. The door was already unlocked, so I went into the bedroom to change into my pajamas. It was early for me to go to bed, but I was going to try to fall asleep with her tonight.

_**ELLE**_

Boy, I can't believe I fell asleep watching TV with the guys. Hope House wasn't too embarrassed by that. He seemed nice enough about it. I changed into my PJ's and brushed my teeth. I made the futon into bed form and put on the sheets. I finished my bedtime routine of turning on the nightlights and putting on my sleep-inducing CD. I set my cell phone alarm and placed the phone on the coffee table. I had just crawled into bed when I got a text message beep. I checked the message; it was House. I texted him back and he replied that he wanted me to come and sleep over. I pondered that for a minute. I really liked sleeping with him. I felt so warm and safe with him. But I was starting to have feelings for him so I wasn't sure if it was a good idea or not. I knew he could never have feelings for me; I'm sure he thought I was too damaged for anything more than being a friend. And he was being a good friend. He wanted me to feel safe and sleep well. I made up my mind and texted him back that I was coming over. I walked around turning off the nightlights, grabbed my cell and keys and went over to House's place.

The door was open, so I just walked in. I called to him and he answered from the bedroom. I left my keys on the table and headed back there. He was standing shirtless, in his pajama bottoms, digging out a t-shirt from the dresser. I couldn't help staring; he really had a nice chest. Again, I felt the urge to run my fingers through his chest hair. He caught me staring and smirked: "Earth to Elle. Please return from the Twilight Zone."

Oh, crap. He caught me again. I'm sure I was blushing as he was chuckling away as he slipped the shirt on. Tilting his head towards the bed, he said: "Get in." He stepped out of the room for a minute and I heard a light flick on. I knew he was leaving on the bathroom light for me. He walked back in; his limp seemed more pronounced tonight. I wished I could do something to help him, but I was afraid to offer assistance. I wasn't sure how he would take it. He sat down heavily on the side of the bed and picked up his Vicodin bottle. He swallowed 2 before lying down. The heating pad appeared from under the bed and he carefully arranged it on his thigh and turned it on. Now that he was comfortably settled, House picked up the Carl Hiaasen book and turned to me: "Your turn to read tonight."

I took the book from him and moved closer to him. I had him lean forward for a minute so I could plump up the pillows a bit. Then we leaned back and I curled up against his left shoulder. He put his arm around me and drew me closer.

I opened the book: "OK. We left off on chapter 6." And I started reading.

I finished chapter 6 and by then I was feeling pretty sleepy. I told him I needed to pack it in.

"No problem." He took the book from me and placed it on the nightstand. We rearranged the pillows and he turned off the lamp. I started to roll away from him, but he pulled me closer. My head was on his left shoulder and we faced each other. He draped one arm across my waist, kissed my forehead and said: "Night, Elle."

I placed my hand on his chest, right over his heart. I could feel it beating. It was quite soothing. I snuggled inches closer and whispered: "Good night, House." With that, I closed my eyes and quickly fell into a dreamless sleep.

_**House**_

Elle walked in as I was changing. I caught her staring at me and made her blush. Ha, she's so gorgeous when she blushes. We got into bed and she plumped the pillows up so nicely. I handed her the book and she read to me. She only read one chapter, as she was really sleepy. I turned off the lamp and she cuddled up to me. I threw my arm around her and kissed her goodnight, just on the forehead. After a few minutes, I knew she had fallen asleep by the even sound of her breathing. There was just enough light from the bathroom that I could make out her features, peaceful in sleep. I gently moved some stray hairs away from her face. I pressed my lips to her forehead again, my nose in her hair inhaling her citrus-scented shampoo. My hand slipped under her shirt and tentatively stroked her bare back. She let out a sigh and snuggled a bit closer to me. I dozed off with my hand still resting on her bare back and my lips pressed against her forehead.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

_**Elle **_

My cell phone woke me as usual at 6AM. House's arms were around me and I was snuggled into his chest. It felt really nice and I didn't want to move. I felt his hand was under my shirt, against my skin. As I turned to reach my phone, his hand slipped around to my tummy. I stretched across the bed and silenced the phone. I laid back down, my hand on top of his. I turned my head to look at him; he was still asleep. I rolled over to face him and his hand slid around my waist again. I put my hand on his hip and slowly slipped my hand up his shirt. I shut my eyes as I eased my fingers up his torso to his chest. There I ran my fingers thru his chest hair. I smiled in delight. It felt so good. I inhaled deeply of his manly scent. I gently stroked his chest hair. After a minute or so, I slowly removed my hand. I needed to get up and get moving. I savored that moment for the rest of the day.

My workday was extremely busy. We barely had time for lunch. We finished late; it was about 5:30 when we headed to the elevators. I was pooped. I had thrown some chicken in the crock-pot before I left this morning and I was really glad about that. I was too tired to do much cooking. As I got in my car, I realized that I had not heard from House all day. I sent him a quick text: _Dinner? _

Then I drove home, kicked off my shoes and changed into my jeans. I was just heading into the kitchen when my phone beeped. House had returned my text.

_Really busy. 2 new patients. Can't make it tonight. Rain check?_

I smiled and texted him back: _Sure._

It felt kind of strange to not be eating with House. I finished preparing dinner and ate at my dining table listening to music. Ricky called me around 7:30 and asked if I had done any TV shopping yet. I told him that I knew what I wanted to get. He was free tonight so he came over and we headed out to Big Box to shop. I found a 26-inch TV and a DVD/VCR player that was within my budget and he helped me bring it home. We set it up on the entertainment center. Now the place looked so much better. It's funny how having a TV makes a place seem homey. Now I could leave the TV on while I slept, although I still needed to get cable! I found there were 3 channels I could pick up with just the rabbit ears and that would do for now. It was almost 10, so Ricky took off and I started getting ready for bed.

When we returned from the store, I had noticed that House was not back yet. As I was putting away my leftover chicken, I decided to make a plate and leave it for him. I hoped he liked arroz con pollo. At least it was food if he came home hungry. I wrapped up a plate with Saran wrap and left it in his refrigerator. I sent him a quick text: _Left you a plate in the refrig. Just warm it up in the microwave._

In a few minutes, I received an answer: _Just so you know, this does not count as one of our dinners. Doesn't count if I have to eat alone_.

I laughed at that. I texted him back: _You keep changing the rules! Just eat it and enjoy it. Stop counting._

I brushed my teeth and got ready for bed. As I crawled under the sheets, I received one last message: _Should be home around midnight. Sleep in my bed if you want. You won't bother me._

I wasn't going to let him get the last word. _Bought a TV tonight. Think I'm OK, but thanks for the offer._

And with that, I turned the TV on low and pulled the covers up to my chin. It had been a long day and I was tired. I was asleep in minutes.

_**House **_

My apartment was quiet and dark when I got home. I crept down the hall and looked in the bedroom but I knew she wasn't there. She would have left the bathroom light on. I sighed as I wandered back to the kitchen; I would be sleeping alone tonight. I wondered how I would sleep with no warm body pressed up against me. I shoved that thought aside as I opened the refrigerator. There was a lovely plate waiting for me to nuke. I stuck it in the microwave and punched two minutes. I fished out a beer while I waited.

I took everything into the living room and parked myself on the couch. I think the food was good, but I was so starved that I barely tasted it. I just wolfed it down. Finished, I set the plate back on the coffee table, leaned back and groaned. Two new patients today, and I just got rid of spider bite lady. At least the patients got me out of clinic duty, but staying late sucked big time. The ducklings were staying even later running tests and that made me smile. I surfed the channels for a bit and had another beer. Around 2AM, I gave it up and went to bed. I could still smell her on the pillow as I hugged it to my chest.

_**Elle **_

I woke up to the buzzing of my cell phone and the flickering of the TV. As I stretched towards the phone, I realized I slept through the night without any nightmares. That was a good feeling. I flicked off the alarm and got out of bed. I did my usual morning routine and took House his coffee. I saw the plate lying in the sink so I knew he made it home last night and had eaten. I crept down the hall and peeked into his bedroom. He seems to be sleeping soundly, lying on his left side and hugging a pillow to his chest. Silently, I went back to the kitchen, collected the plate and left.

Work was just as busy today as it had been yesterday. I managed a quick lunch with Bonnie again and then the afternoon flew by. My appointment with Gail was at 5:30 and I was determined to get out on time today. We managed to get finished by 5PM and I was out of there.

A lot had happened in the past week and I talked non-stop to Gail. I told her about my nightmares, but together we could not figure out what was triggering them. She was surprised by House's actions and warned me again to take it slow. Gail still felt that he was sending me mixed messages and did not think it was a good idea to sleep with him, even platonically. I knew that she was right, but it sure felt good to sleep with him, so warm and safe. I knew that if he asked me again, I would just crawl into his bed. I left her place at 6:30 and headed over to Satchel's to meet with Bill.

Billy was behind the bar when I walked in. I sat at the bar while he got me a Heineken. Bill had not arrived yet, so I kept Billy company for a while. Wednesday nights can be a little slow at the bar.

Bill showed up right at 7:30. We walked over to a table after leaving a dinner order with Theresa.

He got right down to business. "Elle, I don't have any good news tonight. They filed a motion to dismiss the case completely."

I almost choked on my beer. "What? How can they do that?"

He shook his head: "They are just stalling. I know it, they know it and the judge knows it. But the judge has to hear and decide on every motion that they make. And it does succeed in stalling the case. That's what they are looking to do. I think they are hoping you'll get tired of it all and give up."

I shook my head angrily: "I'm not giving up. I don't care how long it takes. I have nothing to lose by pursuing this. I mean, I may not win, but I definitely won't win if I give up."

"Good girl. That's the right attitude. I was hoping you would say that. In a criminal case, you are entitled to a speedy trial. Unfortunately in a civil suit, that's not so. They can possibly stretch it out for years. Just so you know."

I nodded. This was going to take longer than I thought. I was hoping that they would want to settle and avoid the publicity of a trial. Now it looks like their tactic is to keep stalling until I give up. Well, I wasn't going to give up so quickly.

Theresa brought our food and we talked of other things while we ate. I asked him about House and he told me what had happened when Joey was in the hospital. I had never heard the whole story, but it confirmed what I had always heard about House: he was a brilliant but eccentric doctor.

It made Bill sad to talk about Joey. He hasn't seen or heard from Joey since he went into the witness protection program and he missed him. Bill steered the conversation away from Joey and onto House.

"So what's House really like? You two are neighbors. I bet he is a pain in the ass."

Knowing that whatever I told Bill would go right to Tony, I answered carefully: "He's alright. He gave me a key to his place so that I can go and play his piano when he's not home. I make him dinner a couple times a week and we watch some TV. I know he can be a real pain, and he is infamous around the hospital. But he's been nice to me. I do have to keep that a secret. I can't let that get around and ruin his reputation."

Bill laughed at that. "Yeah, I can see that."

"Oh, and I've heard about the Corvette. I asked him if I could have a ride one day."

He shrugged: "We just wanted to show our appreciation. It's nothing."

"Right. Like it's nothing that you are doing my case pro bono."

He gave me a steely look: "You're family. We take care of our own. Speaking of which, you know that Tony is really itching to take care of David."

"I told him that there is nothing to take care of. David isn't Charlie. He didn't physically hurt me or threaten me in any way. He just dumped me when I was down. That was painful, emotionally, but not physically. Pffft. Now I don't care about David anymore. I'm glad I found out that he was such a wimp before we got married. If we had already been married and he did this, it would be different. But, thank God, we weren't. I'm picking up my pieces now, and I'm doing OK. Hurting Charlie sent a message. That needed to be done before he hurt me again. And I'm very grateful to Tony for taking care of that. Hurting David isn't going to change anything; therefore it is not necessary and I told Tony that. I appreciate everything he has ever done for me and I could never repay him or you either. But it's enough. And I think you know me well enough to know, that if I needed something, I would tell you."

He looked at me for a minute, then nodded: "OK, kiddo. Just don't take shit from anyone. You let us know if you need something. I gotta get home. My wife likes to see me once in a while." He smiled.

"Yeah, and you can get home early enough to tuck the kids in." I stood up and gave him a quick hug.

He kissed my cheek and said he would be in touch. He strode out of the bar.

I sat there for a while pondering what he said about my case. I was hoping it wouldn't take so long. It would be nice to have a little nest egg put aside. But I could be patient for a while. Theresa came over and sat down. We chatted for a while, and then I took off for home.

_**House**_

I woke up in pain. It was not unusual but it was more intense today than it had been in a while. As I lay in bed, rubbing my thigh, I pondered my question of whether Elle sleeping with me improved the quality of my sleep. Maybe her warmth really did help my thigh. I needed a few more nights, with and without her, to prove my hypothesis.

It was nice to wake up and have coffee waiting for me. I don't know how I survived all this time without Elle's coffee. Between the hot shower and her coffee, I felt almost human by 10AM.

I limped into my office. The ducklings were huddled around the conference table, files and papers scattered across the surface. The whiteboard had a line drawn down the middle with each patient's symptoms on their own side. I set down my backpack and headed to the coffee pot. Cameron's coffee was a close second to Elle's and I considered myself a lucky man that I had two women making me coffee everyday.

I joined the gang at the table and we discussed the test results. Things were still not making sense so I ordered some more tests and sent the ducklings off to perform them. I went into my office and dug out my PSP. I had a new game, 'Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories' and I wanted to think. I worked on the game while I thought about each patient. One of the ducklings would return periodically with test results and I would pause the game and add the result to the whiteboard.

Wilson came by around 12:30 and we headed to the cafeteria for lunch. As usual, he bought my Reuben and fries for me and I stole the tomatoes off of his salad. He knew I had been here late last night and so he inquired about tonight's poker game. I had no intention of staying late two nights in a row, so I let him know the game was on. Barring anything major, I had no plans to cancel the game.

The afternoon showed some improvement. Patient A started responding to the antibiotics and his fever broke. Patient B was being more difficult but she wasn't any worse at 5PM than she had been this morning, so I left Foreman to monitor her and I took off for home.

Wilson came over around 6:30 and helped me set up the table. He brought pretzels and beer. The rest of the guys arrived around 7:00 and we settled in to play some poker.

_**Elle**_

The lights were on in House's apartment and I could hear voices. I guess he was able to escape work for his weekly poker game. I didn't want to face those guys again, so I quietly let myself into my place. I turned on the light in the bedroom, keeping the rest of the apartment dark. I wanted it to appear as if I wasn't home. I changed into my PJ's and went into the kitchen. I dug the ice cream out of the freezer and carried the pint and a spoon over to the futon. I put the TV on low volume and surfed my 3 channels. I finally settled on a rerun episode of the show about the plane crash victims on a supposedly deserted island. I watched it all last season and it was a pretty good show. It had really good character development. The show lasted until 10PM. By then, I had finished the pint of ice cream. So I took my Ativan, brushed my teeth and went to bed.

_**House**_

The poker game went pretty well. No one mentioned the events of last week. I knew that Elle was not home since she had told me that she was seeing her lawyer tonight. I figured that after what happened last week she probably wouldn't drop by and that was just as well. We snacked on pretzels and chips until the pizzas arrived. Then we took a short break to eat and went right back to the game. Dry Cleaner Guy was really on a roll this week. He was giving me quite the workout. By the end of the night, I was up 200 bucks and he had won 250 bucks. Everyone seemed satisfied that I got beat for once, but hey, I was up 200 bucks, so I really didn't care. OK, I did care, but I decided to let it go. Things were back to normal around the gaming table and that was a good thing. We packed it in around 11PM, and as usual, Wilson stayed behind and helped me clean up. I put away the cards and chips; he swept up the crumbs around the table. Then he helped me fold the table and stick it in the closet. After rearranging the furniture back to its normal configuration, we settled on the couch for one last beer. We caught the last bit of the news and Leno's opening monologue.

At the commercial, Wilson stood up and stretched. "I'm heading home."

"Alright, see ya tomorrow."

He grabbed his jacket and headed out the door. In less than a minute, he was back. He motioned to me and said: "I think you should come here."

Curious, I followed him to Elle's door. Wilson said: "When I walked out before, I heard a loud 'NO' from her place. Then I heard some muffled words that sounded like 'stop' and 'don't'. Do you think she's having a nightmare?"

Before I could answer him, I heard her whimper "no, don't".

"Shit", I muttered. Frowning, I looked at Jimmy and said: "Yep, sounds like she's having a nightmare."

"Do you have her key?"

I shook my head and held out my hand. "Gimme your wallet."

He looked puzzled, but handed it over. I selected a random credit card and proceeded to pick her locks. Unfortunately there were two of them so it took me a couple of minutes to get the door open. When the door swung open, we could hear her whimpering and sobbing in her sleep. I handed Wilson his wallet back. "Here. Take off. If you're here for this, she'll only be even more embarrassed. She can barely stand me seeing her like this."

He pocketed his wallet. "Are you sure that there is nothing I can do?"

I shook my head: "Naw. I got it. Let me try to wake her up before she gets to the end of the dream. When she wakes up screaming, it's really bad."

"Alright. Call me if you need anything."

"I will." I walked into her place and I switched on the lamp, hoping that would wake her up. I saw her grimace but she didn't wake up.

I sat on the far side of the futon so that my right leg was away from her. I didn't want her to accidentally hit it if she started thrashing around. I shook her shoulder and called her name loudly. She whimpered, but didn't wake up. I shook her harder and she woke with a gasp, eyes wide open. She seemed disoriented at first, but I kept talking to her and saying "It's me, House" and she finally became oriented to her surroundings.

She was pale and her breaths were very shallow. My eyes were huge as she asked me: "How did you get in?" She glanced over her shoulder at the door, which I had closed behind me.

"I picked the locks with a credit card."

"Oh my God, it's that easy to break into my place! You did it with a credit card?" Tears started to leak out of her eyes.

I pulled her into my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her head in my shoulder.

"Shhhh, I heard you through the door and I wanted to wake you before the dream got worse. I've had to break into a few patients' homes so I've gotten rather good at B & E."

I stroked her hair and rocked her while she calmed down. She cried a little bit, but happily she wasn't sobbing as hard as she had been the previous time. Finally she sighed, gave me a squeeze and pulled away from me. She lay back down and pulled the covers up to her chin, curling into a little ball with her arm across my leg. I stroked her hair away from her face: "Are you OK? Did something happen today?"

She shrugged: "Not really. It was OK. Busy at work, then I went to see my therapist. Then I went to Satchel's and saw Bill. He told me that my case wasn't going so well. PMMC's lawyers are filing motions to prolong the case, hoping I'll give up and go away. Between seeing my therapist and Bill tonight, I guess something could have set it off. But I took my Ativan before I went to bed. I thought that would have taken the edge off any anxiety. Guess I was wrong."

She traced circles on my leg with her fingertip. "I talked to my therapist about the nightmares but we didn't come up with anything. I just thought I would be finished with them after so many months."

"You mean like time heals all wounds, the passage of time would make things better, that kind of stuff?"

She nodded.

I shook my head: "Time doesn't change things. Doing things changes things. If you do nothing, it leaves things exactly as they were."

She frowned thoughtfully: "So I need to do something to end these nightmares. But what?" She looked at me.

I shook my head. "I don't know. If we could figure out what triggers them, then we could figure out a solution."

She rolled onto her back and scrubbed her hands across her face: "Yeah, figure out the trigger. Wish it were that easy."

She pulled her hands away from her face and said: "I tried to figure out what causes them. I leave the light on; I leave the TV on to feel safe. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I keep the phone nearby and it's always charged. The night it happened, he cut the phone lines and my cell phone was downstairs so I couldn't call the police. I keep thinking if I had just had my phone with me, maybe the police would have gotten there in time."

"You can't think like that. You're blaming yourself."

Very softly, she said: "You're right. You'll think I'm stupid, but it's because of me that my dog got killed." Her face scrunched up in pain, and I could tell she was desperately trying not to cry. But tears leaked out of her closed eyes and she pulled the pillow over her face to hide it from me.

"Is that why you haven't gotten another dog? You feel guilty that he got killed?"

I hear a sob, and I knew the answer to that question. I carefully lay down beside her and pulled the pillow off of her face. She quickly ducked her head, but I pulled her into my arms and let her sob against my chest. I stroked her hair and made soothing noises until she had cried herself out.

I kissed her forehead and said: "It's not your fault. None of this is your fault."

"I know. But the guilt is still there. I keep thinking: what could I have done differently? And I can't come up with a damn thing."

She let out a big sigh.

"You've been so nice to me. I really wish I could repay you somehow."

It was on the tip of my tongue to make a snarky remark about just how she could repay me. I thought of her lips wrapped around Mt Gregory, but I found that I just couldn't say that to her. I felt weirdly protective of her.

Instead I said: "Oh, come on. You make me coffee every day. Do you have any idea how nice it is to wake up to your coffee? And you make me dinner and breakfast sometimes."

"Yeah, I know. I just wish I could do something more for you. I wake you up, I cry on your shoulder. You break into my place to help me."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it so rough." I stroked her cheek with my thumb. "You know, I kinda like it when you read to me."

She looked up at me. She tenderly placed her hand on my cheek and said: "I could come to bed with you and read you another chapter."

My heart leaped a bit, but I hid it well. I just nodded solemnly: "Yeah, that would be OK." I nudged her: "Come on. Grab your things and let's go to bed."

We walked over to my place and Elle headed into the bathroom to wash her face. She crawled right into bed when she came out of the bathroom.

I went in there and changed into my PJ's and brushed my teeth. I returned to find that she had plumped up the pillows and had the book open. I climbed in next to her and she snuggled up against me. I wrapped my arm around her.

Elle opened the book and started reading. She read chapters 7 & 8 to me and then we decided it was time to go to sleep.

Elle snuggled up against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and listened until her slow even breathing told me that she had fallen asleep. Then I kissed her forehead and allowed myself to doze off.

(Thursday)

_**Elle**_

The alarm clock went off and I woke to find myself sleeping in House's arms. I moaned; it felt so nice, warm and safe, that I didn't want to move. I burrowed my head deeper into his chest hoping the rest of the world especially my alarm clock would just go away. But the incessant ringing would not stop and House started to stir. I rolled over to turn off the alarm before it completely woke him up.

I started to get out of bed when his arm encircled my waist and pulled me back.

He murmured: "Where you going?"

"I gotta get up and go to work."

"No. Don't go. Stay with me, baby."

I giggled. "That's MY song, cowboy."

"Um, cowboy, huh? Can I ride you?"

I looked at him in surprise. He hadn't opened his eyes yet, was he talking in his sleep?

I whispered: "Later, cowboy. I really have to go to work."

He nuzzled his face into my neck. His scruffy beard felt interesting scraping along my skin and then I felt his lips kissing my neck.

I froze. He was kissing and tasting me with his tongue. It felt so good. I could feel the heat pooling down deep in my belly. His arm pulled me closer and I could feel the hardness of his manhood pressing into my hip.

I pulled back slightly and looked at his face. His eyes were still closed and his breathing was even. He was still asleep. He was doing all of this in his sleep. What did this mean? Did he want me on some deep subconscious level?

I slipped my hand up his shirt and gently caressed his bare back. He hummed, a small smile on his face. Then he said my name in a long low moan and I froze again. He was still asleep, but had a smile on his face.

I smiled knowing that he must be dreaming of me. And it had to be a good one judging by the hardness of his shaft.

I so badly wanted to stay but I had to get going. Reluctantly I removed my hand from his warm skin and backed across the bed watching him.

I saw a frown pass over his face and a discontented sigh escaped his lips.

I leaned over and softly kissed his lips and whispered: "Later, cowboy."

He smiled again and shifted around pressing his face into the pillow.

I managed to drag myself away and grabbing my phone headed over to my apartment. I started the coffee and went into the shower.

As I stepped under the spray, I couldn't stop thinking about him and his sleepy actions. The heat in my belly was intense and I pictured his hands on me as I soaped up. For the first time in more than 6 months, my fingers did some walking and it was House that led them down that road. I thought of his soft lips and scruffy beard nuzzling on my neck, the feel of my hand on his back and I came quickly with an intense fury, gasping his name.

I stood there for a moment, just enjoying the sensations. It had been a long time since I felt that thrill. Then I shook myself out of my stupor and finished my shower. Responsible me knew I needed to get going so I could get to work on time.

Shower finished and coffee made, I drank 2 cups and had a quick breakfast. I took House his carafe as usual and left him something else along with the coffee. Then I headed out to my car.

My morning passed quickly. After a quick lunch in the cafeteria with Miriam, I went to Wilson's office for today's patient files. I had 6 new patients scheduled for today. I finished my appointments just after 5PM and took the files back down to Wilson's office. My yoga class was at 6PM, so I was in a hurry to get out of work.

I always knocked on Wilson's door out of courtesy. Most of the time, he wasn't in there, but I never wanted to just walk in. He might be with a patient.

There was no answer, so I walked in and set the files on his desk. As I turned around to walk back out, I was startled by the beep of my phone. I checked the text messages. There was one from House.

It merely said: "_Dinner?"_

I glanced into his office as I walked down the hall towards the elevator. He wasn't there, so I texted him back. "_Have yoga class. Won't be home until 8. Leftovers?"_

I made it all the way to my car before I got a response: "_Thai at 8. See U."_

I smiled as I replied: "_K."_

_**House**_

I woke up from such a lovely dream I would have sworn it was real. Elle was snuggled up next to me and I was kissing her neck. She was stroking my back and my hardness was pressing into her. The word _cowboy_ floated through my brain but I couldn't connect it to anything. I sighed knowing it was just a dream and rolled slowly out of bed.

I limped into the kitchen for my coffee and poured myself a cup. Then I noticed the envelope next to the carafe. I opened it and a key fell out. I pulled out a short note, which read:

_House,_

_So that you won't have to break in next time,_

_Thank you, again._

_Elle_

Hmm, cool. Now I have a key to her place. I could easily snoop now. I glanced at the clock; it was too late to start today. It's the 30th of the month and Cuddy would be on the warpath for me to finish my clinic hours and my billing for the month. I slipped her key onto my key ring and headed to the shower.

I spent the morning in the clinic finishing my hours. I lunched with Wilson as usual; then I spent the afternoon working on the monthly paperwork with Cameron. She knew I would never get it completed on time, so she did most of it while I signed in all the necessary places as the department head. I did take an hour's break for General Hospital, of course.

It was right at 5PM when we finished. Cameron gathered up all the papers to drop off with Cuddy's secretary and headed out. The other ducklings had been in the clinic all afternoon and I presumed that they had already left.

I had not heard from Elle all day so I wandered out to the balcony to send her a text message. We made dinner plans for Thai at 8PM. Cool. I looked forward to a relaxing evening eating in front of the TV with her.

Elle arrived just before 8:00. I phoned it our order for delivery: beef satay, pad thai, panang curry, and shrimp hot and sour soup. We ate in front of the TV. The Thursday night medical shows were on, so we watched 'Gray's Anatomy' and 'ER'. The remnants of our meal lay scattered across the coffee table as we propped our feet up to digest while watching. I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to me. Her leg pressed up against mine and I relished the warmth down my leg. We laughed together at all the medical errors on these shows. I liked the feel of her body shaking in laughter next to me.

When 'ER' was over, Elle stretched and said: "I guess I should go to bed. I'm so glad tomorrow's Friday and we have a 3 day weekend for the 4th of July. Are you on call this weekend?"

"Only if it's a VIP who makes huge donations to the hospital and Cuddy begs me naked on her knees."

Elle giggled for minute and said: "Oh, so it would really take a lot for you to go in on a holiday weekend."

I sipped my beer and said: "Yup."

"Are you staying up or going to bed?"

"If you're sleeping here, I'm going to bed. If not, I'm staying up."

"It's OK if I stay?"

I chuckled: "My hooker's off tonight so you can stay. She never spends the night anyway. I can't afford that kind of fee."

She slapped my arm: "You and your hooker jokes." Suddenly she started laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"I'm laughing cuz the bed I ordered is going to arrive next week. Then I started thinking: what's the point of buying a bed if I'm always sleeping in yours?"

"Cute. Shall I start charging you rent?"

"Hope not. I probably can't afford you."

I looked at her and brushed a few stray hairs from her face: "I'll make you a good deal. Now go brush your teeth and let's go to bed."

_**Elle**_

It was finally Friday. I was really looking forward to a 3-day weekend. It was truly free; it wasn't even our weekend to play at Satchel's. I didn't have any plans so I spent my spare moments thinking of what to do. I realized that it had been a long time since I had been to the beach, so I thought that would be fun. Growing up in Florida, I had spent a lot of time at the beach and I just loved the water. Here in New Jersey, I like going to Seaside Heights. It is only an hour's drive away and it has a fun boardwalk. That sounded like a good day trip. I wondered if House would be interested in going with me.

I had crept out of bed this morning without waking House. I didn't indulge in any extra cuddling today and he didn't talk in his sleep either. I went through my usual morning routine: coffee, shower, and breakfast. I left the carafe for House as usual.

We weren't as busy today as we had been the rest of the week. We had a lot of downtime, so Susan and I got caught up on some paperwork while the techs went through the shelves checking for expired meds.

At noon, Miriam and I went to lunch in the cafeteria. The Friday special was a fried fish sandwich, which wasn't too bad if you drowned it in cocktail sauce. Add the French fries and you had your fat calories for the week in just one meal. Miriam was smart and stuck with the tuna salad.

As we waited for the elevator, we were chatting about our plans for the weekend. The elevator doors opened and Drs Chase and Foreman stepped out. Chase seemed pleased to see me; I gave him a tight smile and tried to step past him into the elevator.

Chase said: "Dr Kaplan, can I speak to you for a moment?"

I felt embarrassed that he called me Doctor. Hardly any one ever calls the pharmacists 'doctor', even those of us who have the advanced degree.

I tried to dodge him by saying: "Um, I should really get back. My partner is waiting for me to return so she can go to lunch."

"It will just take a minute"

I couldn't really say no, so I asked Miriam to tell Susan that I would be along in just a few minutes.

We stepped to the side away from the elevator. Foreman hung around, waiting for Chase a few feet away from us.

I looked at him expectantly: "Yes?"

He smiled at me and said: "I was wondering if you were busy tonight. We're all going out for pizza and I thought you'd like to join us. Us being Foreman, Cameron and myself."

I thought: Y_eah, right. Cameron would love to have me come along!_

I gave Chase a small smile: "Thanks for the invitation, but I'm busy tonight. My best friends are going out for their anniversary and I'm babysitting their daughter."

I started to turn away, but he grabbed my arm. I flinched at the contact and he immediately dropped my arm. "Oh. Sorry. I just didn't want you to walk away. Tonight was short notice, I know, but what about sometime this weekend? You're not babysitting every night, are you?"

I didn't like the fact that he had grabbed me. I really wasn't interested in him and now he was starting to make me nervous. I needed to let him know I was unavailable. "No, but I'm going away for the rest of the weekend. We're leaving Saturday morning and won't be back until Monday evening."

He clearly looked disappointed. He nodded: "OK. Can't hurt for a guy to ask, right?"

I gave him a small smile and said: "I really need to get back to work. I hope you have a nice weekend."

I turned and headed towards the elevator. I hoped he got the message and wouldn't ask me out again. If he did it again, I would have to be more direct about my disinterest. I hoped that he would not continue to be a problem.

_**House**_

I was heading to the cafeteria to meet Wilson for a late lunch when I saw Elle talking to Chase. I paused, curious about their interaction. I wasn't close enough to hear the conversation but Elle looked uncomfortable. She turned away and Chase grabbed her arm. I tightened my grip on my cane and started to move towards them. Chase dropped her arm; they said a few more words to each other and Elle headed towards the elevator. She still looked upset and I wondered what the wombat had said to her. I watched Chase and Foreman walk towards the cafeteria.

I didn't notice that Wilson had walked up and was standing next to me until he spoke. "Spying on Chase and Foreman again? Is it for your own entertainment or are you working for Homeland Security now?"

I snarked: "Yeah, and Chase is a security risk and should be thrown out of the country. He just had a confrontation with Elle. He grabbed her and I want to know what that was all about."

He smirked: "Very protective of her, aren't you?"

"Oh, shut up. You didn't see the look on her face when it happened." I stared at him and lowered my voice: "She's been raped, you know. Some guy grabbing her like that might give her flashbacks and more nightmares."

He sobered: "Yeah, you're right. Sorry, I forgot about that. Are you going to ask her or confront Chase?"

I gripped my cane so hard my knuckles were white: "I don't know. Let's go to the cafeteria so I can see what he's up to."

As we approached the cafeteria, I realized confronting Chase wouldn't give me the whole picture. He would just lie about what happened. I would have to ask Elle about it. I watched Chase and Foreman as they went through the line. Foreman was talking seriously to Chase and Chase was frowning and shaking his head. The whole thing disturbed me more than I wanted to admit and I was anxious to speak to Elle about it.

Wilson and I got our lunches and sat down at a table where I could keep an eye on Chase. We didn't talk much while we ate. Finally Wilson pushed his plate away and asked: "So what are you going to do?"

"What makes you think I'm going to do anything?"

"You are sitting there boring holes into Chase's head with your X-ray vision and you didn't steal even one single French fry from me. You're going to do something."

I tensely replied: "I'll talk to Elle later and find out what happened. I don't want to ask her while other people are around."

Wilson looked thoughtful and said: "I am curious about this too. Why would he grab her like that?"

I just shook my head and said: "I don't know."

"Hey, Julie's got her damn meeting again tonight. Want to go try that new Mongolian Bar-B-Que restaurant that opened last week? Why don't you ask Elle to come with us?"

I smirked: "Still playing matchmaker, yenta Jimmy? 'Yes' to your first question and 'I'll think about it' to your second question."

We bussed our trays and headed off to our respective offices. I tried playing with my PSP but I couldn't keep my mind on the game. After wiping out for the 3rd time, I decided to text Elle.

"_I saw him grab you. R U OK?"_

"_I'm OK."_

"_What did he say to you?"_

"_He asked me out again & wasn't happy that I said no."_

My blood boiled. Who the hell does Chase think he is, pursuing someone like Elle? She is way out of his league.

"_Do U need me 2 take care of him?"_

"_No. Think I discouraged him. Can we talk later? Hard 2 talk now."_

"_OK. My office, 5."_

"_K."_

At least I knew the gist of the story now. I would get the details later and then decide how I would deal with Dr. Wombat. I flipped on the TV and tried to get distracted with General Hospital.

Just before 5,Wilson walked into my office with his briefcase. He asked: "Ready to go?"

I looked up at him: "Kind of early for dinner, isn't it?"

He shrugged: "Well, we can start out drinking and eat later."

"You don't want to go home and change first."

Wilson looked decidedly uncomfortable and said: "Naw, I'll just take off my tie. I'm fine."

I frowned at him: "You don't want to go home. What's going on?"

"Nothing's going on. I just don't see the point of driving all the way home and then back again. I'm comfortable enough just getting rid of the tie."

I wanted to pursue this matter further but just then Elle walked into my office.

She glanced back and forth between us and asked: "Hi, am I interrupting? You wanted me to meet you here."

Wilson quickly interjected: "No, you're not interrupting. House wanted to ask you about this afternoon with Chase."

Elle looked over at me. She seemed embarrassed and I was furious at Wilson for bringing it up. I wasn't going to ask her in front of him.

Elle hugged her arms across her chest and seemed to get even smaller. Then she spoke to me in French: "_I didn't think you would ask me about this in front of someone else."_

"_I wasn't planning on it. He pushed the issue cuz he didn't want me questioning him about his own personal issue."_

"_How does he know about it?"_

"_He saw me staring at Chase after you walked away. I followed Chase to the cafeteria and he asked me what was going on."_

"_I may as well tell both of you now cuz he will just hound you later until you tell him, right?"_

Without waiting for a reply, Elle switched back to English and said:

"Hmm, Chase asked me out and I turned him down. I told him I was busy and I started to walk away, so he grabbed my arm to stop me. Then he asked me about the rest of the weekend and I told him I was going away for the weekend, hoping that he would leave me alone. He said he was sorry for grabbing me and said something like can't hurt for a guy to ask. And I wished him a nice weekend and took off."

Elle looked up at Wilson: "Now you know the whole story."

Wilson's lips were pressed together: "If he keeps bothering you, you could file a complaint against him for sexual harassment."

Elle looked horrified. "Not if I can help it! I had enough problems at my last job. I'd rather not make waves. I'm sure he'll leave me alone now. If not, I'll make it clearer next time that I'm not interested. My right knee works rather well."

I chuckled: "And here I thought you were this calm relaxed yoga girl. Now I realize I better wear a cup around you just in case I piss you off."

"That's a good idea. You've already pissed me off once. You may not be so lucky to get away without damage the next time." She turned her back to Wilson and smiled at me as she said this.

I suppressed a smile. "Look, Wilson and I are going out to this new restaurant for Mongolian Bar-B-Que. Why don't you come with us?"

"Oh, I'd love too. But it's Adam and Gen's anniversary and I promised I would baby-sit Audra tonight."

She looked saddened that she couldn't join us, but I didn't know that for sure. Maybe she was just making up an excuse not to come.

I brushed it off: "Yeah, no big deal. Just thought if you needed to eat, you could eat with us. You've been feeding me a lot lately."

She bit her lip: "I wish I could go, but I promised them. Rain check?"

I shrugged. I made a huge effort to push down my disappointment.

"Hey, I was thinking of going to the beach tomorrow. Why don't you come with me?"

"Naw, I don't do the beach."

Elle bounced on her toes like a little kid. "Oh, come on, it will be fun. There's a boardwalk with an arcade. It's got air hockey and skee ball. There's cotton candy and frozen custard. There's me in a bikini." She gave me a semi-sultry look that almost made me laugh. She was trying so hard.

Wilson interjected: "How can you turn that down, man?"

It really annoyed me when he interfered, so I growled: "Well, I'm a cripple, so I don't get around well in sand. My cane sinks in it."

Elle looked somewhat less excited as she said: "I've got a boogie board you can use. I've got everything we need: chairs, a cooler. And I'll drive!"

I shook my head. I was taking my irritation at Wilson out on her and I couldn't stop myself as I roughly said: "No."

I watched her try to mask her disappointment. She nodded: "OK. Well, have a nice dinner. I'll see you around. I gotta get going. I told Gen I'd be there by 6."

And with that she dashed out of my office. I felt a spasm in my thigh and gripped my cane hard to keep it from showing on my face.

Wilson immediately turned on me: "What the hell is wrong with you? She's inviting you to the BEACH. Sun, sand, water, bikini, get the picture? She's into you, can't you see it?"

"Yeah, so what? Cameron was into me too. Elle will get over it, just like Cameron did."

"Well, I'm not so sure Cameron is over you. But I think Elle is a better match for you."

I rolled my eyes at him: "I'm too old for either of them."

"Elle's 35, that's only 12 years. That's not so bad. You're not old enough to be her father like with Cameron."

"Thanks for that little reminder that I'm 20 years older than Cameron. I had forgotten. Cameron just thinks she wants me cuz I'm damaged and she believes that she can fix me."

"Elle is not Cameron. Do you think that Elle wants to fix you?"

I thought about it for a moment and then slowly said: "No, she doesn't give me that impression." I stared down at my cane as I tapped it on the floor.

Wilson stared at me for a long minute: "You're an idiot if you let her get away. I'm tired of telling you this. Come on, let's get out of here before someone finds an emergency for us to handle and ruins our long weekend."

We went to my place so I could leave my bike and we rode together to the restaurant. I regretted that move almost as soon as I got into the car. Wilson nagged me all the way to the restaurant. He was busting my chops about going to the beach with Elle. What part of 'I'm a cripple who can't walk in sand' did he not understand? I stared out the window and ignored him on the short drive over.

The Bar-B-Q Yurt was a new restaurant in Princeton. It had only been open for a month and Wilson had heard rave reviews about it. Julie was not into exotic cuisines, which is why I ended up as his 'date' for the evening. They had a huge all-you-can-eat salad bar, which normally doesn't interest me, except for the fact that this place had giant crab legs on their salad bar. All-I- can-eat crab legs were very appealing to me. In addition to that, there was the grill area where you create your own stir-fry by giving the chef your order and he creates it right in front of you.

We settled in at our table and ordered a couple of beers. Then I headed right to the salad bar and loaded up on crab legs. I ate my way through 3 plates before I placed my beef stir-fry grill order. Jimmy ate a more modest salad and just a couple of crab legs. He ordered a wimpy chicken stir-fry.

I kept my mouth busy eating so I wouldn't have to talk, but he did enough for the two of us. My leg was hurting so I washed down two Vicodins with a big swallow of beer.

Of course, Wilson would have to comment about that.

"Should you be popping Vicodin with all the beer you are drinking?"

I just shrugged: "My leg hurts."

"Don't you think it is time that you found some other way to cope with the pain beside narcotics?"

I snarked at him: "I say no to drugs but they just don't listen. And you don't listen either. I can't keep the pain at bay with ibuprofen and happy thoughts. It just doesn't work."

"Why don't you go see Elle for some advice?"

I laughed: "You see how she works. Do you really think she is going to suggest that I get off the Vicodin? Well, she might, because she wants to put me on time-released morphine or oxycodone and get me away from all the Tylenol in the Vicodin."

"She did not tell you that!"

"No, because I haven't asked her. But she has a few brain cells and I've seen her argue with you already about pain management and that's what I think she would do."

Wilson shook his head: "I won't agree to that. I wouldn't write those scripts for you."

"I didn't expect you to. But that's what I think Elle would do."

He was silent for a minute, then he said: "You like her. You respect her. Why don't you try to take it further?"

_Christ, here we go again_. I shook my head and said: "It's too soon. I've only known her, what, 3 weeks?"

"You asked Stacy to move in with you after 5 days."

"That was different."

"Oh, yeah. You know WHY it was different? Because you were man enough back then to ACT on your feelings. Now you're not. You've become such a coward."

He was really starting to piss me off: "You know that I'm not a coward. You see me take risks all the time."

"Yeah, professional risks, not personal ones. You have a 20 foot castle wall complete with moat and dragon around that heart of yours ensuring that no one enters."

I sighed, frustrated with this conversation: "I just don't want to mess up our friendship."

"Your friendship could be so much more. I think you could be really happy with Elle. You were happy with Stacy for a long time. It's time to try again."

"I wasn't a cripple back when I took up with Stacy. Now I'm a drug-addicted gimp. What do I have to offer Elle?"

He looked at me sadly: "A lot more than I guess you realize. You know that she doesn't think of you as a cripple."

I shook my head and stared down at my beer. Suddenly I wasn't feeling so hot. My stomach was really churning. Guess I ate too much too fast.

"Come on, Jimmy. Let's get outta here."

He grabbed the check and paid at the register by the door. I stood outside waiting for him. I had hoped the fresh air would revive me, but no such luck.

We got in the car and headed back to my place. My stomach was really starting to cramp and I was sweating. I rolled down the window for the fresh air.

"Hey, are you OK? You're sweating and I've got the AC on."

"Naw, I think I ate too much. I've got stomach cramps. Just get me home, OK?"

He pulled up in front of my place 5 minutes later. I slowly got out of the car. In addition to the cramps and sweats, I was now feeling shaky. I ran through the symptoms and realized that I probably had food poisoning. Must have been all those crab legs, if they had not been properly refrigerated, they could have easily spoiled. Crap, I ate a whole lot of them.

Jimmy had eaten a few so I asked him how he was feeling. He said he was a touch queasy, but not too bad.

I was feeling worse by the minute. Jimmy actually had to steady me going up the 3 steps to my door. The look of concern on his face was crystal clear.

I eased myself onto the couch and he hovered over me. "Can I get you anything?"

I waved him off: "No, it will pass. I may spend the night in the bathroom, but eventually it will pass. The question is: which direction will it leave my body?"

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

I smirked: "You really don't want to go home, do you? You'd rather stay with a smelly puking guy than go home to your wife. That's pathetic, Jimmy, even for you."

"Fine, House. I'm leaving. If you need something, just call."

"Later."

Wilson walked out of my place and I eased up off of the couch. I headed down to my bedroom and changed into a t-shirt and some pajamas. I grabbed a trashcan and double-lined it with plastic garbage bags. With my thigh, it was downright painful to hug the porcelain god when I'm puking, so a nearby trashcan would be much easier. I pulled back the covers and lay down, placing the trashcan right next to the bed. I was feeling worse by the minute. I knew I was going to start hurling soon and I really wanted to get it over with. I did regret not sending Wilson for some Gatorade. I had a feeling I was going to need it.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13 

_**Elle**_

I hurried out to my car reviewing what had just happened in House's office. What's wrong with me that I like hanging out with a guy who only treats me nice when we're alone? He always gets snarky when his buddies are around, even if it is just Wilson. And I hate it when he calls himself a cripple. He was probably using that as an excuse cuz he just didn't want to go to the beach with me. Why is he OK with me when we're alone, but not around others? Maybe he doesn't want to be seen with me. Everyone knows who I am from all the articles in the paper. Maybe he's embarrassed to be around me. That thought sickened me. I had slept with him and confided in him. I kissed him. Could he possibly think I was that damaged? Shit. I felt like crying, but I was almost to Adam & Gen's house so I pinched the bridge of my nose until I felt the tears recede. I took a couple of deep breaths. I'm a good person, if he doesn't want to be seen with me, then the hell with him. This was not going to ruin my night. I was going to have fun with Audra.

Audra and I ordered pepperoni pizza and settled in to watch "The Little Mermaid." It's her favorite movie of the moment. She watches it at least once a day. Her parents, Avi, Ricky and I know it by heart, but we indulge our little girl. I let her stay up until 9:30 and then I put her to bed. She was almost asleep on the couch by then anyway. I helped her with her pajamas and tucked her in bed. She wanted me to cuddle with her, so I climbed into her little bed and sang songs to her until she fell asleep. I softly crept back out to the living room and watched some TV. My mind wasn't into it though, and I kept flipping channels.

I tried not to think about House but that was proving impossible. He was so nice to me when we were alone. He was so comforting after I have my nightmares. I desperately tried to think of a reason for his behavior and couldn't. Then I remembered what Wilson had told me after that disastrous poker game. He does show me that he likes me, but his words do not match his actions. I finally gave up trying to figure him out. He was definitely an enigma.

Adam and Gen arrived home around 11:30. We chatted for a while discussing our weekend plans. They were driving up to the Poconos where Adam's family has a little cabin. Avi and Ricky were already up there. They had invited me to go but I had declined. I was afraid of having nightmares while staying with them and didn't want to subject them, especially Audra, to my screaming. I preferred to be alone until I got control over this issue.

Since they were all going away for the weekend, and Billy and Theresa needed to run the bar, I figured I would be going to the beach by myself tomorrow. That's OK. It would still be fun. I just needed to find someone to play air hockey with. If not, there was always skee ball.

We said our good-byes at midnight and I walked out to my car. I climbed in and shut the door. As I was fastening my seat belt, I made a mental list of everything that I wanted to take with me to the beach tomorrow. I had all my equipment and I would just eat boardwalk food. So I figured that I would get up at 8AM, load my stuff and go. Satisfied with my plan, I was ready to head home.

I had just started the car when my cell phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID and was surprised to see it was House.

_**House**_

I didn't lie in bed for more than 5 minutes when the nausea hit me like a tidal wave and I rolled over on my side and threw up into the trashcan. I had neglected to bring any water or a wet washcloth to bed with me and I was regretting that. My mouth felt like a sewer. There was some Kleenex on the nightstand so I could at least wipe my mouth. I rolled onto my back. My head was swimming and I was sweating like a pig, soaking my clothes and the sheets. I think I dozed a little and then a sudden cramp rolled me to my side and I vomited again.

After I finished that round, I rolled onto my back again and wondered how long it would take to get it all out of my system. I felt like crap. I knew I would get dehydrated if I kept going this way. I again regretted sending Wilson home without sending him to the store for Gatorade.

I glanced at the clock; it was just midnight. I wondered if Elle was home yet. I didn't remember seeing her car when we drove up, but I was concentrating too hard on being able to walk. I hoped she wouldn't mind going to the store for me. With a twinge of regret, I recalled our last conversation in my office. I had been a prick to her because I was pissed at Wilson. I couldn't blame her if she said no, but I had to try. It was either Elle or call Wilson back. And Elle was much nicer to look at than Wilson. She probably wouldn't give me any lip about eating 3 plates of crab legs either.

Elle picked up on the third ring and simply said: "Hey."

"Hey. Are you home?"

"Not yet. I'm just leaving Adam & Gen's house. I'm about 4 miles away. What's up?"

"I need a favor. I've got food poisoning; I'm throwing up. Good thing you didn't come tonight. Could you stop at one of the all-night markets and get me some Gatorade? Try to get the orange flavor if they have it. I can't stand the taste of the others."

"Sure. You want anything else besides the Gatorade? Ginger ale, crackers?"

"Naw, just the Gatorade."

"OK. I'll stop and get it. I'll be home soon."

"Thank you." I closed the phone and rolled onto my back again. Gawd, she was nice to me. Before I could start wondering yet again why Elle was so nice to me, I doubled over from another stomach cramp. This time I knew I needed to get to the bathroom. The trashcan wasn't going to suffice.

I got up and hurriedly limped to the bathroom. In my haste, I didn't stop to grab my cane. Pain hampered my every step. I couldn't go as fast as I needed to. I clenched as tightly as I could, but as I limped onto the tile floor of the bathroom, I could feel I wasn't going to make it in time.

_**Elle**_

I stopped at the market and grabbed orange Gatorade, ginger ale, crackers and some cans of chicken soup. Those are the things I always want when I'm sick. I drove quickly home and let myself into his apartment.

It was quiet in his place. There was one lamp on in the living room. Down the hall, I could see a light on in his bedroom and the light shining through the crack under the closed bathroom door.

I set the bag down on the kitchen counter and headed down the hall. I stopped outside the bathroom door and knocked softly. "Hey, I'm here. I got you some Gatorade."

He groaned: "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"Want me to bring you a glass?"

"Oh, I don't think you want to come in here. It smells bad and I had a little accident on my way here."

"I can deal with it."

"OOO-Kay, but what if I told you that I didn't want you to come in because I'm embarrassed for you to see me like this?"

"And I'd remind you that you watched me fall off of your couch and the time I cut my foot on a broken glass after a particularly bad nightmare."

"Sweetheart, I'm talking there's shit on the floor."

"House, I can deal. I'm coming in."

I opened the door. He was sitting on the john with his PJ's puddled around his ankles. His arms were resting on the vanity next to the toilet and his head was pillowed in his arms. I could see his shirt was soaked with sweat and there was indeed shit dribbled on the floor between the door and the john. I could also see it on the insides of his legs and on his PJ's.

I walked over to him avoiding the puddles and stroked his hair. I laid my hand on the back of his neck; he felt really warm. I tented the skin on the back of his hand, checking for signs of dehydration. That got his attention. I saw one blue eye looking up at me.

"You're a little dehydrated and you're hot. You need some fluids. Are you still nauseous? Do you think you can keep down some Gatorade?"

He replied: "I think so."

"OK. I'll be right back".

I padded back down the hall to the kitchen. I poured him a glass of Gatorade and headed back. He was still in the same position when I returned.

I said softly: "Hey, I'm back." I walked over and touched his shoulder.

He lifted his head and looked at me, bleary-eyed. I put the glass in his line of vision and he sat up straighter. He took the glass from me and took a cautious sip. He closed his eyes and propped his head up with his hand. He took another small sip and then I heard a soft "Thank you".

I put my hand on his forehead; he felt so warm. His hair was sticking to his forehead in damp strands and I smoothed it back.

"Hey, I'm going to get some stuff to clean the floor. Just keep sipping this, OK?"

"No, Elle. That's too much. You don't have to do that."

I simply said: "It's OK." I walked over to my place and grabbed some rubber gloves and cleaning supplies.

I walked back to the bathroom and saw that he had managed to sip half of the glass. That was a good start.

"How are you doing with that, any nausea? I brought some ginger ale too if you want some."

"Thanks, I'm good with the Gatorade for now."

I got down on my knees and started cleaning the floor. I glanced up once to find him watching me with an unreadable expression on his face. He saw me look up and quickly averted his eyes. I didn't say anything; I knew this had to be very embarrassing for him. I know I would feel completely humiliated.

I stood up when I finished the floor. Not looking directly at him, I said: "House, let me take your PJ's to the laundry."

He shook his head: "Naw, they're old. Just toss them."

I bent down and untangled them from his feet and threw them in the trash bag.

"Do I need to check the bedroom?"

"I think it's OK. There is a trashcan in there that is pretty disgusting though."

I walked into the bedroom and pulled the bags out of the trashcan. I put in a clean bag in case he needed it later, but I figured the worst was over.

I walked back into the bathroom and tossed that trash bag into the larger bag. Now I just needed to get him cleaned up. I wondered if he was steady enough to take a shower or if I should just offer to wash his legs. As sweaty as he is, he really needs a shower.

I noticed that the glass was empty, so I took it to the kitchen for a refill. He was watching me as I walked back in. I handed the glass to him and he thanked me again.

"You've thanked me enough already."

He gave me one of his really intense looks and said: "No, I haven't."

There was a lot of meaning in those three words and in his look.

I didn't know what to say. We looked at each other for an intense moment, and then he broke away. He took a sip of Gatorade and stared at the floor.

Suddenly he doubled-over and groaned. "Elle, please step out. I don't want you in here, ugh, right now."

I hurriedly stepped out and shut the door. Everyone needs their privacy sometimes.

I walked back over to my place, grabbed a few things and went back. He was still groaning when I walked by, so I went into the bedroom and stripped off the sweaty sheets. I dumped them in a pile in the hall and then I searched the closets until I found some clean sheets. I took them back to the bedroom and remade the bed.

I hear a flush and hoped the worst was over. I gave him a few more minutes and then I knocked.

In a weary voice, he told me to come in.

I opened the door and stepped just inside. I leaned up against the doorframe and asked if he was feeling any better.

"I think it's easing off. The cramps aren't as bad."

"Do you think you're up for a shower? Your legs,,,,"

He interrupted me: "Yeah, I know. I'm not sure if I'm steady enough to stand up in the shower."

"I could give you a hand. You could support yourself against the wall and I could,,,"

He interrupted me again: "And you could wash my ass? Is that what you were about to say?"

He sounded really angry. I hoped he wasn't; that he was just acting this way to cover his embarrassment.

"I was going to say 'wash your legs'. I figure you can reach your own ass without bending over. Just thought you might want some help with your legs." I trailed off and looked down. I wanted to help him, but I didn't want to embarrass him any more than he already was.

I went back into the hall and grabbed the items I had brought over from my apartment. I set them down on the vanity.

He eyed them curiously: "Baby wipes?"

"Yeah, if your butt is sore, they feel really good. It's much better than toilet paper for cleaning. And then this lotion is really soothing. Put it on after you clean yourself and your butt will feel much better".

He looked at me strangely: "How do you know this? You use this stuff?"

I swallowed hard: "Yeah." I had never told him exactly how I got raped or why I needed these things. I was sort of hoping he could put 2 and 2 together and maybe I wouldn't have to explain it.

I picked up his empty glass and left to get him more Gatorade.

_**House**_

Maybe Wilson was right, or I should say, maybe the rumor was right. Elle told me she was raped. Wilson said she had to have rectal surgery after the assault. Ergo, she must have been raped anally and that's why she knows all about how to sooth an irritated butt.

"_Idiot, she's just trying to help you, don't make it hard on her. Christ, she is offering to wash the shit off of your legs. What other friends do you have that would do that? And you've known her now, what, 3 weeks?"_

I mentally kicked myself. She really was a good person and she was trying to help me as best she could while minimizing my embarrassment.

Elle walked back in with more Gatorade. She set in on the vanity and stepped back by the door, keeping her eyes on the floor. She said: "Um, I changed your sheets. They were all sweaty. Is there anything else I could do for you?"

I was embarrassed but I knew I had to say it. "My leg's really hurting. I haven't been able to keep down any Vicodin. I know I'm not steady enough to shower. I hate to ask, but if you could help me,,,," I trailed off.

She nodded: "Sure."

"Your clothes are gonna get wet unless you're going to get naked with me." I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

She blushed: "Maybe I should put on my bathing suit."

"Ooooo, is it a bikini? An itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny yellow polka-dot bikini?"

Elle rolled her eyes: "It's blue. I don't like polka dots. You sound better. Are you sure you need me after all?"

I put on my best puppy dog look and she laughed: "OK, I'll be right back."

She walked out of the room and in a minute I heard my apartment door open and then close. My butt was kind of sore from all the wiping, so I tried the baby wipes. Elle was right. They did feel good.

After a few minutes, I heard my door open and close again. Then Elle padded back into the bathroom. I had to make a conscious effort to keep my jaw from hitting the floor. She was wearing a sky blue bikini; the color matched her eyes. She had braided her hair and twisted it up into a bun. My eyes roamed down her body. Her breasts were small and her ribs were a little too prominent. I remembered Tony's comment about her being too thin and the mention of a 20-pound weight loss after the assault. But her skin was creamy-white with a scattering of freckles across her shoulders. Her skin looked so soft that I wanted to reach out and touch her. When she walked over to the shower and bent over slightly to turn it on, I noticed that she had one fine-looking ass.

I didn't say anything about her appearance, as I didn't want to embarrass her. Since I was about to get naked in front of her and let her wash the shit off of my legs, I thought it would be best to keep the embarrassing comments to myself. After all, she could retaliate and I was really in no condition to deal with that. I groaned inwardly as I realized that she would get a good look at my scar too. I really hated anyone seeing that ugly thing including myself. That's why I started sleeping in PJ's after that surgery; I didn't want Stacy looking at it and I couldn't stand to see it either. Before that debacle, I used to always sleep nude.

Elle was adjusting the faucets. I called over to her: "Hey, I like the shower pretty hot, OK?"

She nodded: "It's hot, just let me know if you want me to adjust it."

She walked over to me and placed her hand on my shoulder: "Let me take your shirt."

I pulled it off and handed it to her. She tossed it out in the hall onto the pile of sheets.

She walked back to me and, standing by my left side, asked: "Ready?"

This wasn't the way I imagined her seeing me naked for the first time, but what could I do? I nodded and grasped the vanity to help pull myself up. She place one hand on my left elbow and put one arm around my back and helped me up. I managed to get to my feet and stood there for a moment, steadying myself. I gingerly shifted some weight to my right leg; it was moderately painful. I took a couple of small steps towards the tub. It was slow going. We finally made it there and I carefully turned around and sat on the edge. I knew I wouldn't be able to just climb in. My right leg would not hold my weight like that tonight and Elle was not strong enough to keep me from falling. I sat for a minute, with one arm draped across my crotch for some futile modesty, and then I picked up my right leg and swung it over the edge of the tub. Then I swung my left leg over. I caught my breath and, with Elle's support, managed to stand up in the tub. I stood facing the back wall, my hands braced for support. I could feel Elle climb in behind me.

She said softly: "Let me know if the temperature is OK." She removed the showerhead from its holder and started to wet my body.

I said: "Yeah, it's fine. Maybe make it a little warmer if you can take the heat."

I hear the squeak as she adjusted the knob. The water grew a little hotter and it felt good on my aching body.

I could not believe the embarrassing situation that I was in. Here I was, naked, in a shower with a beautiful woman and I was in terrific pain and had shit running down my legs. It just couldn't get any worse. I felt so humiliated that I had to let some snarks fly.

"You know what they say: shit happens when you party naked."

She laughed at my little joke but it didn't make me feel any better.

"Boy, you could score a lot of points around the hospital, telling this story about me. It's good gossip."

She had been rinsing my legs and, as I said that, she stopped.

Very quietly, she said: "I wouldn't do that."

She wet me down some more and then grabbed the soap. She got down on her knees behind me and started soaping my legs.

She started talking very quietly as she washed me. "You asked me if I used that stuff, the baby wipes and lotion. I don't need it very often now, but it was necessary not too long ago. You see, when I got raped, he raped me anally. I had a virgin butt, and he,," She let out a harsh laugh, "he wasn't at all gentle. He tore me. I had to have surgery to repair the damage. That bit of info went around the hospital like wildfire. Management was pissed at me so they let it go on. It was quite embarrassing. And it was really painful. It was agony every time I had to take a crap. I lost 20 pounds the first 2 months. I had no desire to eat; cuz eating meant I would just have to shit later. And it hurt too much to shit. Finally, between the wipes, lotion, stool softeners and time, things got better."

I tried to interject: "Elle,,,"

"Stop. I don't want pity. I'm just telling you why I know about the baby wipes, OK? Your legs are clean. I'll wash your back, but you can do your own butt."

I took the soap from her and she supported me while I soaped up my butt. I washed my genitals too. Much as I would love to feel her hands on my dick, that was probably expecting way too much.

She rinsed me off when I finished and I handed her back the soap. She washed my back and it was really relaxing. Then her soapy hands got under my armpits and ran down each arm. She massaged my neck and shoulders while she washed them. I thought I would just melt on the spot; it felt so good. It had been a really long time since someone touched me like this.

I must have moaned because she asked: "That feel good?"

"Yes", I whispered.

"Good, I'll wash your hair for you, but I'm so short you need to duck your head down."

"There's a small bath stool behind the door. Sometimes I use that when my leg is really bad. If you get it, I could sit down. I'd really like it if you washed my hair." I said that last sentence really softly. I couldn't believe those words came out of my mouth.

Elle climbed right out of the tub and went to get the stool. She set it down behind me and I carefully sat down.

She climbed back in and said: "Perfect height now." She wet my hair and poured some shampoo on my head. As she began washing my hair, she started to softly sing:

"_Busted flat in Baton Rouge, heading for a train,_

_Feeling nearly faded as my jeans,"_

Elle sang 'Me and Bobby McGee' as she shampooed my hair. She found all the little tense spots in my scalp and massaged them away. I closed my eyes and let her fingers work her magic. It was incredibly relaxing. She rinsed me off taking great care not to get shampoo in my eyes.

After she finished my hair, she soaped my shoulders again and gave them a nice massage. Her hands slid over to my chest and she leaned down to wash me. Suddenly she stopped. I heard a whispered: "wow".

I glanced at her; her eyes were huge and looking down. I move my hand to cover my scar as I thought that was what she was looking at. Turns out, it wasn't my scar that she was focusing on. During the shampoo and massage, I had relaxed, my legs had spread and I had a half-erection. My back had been towards her all this time and she hadn't seen my package. Now she was seeing me in all my glory with her hands only about a foot away.

"Wow, are you big. And you're not circumcised either. Is that why you made that comment about being circumcised to join the tribe?"

I chuckled: "Little girl, haven't you seen an uncircumcised dick before?"

"Only in pictures. Not up close and personal."

"What a shame. You've missed out. You haven't had many lovers, huh?"

I wondered if she would answer that.

"Well, I've had a few, but they were all circumcised."

I purposefully lowered my voice and asked: "Just how many lovers have you had?"

She paused: "Counting one-night stands?"

I almost choked; a woman who would admit to one night stands? That was different. I replied: "Yeah, all of them."

She paused again: "Um, ten, I think."

"And each one was circumcised?"

"Um, yeah. Why, is that weird or something?"

"Naw, here in the States, most boy babies are circumcised. In Europe, generally only Jews are. I was born in Italy while my dad was stationed over there; hence my au naturelle state."

"Oh."

Elle seemed entranced by my cock as she continued to stare while she slowly soaped the same circle of skin on my chest over and over.

I was amused by her uninhibited interest so I made my cock twitch.

It startled her and she gasped and looked away, blushing furiously. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that."

I chuckled: "It's OK. Really."

For a moment, I forgot about my pain and embarrassment because I had a beautiful woman staring at my dick as if it were the 8th wonder of the world.

Elle rinsed me off again and said: "I think you're clean now." She turned off the water and stepped out.

I slid off the seat onto the edge of the tub and swung my legs out. By the time I had accomplished that, Elle was back with some towels.

She tossed one in my lap; I took the hint and started drying off. She dried herself off as best she could, considering she still had on a wet bathing suit. She took another towel and dried my hair, combing it into place with her fingers. Then she dried my back and feet for me.

I pushed off from the tub and managed to stand OK on my own. My thigh was seriously throbbing and I wanted my drugs. I wrapped a towel around my waist and took a tentative step forward. I thought if I took small steps, maybe I could make it to the bed without sending Elle for my cane. Instinctively she came around to my right side and I draped my arm across her shoulders. Slowly, we took a couple more steps. Suddenly, a huge spasm hit me with tsunami-force intensity. I cried out in pain; my leg could no longer hold my weight. I felt myself falling forward.

Elle moved in front of me trying to hold me up, but she was just too small. Her 5'2", 100 pound frame was no match for my 6'2" 180 pound body.

I crashed down onto the vanity, pinning her beneath me.

She gasped in pain. I knew her back or butt had taken a direct hit on the edge of the vanity with my 180 pounds smashing into her.

I had hurt her and I felt terrible about it. But I was in so much pain that I couldn't even move. Tears welled in my eyes and I choked back a sob.

"Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. Elle, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Shh, shh, easy, take it easy. I know it hurts. Just try to breathe. Breathe easy. Breathe with me, OK?"

I'll never understand how she managed to stay so calm when it was quite obvious that she was in pain from my weight pressing her into the vanity.

She had one hand gently stroking the back of my neck and the other hand on my shoulder. She kept talking to me in a soothing voice until the spasm eased up enough for me to back up a bit. Still gripping the vanity for support, I edged myself over a little so that Elle could extract herself from under me.

I closed my eyes and hung my head. I didn't want to see the pain on her face; pain that I put there. I also didn't want her to see the tears in my eyes.

I felt her hand lightly squeeze my shoulder and she said: "I'll get your cane. Where is it?"

"It's by the bed."

"Be right back."

I took the opportunity while she was gone to wipe my eyes. I looked at my reflection in the mirror and I wanted to punch it. I was such a pathetic old man.

Elle returned with my cane. I took it in my right hand and moved gingerly. Elle moved to my left side and draped my left arm over her shoulders. Elle and the cane gave me enough support to make it to the bed. It seemed to take forever, but I finally made it.

I sat on the edge of the bed, breathing heavily. Elle gently pushed my damp hair off of my face.

"Do you want some PJ's?"

"Hand me a t-shirt and some boxers, OK? That top drawer has some loose boxers in it."

She found what I wanted and brought it over. She knelt down in front of me and slipped the boxers over my feet and started pulling them up my legs. She stopped at my knees and I looked down at her. The towel had fallen off back in the bathroom and she was staring at my dick again. She was in a very interesting position, kneeling between my legs, her hands and mouth so close to me.

"You're staring again."

She looked up at me and cocked one eyebrow. I was quite surprised because she didn't seem embarrassed this time.

She actually gave me a very sultry smile.

"I was just thinking how good you look, good enough to eat." And she wiggled her eyebrows at me.

I was completely surprised by that. A smile slowly spread across my face and I chuckled at her. I took my hand and cupped her cheek. "Thanks for making an old man feel sexy."

"You're not old, but you are definitely sexy."

I was so tempted. I could give her a spiel about raising my endorphins with sex and maybe she would give me a BJ or even climb on top of me. But I couldn't do that to her. She'd been so good to me and I didn't want to use her that way.

I bent forward and kissed her forehead. "You're sweet," I whispered to her.

She smiled her little crooked smile. I used both hands to lift myself up and she tugged the boxes all the way up my hips. Her hands felt so warm as they rested on my hips. I felt a loss when she moved away. She stood up and handed me a t-shirt to put on.

I inched my way up the bed until my head hit the pillow. I sighed in relief when I finally made it.

Elle asked what I needed. I glanced at the nightstand; my Vicodin was there. "How about some more Gatorade and the heating pad?"

Elle reached under the bed and pulled out the heating pad. She gently laid it across my thigh and switched it on. Then she stood up and said: "I'll be right back."

I watched her walk out of the room. She was so damn sexy in that damp clingy bikini. I wanted to take her hair out of that bun and let it fall loosely down her back. If it weren't for my thigh, I would seriously try to seduce her tonight. But my thigh was so painful, even while laying down with the heating pad; there was no way I was up for any action. I knew tonight that the Vicodin alone was not going to cut it. I didn't want to drink any Scotch with my queasy stomach.

I sighed as I internally debated whether or not to trust her with one of my biggest secrets; one that Wilson didn't even know about.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

A few minutes later, Elle walked back in with a glass of Gatorade. She set it down on the nightstand and picked up my bottle of Vicodin. Opening it, she asked: "Two?"

I shook my head: "Elle, I don't think the Vicodin is going to cut it tonight. I need something stronger."

"Do you have anything else?"

"I do, but you have to swear that you won't tell Wilson or anyone else for that matter."

Her face got real serious: "Why would I tell anyone? It's not their business."

"Yeah, well, Wilson thinks everything is his business. And he already thinks that I'm an addict".

Angrily she replied: "Wilson doesn't live in your body. He doesn't know how you feel. Hasn't he ever seen you in pain? Does he think you take the Vicodin to get high?"

"Yeah, he has seen me in pain. Before and after Stacy left, he was the one who helped me with stuff until I could get more mobile. And, yeah, he thinks I take them partly for pain relief and partly to get high."

"Do you get high? You never seem high to me."

I couldn't look at her as I mumbled: "I don't get high. But Vicodin combined with scotch does give me a bit of a buzz, a nice mellow numbing effect on my brain."

Her response was to take my hand: "So what? You want a little escape after a bad day. That doesn't make you an addict. You need the Vicodin for your pain. You function better with the drugs than without."

She squeezed my hand: "I won't tell anyone anything. What happens in Vegas; stays in Vegas. You aren't going to tell anyone that I was ogling your penis, are you?"

I smiled up at her and shook my head. Her eyes were soft as she looked at me. Elle rubbed her hand lightly on my forearm and asked: "What do you need?"

_I need you._

I pushed that thought from my head and said: "Go out in the living room. Grab the desk chair and drag it over to the bookcase to the right of the fireplace. On the top, pushed towards the back, is a metal box. Please bring it to me."

"OK." She padded out of the room. I could hear the chair scrape on the floor as she moved it. I hoped she would be able to reach it. The box was pushed all the way to the back. I only used it in extreme emergencies.

After a few minutes, Elle walked back into the room carrying the box. She set it on the bed next to me. I punched in the numbers on the combination lock and opened it. Inside were several syringes and a vial of morphine. I glanced at Elle; there was no look of horror or shock on her face. Good.

"I keep this for emergencies."

"Strange place to keep it for emergencies. If you were in really bad pain, like tonight, you wouldn't be able to climb up there and get it."

"I'm tall enough that I can reach it without climbing."

"Ah. Good thing."

I picked up the vial. I had only used it once, so it was still three-quarters full. I thought 4 mg would take care of me for now. It would make me doze off and hopefully, while I was asleep, the spasm would relax and I could go back to controlling the pain with Vicodin.

I picked up a syringe, but my hand was shaking.

Elle said: "Give me this. I can't inject you, but I can pull it up at least. How much do you want?"

I said softly: "Four milligrams." I felt really embarrassed. Elle was seeing a side of me that no one ever saw. I felt hugely uncomfortable and it was all I could do to not get snarky with her.

I watched her expertly draw out 4 mg and tap the syringe to get rid of the air bubbles. She recapped the syringe and looked at me: "It's all set. I don't know how to do injections. It's not something pharmacists learn to do. Can you manage?"

I nodded. I picked up the tourniquet and tied it around my left arm above the elbow. I made a fist and found a decent vein to stab. Elle tore open an alcohol swab and cleaned the crook of my elbow for me. Then she uncapped the syringe and handed it to me. I took it and positioned it over my vein.

Without looking at her, I said: "Elle, after the shot, I'll doze off for a while. Please stay with me."

"I will. I'm going to finish cleaning the bathroom, then I'll go get my PJ's and I'll sleep here."

"No. Don't leave. Please stay here." I couldn't keep the desperation out of my voice, but I didn't want to be alone tonight.

"It's just across the hall. I'll be back in 2 minutes." She looked at me and backpedaled. She put her hand on my cheek. "Well, maybe I could just sleep in one of your t-shirts. Would that be OK? I want to get out of this wet bathing suit."

I leaned into her hand. "Yes."

She stroked my cheek with her thumb: "I'll be right here. I won't leave."

"Thank you." I blinked rapidly, hoping to rid my eyes of any tears before they could slide down my face. I had not felt this vulnerable in years. I made a fist, pumped up the vein and slowly slid in the syringe. I drew back a little bit to check for blood return to see that I had hit the vein properly. The blood was there and I slowly injected the morphine. I eased the spent syringe out of my arm and Elle took it from me. She capped it and set in on the nightstand, and then she picked up the metal box and set it on the chair. She covered me with the sheet and knelt down next to the bed. As I drifted off, I could feel her hand stroking my cheek, while she whispered: "I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere. Go to sleep, cowboy."

_**Elle**_

I stroked his face and talked softly to him until he dozed off. I was fuming on the inside. Wilson, his best friend, thinks he's an addict! Gawd, that was so ridiculous. He was in such terrible pain tonight on top of the food poisoning; I hoped that the morphine would give him a few hours of relief.

Morphine given IV doesn't last very long, but I hoped he would sleep for 2 to 3 hours at least. He definitely needed to be on something stronger than Vicodin. Maybe after tonight, I could convince him to let me evaluate him. I really thought he could do well with time-released morphine and maybe use short-acting morphine or even Vicodin for breakthrough pain. I'll bring it up when he's feeling better and see how it goes.

I knew he didn't want me to see his scar but I couldn't help it. He was naked and I saw everything. They really had removed quite a lot of muscle. It was no wonder that he had trouble walking. Aside from the scar, the rest of his body looked good, really good. I shook my head as I walked back into the bathroom to finish cleaning up. I couldn't believe that I had been noticeably staring at his penis like that. How embarrassing. Good thing that House thought it was funny. Well, at least now I have a great visual for my shower escapades.

I finished cleaning the bathroom and threw all of the towels on top of the dirty sheets in the hall. I'd wash them tomorrow. I figured I would just wait and go to the beach on Sunday. I needed to get some sleep and House might still need some help tomorrow.

I walked back into the bedroom; House was still sleeping. I quietly opened his drawers until I found a big t-shirt. It was a cool one, an old Janis Joplin concert shirt. I really liked it. I wanted to take a quick shower and get out of this bathing suit. But I had no panties and the t-shirt wasn't quite long enough to hide everything. I opened another drawer and grabbed a pair of his boxers. This would have to do. Taking the clothes with me, I went back to the bathroom and turned on the shower. I quickly stripped off my bathing suit and left it on the vanity. I stepped into the shower and let the hot water run down my body. It felt good. My butt was sore and I was sure that I was going to have a bruise there later. I showered quickly and got out. Wrapping the towel around my body, I poked my head into the bedroom and ascertained that he was still asleep. Back in the bathroom, I finished drying off and put on his clothes. I took my hair out of the bun but left it in the braid. I added my towel to the pile on the hallway floor and went back into the bedroom. It had only been an hour since the shot, but I was happy to see that he was still asleep.

I glanced at the clock and was surprised to see it was 4AM. I had been up for 22 hours. Fatigue hit me like a wave. I was definitely ready for sleep. I turned off the lamp by the bed and the heating pad. I didn't want to leave it on overnight for fear of him being burned by it. I left it within easy reach in case he wanted it later. There was a full glass of Gatorade and his Vicodin on the nightstand. I shook out 2 tabs and left them right by the glass. That way, if he woke up he could easily take them. I left the bathroom light on and then I crawled into bed.

House was sleeping on his back and I snuggled up next to him. I leaned my cheek against his shoulder and laid my arm across his stomach. If he woke up, he'd feel me next to him and could easily wake me if he needed me. I inhaled his clean manly scent and smiled against his shoulder. I drifted off to sleep with the image of his naked body drifting through my mind.

_**House**_

I woke up groggy. There was a shaft of sunlight peeking through the curtains. I glanced at the clock; it was 6AM. There were 2 Vicodins conveniently sitting right next to a glass of Gatorade. I sighed in appreciation. This woman was too good to me. I picked up the tabs, tossed them in my mouth and washed them down with a big swallow of Gatorade. The pain was manageable at the moment but the Vicodins would keep it from cranking back up again.

I glanced down at Elle. She was sound asleep. Her face was pressed up against my shoulder. She had her arm draped over my stomach and her left leg wrapped around mine. I felt a strange sensation in my chest as I stared at her. She was wearing one of my old t-shirts and a pair of navy boxers that were way too big for her. They were riding low on her hips. Remembering the events of last night, I gently pushed the shirt up and the boxers down, examining her back. I inhaled sharply. She had a huge bruise at the top of her butt. It extended just about from one hipbone to the other. She was going to be sore when she woke up. I felt sad that I had done that to her even though it had been an accident. I gently placed my hand on top of the bruise; her skin was incredibly warm.

Elle sighed in her sleep and snuggled imperceptibly closer to me. Leaving my hand on her bare back, I kissed her forehead and fell back asleep with my chin resting on top of her head.

_**Wilson**_

It was late morning. Julie was off at her tennis lesson again. I puttered around the house, but nothing held my interest. I wondered how House was doing. I had some diarrhea last night from our meal, but he ate so much more than I did, he probably had been a lot sicker. I tried calling his cell phone, but as usual there was no answer. Having nothing better to do, I grabbed my car keys and headed over there.

I parked the car and headed up the walkway. I noticed that Elle's car was here which was strange. I thought she was going to the beach today. I knocked on his door, but there was no answer so I let myself in. The place was quiet. I noticed a large grocery bag on the kitchen counter and I checked the contents: ginger ale, crackers, chicken soup and several bottles of Gatorade. Those were items that you would buy for someone with GI distress. He must have been feeling pretty sick to ask Elle to go to the store for him after being so rude to her yesterday.

I wandered down the hall bypassing a large trash bag and a pile of laundry. Hmm, maybe he had been really sick. I stepped into the doorway of his bedroom and gasped at what I saw. House and Elle were not just merely sleeping in the same bed; their bodies were completely intertwined like lovers. They looked incredibly peaceful and relaxed, and I felt a jolt of jealousy flash through my heart.

_**House**_

I thought I heard knocking at the door, but the warm body next to me was so comforting that I ignored it and snuggled closer to her. I was semi-awake and enjoying the warmth of her body. Suddenly I heard footsteps and then a gasp. I opened my eyes and there was Wilson, mouth agape, in my doorway.

I looked at him bleary-eyed: "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on you. I'd been somewhat sick last night, and I thought you must have been much worse. I wanted to see how you were doing, and, as usual, you didn't answer your phone. So I thought I would come over. But you look like you are doing just fine." He smirked.

"It's not like that. She just brought me some Gatorade and helped me out last night. She wanted to stay and make sure I didn't choke on my own vomit."

I hated having to explain myself to him but I didn't want him to get the wrong idea about Elle and me. Jimmy's a big gossip, and I didn't want this all over the hospital.

Our conversation woke Elle and she rolled over and stretched. She glanced between the two of us and merely said "Morning, boys." She looked at me and seemed to sense my discomfort. She sat up and scrubbed her hands over her face and yawned. Glancing at the clock, she said: "Wow, it's noon. We really slept. How's your stomach doing?"

"It's better, thanks."

"I'll get you some more Gatorade. Start the day off right." She tossed me a smile, and got out of bed. She tugged the boxers up a little bit and padded past Jimmy down the hall. Wilson stared at her butt as she passed by.

He smirked: "So she's sleeping with you to keep away the nightmares, huh? And now she's wearing your underwear to bed. You are SO doing it. How did you have the energy to do it last night when you were sick? Oh, I know, you're the MAN!" Sarcasm dripped with his last words. "Why did you lie to me about it? You know I'm happy that you're getting some."

He really had the ability to piss me off. "I'm not getting some. We are not having sex. Why would she want to have sex with an old cripple like me anyway?"

Elle walked back in just then. I inwardly groaned, hoping that she had not heard that last exchange. She handed me the glass and said to Wilson: "Would you do me a favor? Could you please take that trash bag to the can around back? I didn't want to go out there in the middle of the night with it."

Wilson nodded: "Sure." He walked out of the room and we heard him leave the apartment.

Once the door shut, Elle grabbed the metal box and the syringe and shoved them under the bed. "We'll deal with this later. I just didn't want him to see it. You don't think he noticed it, do you?"

I shook my head: "I don't think so. He seemed very focused on the fact that we were in bed together."

She touched my cheek. "To answer your question, because you're handsome, sexy and have a really big dick."

"WHAT? What are you talking about?"

"Your question about why I would want to have sex with you."

"Oh. You heard that. I didn't mean for you to hear that."

Then I smirked: "So you would, huh? Why haven't you jumped my bones, then?"

Flippantly she said: "Well, I didn't know how big your dick was until last night."

Then she turned away from me. I could see her bite her lip and then she whispered: "I'm scared."

We heard the door close and both knew Jimmy was back in the apartment. Elle said in a more normal voice: "Drink your Gatorade. Don't want you to become dehydrated."

"Yes, Mommy."

Wilson walked back into the bedroom and Elle asked: "Wilson, do you want some coffee or some breakfast?"

"I'd love some coffee but, please don't go to any trouble."

"It's no trouble. I'm going to make a pot now. House, what do you want? Do you feel up to some toast or eggs?"

"Coffee, toast, eggs, pancakes, whatever you got, I'll eat it. I'm starving. Lost all of last night's dinner. Totally hollow here."

"Really? Your stomach is feeling OK for regular food already. OK. I'll wrangle up some breakfast. Why don't you give me a few minutes and then come on over?"

I whined: "Can't we eat here? You don't have cable."

"True, but I have a dining room table and you don't."

"We can eat on the coffee table. Come on, I was sick last night." I gave her my best puppy dog look and she laughed.

"OK. OK. I'll go make the coffee first, because I really need it. And then I'll make breakfast and bring it over. But only cuz you were sick last night." She shook her finger at me and gave me a mock stern look.

I tried to look contrite but failed. Elle laughed and walked out of the room.

Wilson smirked at me: "You two have it bad for each other. Why don't you just do it already?"

I slowly sat on the edge of the bed, preparing for the big step of standing up for the first time today. "We're friends, dude. She cooks for me. I don't want to mess up my good thing. I can get a hooker if I just want sex. This is different."

He nodded slowly: "Yeah, this is different alright. You have feelings for her."

I grabbed my cane and eased myself to a standing position. "Yeah, yeah, I have feelings. Right now, I feel the need to pee."

And with that last snark, I hobbled into the bathroom to do just that.

After tending to my bodily needs, I washed my face and brushed my teeth. Finally, my mouth no longer felt like a sewer. I hobbled back into the bedroom to put on some jeans.

Wilson was sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for me. I ignored the questioning look on his face and grabbed some clean jeans out of the closet. I sat down on the opposite side of the bed to put them on.

I had only put on one leg when he said: "So, really what is going on between you two?"

"I already told you. We're friends, neighbors. That's it."

"You're more familiar than just being friends."

"Alright, we're very good friends. So we've slept in the same bed. Big deal. We're not lovers and even if we were, what's the big deal? I'm not her boss. We're consenting adults and breaking no rules."

"Yeah, you're both adults, sleeping in the same bed. So WHY aren't you doing it?"

"Christ, I've told you this already. I don't want to hurt her and I don't want to wreck our friendship. And, yes, as much as you hate to hear this from me, I think she can do better than this old gimp."

He nodded thoughtfully: "So it's your self-doubt that's keeping you from pursuing this?"

"Oh Christ, Jimmy. I'm not in the mood for psychoanalysis this morning. Let's just go eat breakfast. I really need some coffee."

Without waiting for him, I started down the hall towards the door. I could tell by his footsteps that he was following me.

I walked right into Elle's place without knocking. She looked up, surprised. "Didn't want to wait for delivery, huh?"

"No. Need coffee now."

I watched while she poured me a mug and added two sugars. She handed it to me and as I took the mug, our fingers brushed against each other for just a moment.

Wilson walked in right behind me. Elle stepped away from me and offered Wilson a cup. My fingers felt cold from the loss of contact despite the hot cup of coffee.

Elle made us a lovely breakfast of eggs, toast, fried potatoes and bacon. Between the food and the 2 cups of her coffee, I was feeling pretty good. If I were using Elle's pain scale, I would be a '6' right now.

Remembering that the last time I had had a Vicodin was at 6AM, I pulled out my bottle and swallowed two now. That was not lost on Wilson, of course.

"Still popping those?"

"Still have pain, still have big hole in my leg."

"Why don't you consult with our pain management pharmacist for some help with your pain?"

"Why don't you mind your own business for once?"

Wilson turned to Elle: "C'mon Elle, tell him. He needs some pain management help."

I blew up before Elle could answer: "Don't drag Elle into your twisted scheme. If I need help, I'll ask for it. You already told me that you wouldn't write me a script for anything stronger than Vicodin anyway. It's MY leg, MY pain and it's MY decision THIS time."

Wilson sighed and looked at Elle.

She shook her head at him and said: "He's an adult, perfectly capable of making his own decisions. If he wants to talk to me, he will. I'm not going to twist his arm."

"But don't you think he needs help?"

"What, are we going to sit here and discuss House like he's an incompetent? He is an adult and a doctor! If he needs help and WANTS help, he'll ask for it. Subject closed, Dr. Wilson. I will not discuss House like this as if he wasn't here."

I smiled inwardly. She was really sticking up for me. I owed her one. Well, I owed her more than one; after all she did for me last night.

Elle stood up and started gathering the dishes. She looks at me and asked: "Do you want some more coffee?"

I smiled at her: "Yes, please."

I could see the shock on Wilson's face. I had said 'please'. I just loved messing with him like that.

Elle turned to Wilson and asked him the same question.

He replied that he was fine. He looked quite thoughtful. We sat for a few minutes in silence while Elle retrieved the coffee pot and poured me another cup.

As Elle went back to the kitchen with the rest of the dishes, he said to me in a low voice: "I was only trying to help."

"When I need help, I will ask for it."

"You never do."

I just shrugged.

He finished his coffee and stood up. "I'm going to take off now. I just came to make sure you were OK after last night."

I nodded.

Wilson went into the kitchen and thanked Elle for breakfast. She walked him to the door and we all said our good-byes. After closing the door, she walked back into the kitchen. I got up and followed her.

Elle was placing the dishes into the sink and getting ready to wash them.

I leaned on my cane and watched her.

She glanced my way and chuckled: "Oh, wait, don't tell me. You like to watch me wash dishes as well as cook, right?"

I gave her a slow smile and said: "Thank you for sticking up for me."

Her expression grew serious and she turned to face me: "No problem, cowboy."

I put my left hand on her shoulder and looked down at her. Then I grinned. Of all the t-shirts that I own, it was cool that she picked that one to wear.

"By the way, I like that shirt on you. It is really you."

"Thanks. I really like it for obvious reasons".

"You can keep it."

"Oh no, I couldn't do that. I was just borrowing it to sleep in."

"I really want you to have it, Janis."

She threw her head back and laughed. "OK. Thank you." She stood on her toes and reached up to hug me. I hugged her close. I could feel her nipples through the thin fabric of that old t-shirt. Desire rose in a certain part of me and I stepped back from the embrace.

Elle smiled and turned back to the sink to start the dishes.

"I guess I kept you from going to the beach today."

"I'll go tomorrow."

The words popped out of my mouth before I could rein them back in: "Is my invitation still open?"

Elle looked surprised for a minute, then smirked: "Sure, but why do you want to come? You've already seen me in my bikini. To quote B.B., the thrill is gone."

I lowered my voice to its deadliest level: "Oh, no it's not."

She flushed, her eyes locked on mine. Finally she said: "OK. We're leaving at 9. Be ready."

"Will you wake me with some coffee?"

"Sure."

Elle finished the dishes and said: "I left that big pile of laundry in your hall last night. I thought I would throw all of those sheets and towels in the wash for you today."

I looked at her in shock: "You're going to do my laundry?"

"Well, just those sheets and towels. What's the big deal?"

I started laughing and couldn't stop for a minute. She was getting exasperated at me, wondering what the hell I was laughing at.

Finally when I could speak again, I said: "Do you remember that first night you stayed at my place, when you started out on the couch and ended up on the floor?"

"Yeah, thanks for the reminder of that embarrassing incident. What does that have to do with your laundry?"

"You offered to massage my leg. And I said I wanted a rain check. Then I said before you know it, I'll have you cooking for me, massaging me, cleaning my apartment, washing my back and doing my laundry."

I gave her my biggest smile: "Well, sweetheart, you have hit the trifecta. You do that load of laundry and all my predictions will have come true."

She frowned: "I offered to massage your leg. I didn't do that. I massaged your shoulders and neck last night. I haven't hit the trifecta until I've massaged your leg. And I didn't clean your whole apartment; I only cleaned the bathroom."

I leaned down and got right in her face: "Details, details. You've done it all now." I kissed the end of her cute little nose.

"I haven't done the laundry yet."

I smirked: "Oh, but you will."

"Arrogant pain in the ass."

"Ooooo, I like it when you talk dirty to me."

She laughed at that. As I stood there and watched her shoulders shake with laughter, I remembered how good she felt sitting next to me on the couch, laughing.

" Hey, let's stay home and watch some movies today. I'll go to the video store and get some while you start my laundry. And later, I'll let you massage my leg."

"Yeah, which leg? The one in the middle?"

My jaw dropped. I couldn't believe she said that. I managed to croak out: "Please?"

She laughed and playfully slapped my arm: "Go get some movies and I'll start the laundry. But you are buying pizza for dinner tonight, mister."

I smiled: "Deal."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14 

_**House**_

When I got to the video store, I realized I didn't know what type of movie she liked. I thought back to movies we had already watched together and there had been comedies and some sci-fi. I browsed through the new selections and managed to snag the last copy of 'Ultraviolet' before a pimply-faced teen could grab it. I also grabbed 'Firewall' and '16 Blocks'. I looked for a comedy, but couldn't find anything good. I finally settled on 'The Family Stone'. It looked a little chick-flick-ish, but it had some good- looking babes in it, so I figured I could stand it. I paid my money and headed home.

When I arrived, Elle was nowhere to be found, but the laundry pile had disappeared. I smiled; I knew she would come through for me.

She walked back in a few minutes later.

I was surprised to see that she had not changed; she was still wearing the Janis t-shirt and my boxers. The elastic was mostly blown out in that pair and she had to keep tugging them up. As she walked past me into the kitchen, she tugged them up for the umpteenth time and I got a glimpse of her bruise.

Elle called to me from the kitchen: "Want a beer?"

I answered in the affirmative and she walked over to the couch carrying two bottles of Grolsch.

I accepted my beer from her and spun her around. I tugged on the boxers and she squealed: "Hey, what are you doing?"

"I'm looking at your ass, sweetheart."

"Well, did I say you could do that?"

"No, but I wanted to check on that lovely bruise I gave you last night."

It was big and purple, quite ugly. "I don't know if you are going to want to wear a bikini tomorrow."

She looked over her shoulder at it. "Oh, it is rather big, isn't it?"

I felt saddened that I had hurt her this way: "Yeah it is. I'm sorry." I gently rubbed my hand on the bruise. Her skin was so soft and warm.

"It's OK. We'll just tell people it happened during rough sex with me bent over the sink. You were pounding me so hard, and it felt so good we didn't realize it was causing a bruise."

I stared at her open-mouthed. She had a twinkle in her eye, but I couldn't believe she just said that.

I recovered as quickly as I could: "Yeah, I like that story. Good cover-up."

I smirked. She really was something else.

She plopped down on the couch next to me. "What movies did you get?"

She pulled them out of the bag. "Oh, '16 Blocks'. Great, I've wanted to see that one. Can we see that one first?"

I nodded and she popped it in.

We spent the rest of the day on the sofa, snuggled up next to each other, watching movies. We would pause the movie periodically while Elle rotated the laundry. And she made me help her fold the sheets, claiming it is too hard to fold king-size sheets alone. I grumbled, but I helped.

Around 7PM, we decided to order pizza. Elle walked over and picked up the phone. I told her it was speed dial #4. She nodded in confirmation.

"Tell me what you like, House"

"I like the woman on top so I can see her breasts and play with her naughty bits while she fucks me."

Elle stared at me, open-mouthed. She seemed to be in complete shock at my comment.

Then I snarked: "Oh, you meant on the pizza!"

She sputtered: "You, you, you, man!"

She jumped me and started tickling me. Fortunately, I was much bigger and stronger and I easily overpowered her. I flipped her so that her butt landed in my lap with her legs draped over my good thigh. I held both of her wrists in one hand and tickled her with the other. I had her completely in giggles in just a few minutes. She kept squealing "stop" in between fits of laughter. It was delicious. She looked so beautiful, all flushed from laughing so much. I remember the last time this happened and how badly I wanted to kiss her.

I stopped tickling her and held her while her laughter subsided and she caught her breath. Still holding her wrists together over her head in my right hand, I put my left hand on her back and pulled her closer. I brushed my lips on hers and backed away to check her reaction. There was a flicker of surprise in her eyes and then something more; something that told me to do that again. I gently pressed my lips on hers and was thrilled when she pressed back. The kiss grew deeper and she parted her lips and I slipped my tongue into her mouth.

She struggled against my hand and I released her wrists. Immediately she wrapped her arms around my neck and I could feel her fingers in my hair. Desire overwhelmed me and I pulled her even closer as I passionately explored her mouth with my tongue. My hand went exploring underneath her shirt and her bare skin felt warm and smooth. Mt. Gregory was starting to perk up.

My hand was inching its way up her body when the phone rang. We were both so startled by it that our grip on each other loosened and Elle fell backwards onto my bad thigh.

The pain was immediate and excruciating. I gasped loudly in pain and as Elle tried to pull herself off of me, she accidentally hit my leg again and shock waves ran up my thigh.

Elle finally managed to jump off of me and said tearfully: "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. What can I do?"

I groaned. I couldn't help it. I managed to croak out: "Pills." Elle ran to the bedroom to get them while I sat there frantically rubbing my thigh. She ran back and shook 2 out of the bottle. She pushed them to my lips and I dry-swallowed them. Elle threw the bottle on the coffee table and went for the scotch. Not bothering with a glass, she unscrewed the top and held the bottle to my mouth. I took a long swallow and grunted my appreciation.

The caller had hung up without leaving a message. Probably a stupid salesman making random calls and causing me all this pain. Crap.

Elle looked really upset that she hurt me.

I tried to ease her concerns by saying: "It's OK. It was an accident. It's just my payback for falling on you last night."

She smirked: "Yeah, right. We're even now. Mine is just a bruise, it doesn't even hurt."

"Yeah, but it hurt at the time, didn't it?"

She had to admit that was true. I slouched on the couch rubbing my thigh waiting for the Vicodin to kick in. Elle was kneeling at my feet.

She asked: "Is there something else I can do? Can I get the heating pad, or can I massage it for you?"

"Yeah, that's it. You owe me a massage. Good idea."

"OK. Take your jeans off. I can't massage your leg through this thick denim."

Well, I wasn't expecting this. Fortunately Mt. Gregory had retreated when the pain started, but what was to say that he wouldn't rear his head again with her delicate hands on my thigh? I thought about it for a minute, and decided to take the chance. I unbuckled and unzipped and lifted myself up with my hands so Elle could pull down my jeans.

My jeans ended up around my ankles. Then Elle pulled off my sneakers and completely removed my jeans. Again, here I was in an interesting position; sitting in my skivvies and t-shirt with a beautiful woman on her knees in front of me and I'm in too much pain to enjoy it.

Elle jumped up: "Let me get some lotion. I'll be right back." She ran out of my apartment and was back within a few minutes. She knelt in front of me again and squeezed some lotion onto her hands. Then she very carefully touched my thigh. It was the first time she had ever touched me there and I was apprehensive. I was concerned about her causing me more pain from her touch and about her reaction to touching such an ugly area. I closed my eyes. I didn't want to look at her and see pity in her eyes.

"Let me know if I press too hard or something, OK?"

I nodded and she commenced. Elle was extremely gentle. First she gently stroked my leg to gauge my reaction. When I indicated that it was fine, she pressed just a little bit harder to try to work out the spasm. I leaned my head back and relaxed a bit. It really was working. I remembered the time that Wilson had that massage therapist come to my office and how that had helped me, albeit temporarily.

Elle worked on my thigh for about 10 minutes before the spasm finally subsided. I was so relaxed that I felt like a little puddle of jelly. She worked her way down to my calf and started massaging it.

I tried to stop her but she said that my unnatural gait causes serious strain on my muscles and they needed some work also. As she said that, she found a particularly tight spot on my calf. I let out a big groan and decided I was at her mercy. She could do whatever she wanted to me.

Elle worked my right calf and then massaged my right foot. I felt really good when she finished, definitely a 5 on her famous pain scale. I hadn't felt this good in a long time. But she wasn't finished yet. She moved over and started on my left leg.

I protested that this was too much. She didn't have to spend 2 hours massaging me. She brushed away my protests: "I told you before, in yoga, you have to make sure that the body is in balance. You always have to work both sides or the body will be out of alignment. You can't have your right leg nice and relaxed and your left leg all tensed up. You'll be out of balance. So lean back again and relax. These leg muscles are over worked due to your gait also and they need to be relaxed".

I gave in. It felt way too good to protest any further. I leaned back, closed my eyes and became a puddle of goo.

I glanced at the clock when she was finally finished. She had been massaging me for over an hour.

"How are you doing?

"Ummmmm, good."

"Great. Hungry? Still want pizza?"

"Yes, please. Get whatever you want on it as long as there is at least one kind of meat."

Elle picked up the phone and ordered a sausage, mushroom and black olive pizza. She stood up and stretched the kinks out of her back. I reached out for her; my hand touched her bare thigh. She looked down at me with such a tender look on her face.

I lightly stroked her thigh and said softly: "Thank you."

She bent down and kissed the tip of my nose and said: "Anytime, cowboy."

_**Elle**_

I couldn't believe he made that crack to me when I was trying to order pizza. Next thing I knew, he was holding me down and tickling me again. Well, OK, I started it. But he managed to take control of the situation so quickly. He had me laughing so hard, and then he kissed me very gently. It was as if time stood still. Nothing mattered except the feel of his lips on mine. He kissed me again, and this time I kissed back. We embraced and kissed more deeply. Who knows where this might have gone, except the damn phone rang and I fell on his leg. That screwed it all up. I couldn't believe that I hurt him like that. I felt terrible. I offered to massage his leg, and he actually let me. I was surprised, but pleased that he trusted me enough to let me do it. I wanted to help him feel better if I could.

I massaged his damaged thigh until the spasms were gone. Then I worked on the rest of that leg and then the left leg. He seemed very relaxed when I was finished. His face didn't have the usual tense look of pain written across it. I gently placed my hand on top of his scar, noting the size of it in relation to my hand and I got an idea. I was nervous about presenting it to him, as I knew he was very sensitive about anyone butting in about his pain issues. And I had made a big deal in front of Wilson that I would only do it if House asked me. I really thought it might help though; I would have to find the right time to bring it up.

We ordered pizza. When it arrived, we watched 'The Family Stone' while we ate. When we finished eating, we sat snuggled up together while we watched the rest of the movie. After it was over, I cleared all the dinner debris from the coffee table while House flipped through the channels searching for something else to watch.

As I returned from the kitchen, I noticed he was rubbing his thigh again. He was wearing just his boxers so the scar was visible. I still thought my idea might help and maybe this was the time to bring it up. I knelt by his right leg and gently lay my hand on top of his. He was startled and he looked down at me. Before he could say anything, I asked gently: "Is it hurting again? Want another massage?"

He shook his head: "No, really, you've done enough. The massage calmed it down quite a bit and now it's back up to its usual level. It's OK. It's tolerable. Probably just time to take a couple more Vicodin."

I reached over and handed him the bottle. He accepted it and opened it up removing 2 tabs. He handed the bottle back to me and washed down the tabs with his beer.

I still had not removed my hand from his thigh. After swallowing his pills, he looked down at me and said: "You know, you don't have to do that. It's,,,,it's ugly." He turned away from me.

"Are you allergic to lidocaine or any local anesthetics?"

He looked at me strangely: "No. That's a weird question. Why do you ask?"

I had to approach this carefully: "I was just thinking. Well, I'm sure you won't." I trailed off.

I had piqued his curiosity: "I won't what?"

"When my shoulder was injured, I used lidocaine patches to help with the pain. I was just thinking that 2 patches would cover your scar and I just wondered if it would help, you know, as an adjunct to the Vicodin. But you would probably need to shave the area around the scar cuz pulling them off would snag your leg hair. I'm sure you wouldn't want to do that. Forget I mentioned it. I'm overstepping the boundaries. I'm sorry."

I stood up and started to move away.

House grabbed my hand and said: "Elle." He was looking straight ahead.

I waited for him to go on.

After a minute, he squeezed his eyes shut and brought my hand to his cheek.

In a low voice, he said: "Do you still have any patches left?"

"Yeah, I have about a half a box left."

He pressed his cheek harder against my hand. I was thrilled that he was at least thinking about what I said and not just angrily blowing me off. I waited patiently while he thought.

After a few minutes, he pressed his lips gently to my hand and looked up at me: "My bathroom. There's an electric razor in the cabinet." His eyes were deep and unreadable, but they didn't seem angry.

I nodded and gently releasing his grip on my hand, I headed down the hall to fetch the razor.

_**HOUSE **_

I surprised myself by agreeing to try them. But it actually seemed like a good idea. Maybe it would help a bit. It couldn't hurt. The scar itself didn't have much hair growing on it. I would just need to shave around the edges of the scar.

Elle returned with the razor and handed it to me. I looked at it and looked at my scar and felt frozen.

Elle said: "I'll go get the patches and we'll figure out how much we need to shave, OK?"

I nodded in agreement and she took off for her apartment.

While she was gone, I took a couple of deep breaths. This was more than handing me the heating pad and my pills. This was more than a massage. I felt unsure about accepting this type of help. I felt uncomfortable about this, but then again she wasn't trying to take away my Vicodin like Wilson would. She said specifically it would be an adjunct to the Vicodin. By the time Elle returned, I had a decent handle on my discomfort and was ready to proceed.

She took 2 patches out of the box and placed them on my thigh. "Right, two will do it. Just need to shave right around it."

I handed her the razor.

She looked at me questioningly and then nodded. Switching the razor on, she carefully shaved around my scar.

As I watched her, I pondered on things.

_Why is she so willing to take care of me? What on earth does she see in me? She's not like Cameron; she doesn't seem to want to fix me. She's just supportive; she's willing to help me with whatever I need. I just don't get it. Why would she help me?_

By the time Elle had finished, I had not come up with any answers. She set the razor on the coffee table and ripped open the packages. She gently placed the lidocaine patches over my scar and pressed lightly. She glanced up at me; I knew she was trying to read my reaction to all of this.

I nodded and said: "It's fine. Thank you."

Relief washed across her face and she smiled: "OK. It's 10:00 now. They can stay on for 12 hours, so you'll need to take them off by 10AM."

I nodded and watched as she cleaned up and mess and returned the razor to the bathroom. When Elle returned to the room, I patted the couch next to me and she sat down. I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. As I flipped through the channels, I found an old Monty Python episode and settled in to watch it. It was funny and once again I enjoyed the feel of her body shaking in laughter next to mine.

After about 30 minutes, I could feel a bit of numbness around my scar. The patches were starting to work. An hour later, I could tell a slight lessening of the pain. It wasn't much, but it ratcheted down the pain scale a notch or two, maybe from a 9 to a 7. Elle was right; it seemed to make a good adjunct. I couldn't wait to see if it improved my quality of sleep along with her warm body next to me.

Around midnight, we decided it was time to go to bed. There was no question where Elle was going to sleep tonight. She told me she'd be right back after she brushed her teeth. I went down the hall and did the same.

_**Elle**_

As I brushed my teeth, I thought about what had just happened. House had let me help him with his pain. I was still somewhat shocked, but glad that he had allowed me to do this. Maybe at some point, he would be comfortable enough that we could switch him off of the Vicodin to morphine or oxycodone. I finished brushing my teeth, grabbed my cell phone and headed back to his place.

He was already in bed when I returned, propped up with pillows reading a medical journal. How is it that he can look sexy with reading glasses positioned halfway down his nose? Gawd, I was in trouble if I was thinking like that.

He glanced up from his reading as I walked in and flipped back the sheet for me. I climbed in next to him and set my cell on the nightstand.

He asked: "You're setting the alarm?"

"Yep. I'm getting you up at 9. I want to be on the road by 10. It's about an hours drive away, so I don't want to sleep away half the day. You can nap in the car if you want."

"Well, you better have a cup of coffee in your hand when you attempt to wake me."

I chuckled and said: "I will."

He set the journal on the nightstand and took off his glasses.

As House pulled the sheet up over the two of us, he started chuckling.

I asked him: "What's so funny?"

"You slept in these clothes last night, spent the whole day in them and now you're sleeping in them again."

"Does that bother you? Do I smell bad?"

He laughed and hugged me to him: "No, I think it's cute."

I shrugged: "Well, it just seemed like a 'hang around the house' day. No need to get dressed really, so why bother?"

He chuckled again: "Hang around the house, huh? You want to hang around me?"

"Isn't that obvious? I've spent all day and night with you and I'm taking you to the beach tomorrow. I like hanging out with you."

He nuzzled my cheek; I thought I would melt. Then he whispered: "I like hanging with you too."

Oh Gawd, I wanted him to kiss me again. I knew that this time, I wouldn't stop. I wanted him. I thought he wanted me, but I wasn't sure.

My desire for him was there, but I was still scared. He was really big and I wondered if it would hurt. I thought he would be gentle, but it had been such a long time, that it would probably hurt a little bit anyway.

As I snuggled my face into his chest, I tried to tell myself that I had to stop thinking like this. I couldn't lie in his bed, in his arms and think about how it would feel to make love to him. I fisted his shirt to keep my hand from even thinking about wandering elsewhere.

House wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer to him. Then he kissed my forehead and whispered: "Good night, Elle."

I whispered back: "Night, House." Then I closed my eyes and tried to still my horny mind. I finally fell asleep.

_**House**_

She was so warm and soft in my arms. I wanted to kiss her again, but I kept hearing her tell me that she was scared. I didn't want to make the first move; I wanted her to do it when she was ready. I pulled her close and reveled in the warmth of her body next to mine. She felt so good that I had to keep reciting diagnostic mnemonics in my head to keep from getting an erection. Finally I heard her breathing slow and even out. It took her longer than usual to fall asleep tonight. She's probably excited about going to the beach; she's like a little kid when she talks about it. Hope we have a good time tomorrow and I don't look like too much of an ass trying to walk in the sand. I pulled her a bit closer and let her warmth lull me to sleep.

(Sunday)

_**Elle**_

My alarm went off at 8:45AM. During sleep, I had rolled over onto my left side and House had snuggled up behind me, his arm draped around me. I could feel his breath on my neck and his erection pressed into my butt. As nice as this felt, I knew I'd better get moving or we would never get out of bed. I slipped out of his embrace and padded over to my place to start the coffee. While it was brewing, I changed into my bathing suit, slipping some shorts and a t-shirt on over it. My beach cart was standing by the door, packed and ready to go. I went ahead and loaded it into the back of my Honda. By then, the coffee was ready. I poured us both a cup and headed back to wake House.

He woke up easier than I thought he would. We didn't say much at first; we just sat there drinking our coffee. When he shifted positions, I saw a twinge of pain on his face. I handed him the Vicodin bottle and he nodded his thanks. He shook out 2 tabs and washed them down with coffee.

I plucked up my courage and asked: "How was the lidocaine patch? Do you think it helped at all?"

He nodded: "Yeah, it took an edge off. I have many edges, but it took care of one." He smiled and then went on: "Actually, I had a fairly decent night's sleep. It helped enough that I would use it again."

I tried to contain my excitement; I didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable. So I merely nodded and said casually: "Cool. I'm glad it helped a little."

I stood up and said: "Well, I'm going to finish getting ready. I'll make us some breakfast sandwiches for the road, OK? You get dressed and come over to my place when you're ready."

He nodded and swung his legs over the side of the bed. I glanced back as I walked out of the room. He had grabbed his cane and was slowly rising out of bed. I could see the grimace of pain on his face and I beat a hasty retreat. I knew he wouldn't want me to see him like that.

Back in my place, I fried some bacon and eggs and made toast. Adding some cheese to the toasted bread, I slapped together some breakfast sandwiches, wrapping them in aluminum foil to stay warm.

House wandered over just as I had finished pouring the rest of the coffee into two go-cups. He was wearing some blue surfer shorts, which were long enough to hide his scar. A beige t-shirt, baseball cap and some sandals completed his attire. He quietly watched while I finished wrapping the sandwiches, then he asked: "Got any sunscreen?"

"I have everything. Let's go." I handed him one of the coffee cups, and grabbing a handful of CD's on my way out the door, we headed out to my car. House got settled in the passenger seat and I got in the driver's side. I tossed the sack with the sandwiches in his lap, admonished him to save one for me and popped a Jimmy Buffet CD in the stereo.

"What, no Beach Boys?" he snarked.

"They're in the pile. Feel free to change it if you want." I just smiled back at him. We were heading to the beach and as far as I was concerned, all was right with the world.

It was an uneventful drive. We ate, listened to music and talked a little. Every now and then I would catch him looking at me with this wistful look on his face, which would immediately change when he saw me looking. I wondered what that was about, but didn't want to ask.

The parking lot was already crowded when we got there, but House whipped out his handicapped-parking placard and we got a great spot. I was glad that he had brought that. There would be enough walking on the beach and boardwalk for him.

I popped the hatch and unloaded the beach cart. I had a cooler, 2 chairs and a big mesh bag with towels, a blanket, sunscreen, and my trashy beach magazines. The cooler had beer and sodas in it. I figured we would eat hot dogs or whatever on the boardwalk. All of this stuff was easily loaded onto the cart, which had big rubber wheels made to roll over sand. The boogie board would fit also, but I gave it to House to carry. He could use it for balance on the sand, instead of his cane.

We headed out to the sand and claimed a spot. House actually balanced OK with the boogie board, but I tried to pay no attention. I knew he wouldn't want any help or sympathy. I waved down the umbrella guy and rented a large one for the day. I spread out the blanket and opened up the chairs so that they were partially under the umbrella. I like having some shade to escape into for part of the day. I took the boogie board from House and leaned it up against the back of our chairs. House sank into one of the chairs and pulled off his t-shirt. I couldn't see his eyes behind his dark sunglasses, but his face looked relaxed. I pulled off my t-shirt and shorts and went rummaging in my bag for the sunscreen.

Holding up the bottle, I said: "I'll do your back if you do mine."

He smirked: "I'll be happy to DO you, baby."

"Yeah, yeah. Hope you are not all talk and no action."

"There's plenty of action yet in this old body."

"You're not old, cowboy. Told ya that already." I moved behind him and rubbed the sunscreen onto his shoulders and back. I got the back of his neck and upper arms too. Then I knelt on the blanket in front of him and handed him the bottle. I had put my hair in one long braid this morning and I pulled it to the front so he could goop up my back.

I closed my eyes as I felt his hand on my shoulders rubbing in the lotion. It felt nice to be touched like that. He rubbed the lotion on my shoulders and back, and then he stopped rubbing. He gently touched 2 or 3 places on my shoulders with just his finger.

"Elle, what are these scars on your shoulders? You've got several of them. How did you get these?"

I gave a harsh laugh: "You can't tell by the size and shape what they are?"

He sounded puzzled: "No. Why would I?"

I snorted: "Because you're a cigar smoker."

He grabbed my shoulder and turned me to face him. "What are you saying? Did someone burn you?"

I looked away from him and said: "Yeah." I took the bottle away from him and started applying sunscreen to my arms.

_**HOUSE**_

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There were 4 or 5 circular scars across her upper back and shoulders. They were very faint so they must be old scars.

"Elle,,,"

"I meant what I said, cowboy. You tell me yours, I'll tell you mine."

I gently stroked her shoulder with one finger. She had all these cute little freckles sprinkled across her shoulders and they were broken up with these ugly scars.

"Jesus, Elle."

"I don't believe in Jesus."

"Neither do I. When did this happen? Foster care, right?"

She nodded. She opened the cooler and said: "Beer, Coke or water?"

"Water, please." She handed me a bottle of water and took a Coke for herself. Next she started rummaging in her big bag. She pulled out a stack of magazines and said: "Trashy magazine? Good beach reading."

I smiled. She wanted to change the subject. Guess I'll let her for now and just enjoy the day.

"What have you got there?"

"People, US, Cosmo, and my all time favorite, ELLE. I only read these on the beach or on planes. Maybe there's a good quiz in Cosmo that we can take."

I snarked: "Yeah, then you can paint my toenails afterwards."

She laughed: "Not at the beach, silly. You'd get sand in the polish. It wouldn't look right."

"Gimme People."

Elle handed me the magazine and flopped down on the blanket on her belly. She played with her braid as she flipped through US. I pretended to read while I studied her. She told me the 'what' about the scars, but not the 'how' or 'why'. I wondered if she would ever tell me and if she had any other scars. The bruise on her back was still quite purple and marred the beauty of her skin. I felt bad about that, but it was an accident and at least it wouldn't leave a scar.

She flipped thru the magazine relatively quickly, then tossed it aside and rolled over onto her back. Her hand came to rest up against my leg. She lay there with her eyes closed and her fingers lightly stroking my calf. It felt nice, but I wondered what she was thinking about as she did that.

The sun felt nice. I gave up pretending to read and tossed the magazine down. I got down on the blanket next to Elle and stretched out. She turned to me as I got comfortable and said: "Sun feels good, right?"

I nodded: "Yeah, real good." I closed my eyes and just let the warmth of the sun soak into my body. Elle shifted and I felt her hand brush against mine. I picked up her hand and loosely held it in mine. Her hand was so tiny compared to mine. We lay there holding hands soaking up the sun for a while. My brain went on downtime. I couldn't think of anything else other than the sun and the beautiful woman next to me.

After a while, Elle stirred. "I feel baked enough for now. Want to take a swim?"

I propped myself up on one elbow and stared at the water. It was tempting, but I wasn't sure I could balance well enough to walk into the water.

It was like Elle read my mind. "If you hold the boogie board in your right hand and use it for balance, then put your left arm around me, we will just look like lovers walking to the water together. No one will realize that you are using me for support."

She gave me a minute to think about it, then she said: "Come on. You know you want to." She reached down and started unbuckling my sandals. Then she stood up, extended her hand to me and said: "Come on cowboy. Let's go ride some waves."

I took her hand and let her help me up. Elle fetched the board and I took it from her. I used the board for support on my right side, and with Elle's arm around me on my left, we slowly walked to the water. We waded in until we were knee-deep, and then I let myself sink into the water. I dunked myself to get wet, and then draped my upper body across the board and just floated in the water. Elle grabbed the rope and pulled me further out. She swam really well. She pulled us out to where the waves were, and we lay side by side across the board. We would wait for the wave and it would carry us back to shore. Then Elle would pull me back out and it would start all over again. She was having a blast, laughing and screaming when a really big wave would crash over us. After about the 10th time, we paused for a rest. We were both lying across the board, laughing and trying to catch our breath.

She brushed stray locks of hair off of her face and said: "Are you having a good time, cowboy?"

"Yeah, I like riding the waves with you, little girl." I leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. Surprise flickered in her eyes, and then the most amazing light appeared. A smile grew slowly on her face as her hand reached up and touched my cheek. I found myself smiling back at her. We leaned towards each other and our lips met. The first contact was tentative, and then it grew deeper. I found my arm snaking around her waist and pulling her closer. Elle's arms curled around my neck and her fingers played with my hair. My tongue asked for entrance and her lips parted, granting permission. Her tongue danced with mine as I wrapped both arms around her. I pulled her tightly against me; Mt Gregory had risen and I pressed my hips into hers, wanting her to feel my desire. To my surprise, she responded by wrapping her legs around my waist and pressing her core against my swollen member.

We were in that delightful position for just a short time when a huge wave crashed over us. We broke apart and came up gasping for air. Elle burst out laughing and I couldn't help grinning at her. She was so amazing and so full of life.

Suddenly she said: "Oh, the board!"

The board had gotten swept away with the wave and she took off swimming for it. She had a very strong crawl stroke and managed to catch it fairly quickly. Elle grabbed the rope and started back. I swam towards her, marveling that the movement didn't bother my leg that much.

When we finally caught up to each other, she smiled shyly at me. She was probably wondering what just happened: I know I was.

I bent and gave her a quick kiss and looked out at the ocean. "Come on, sweetheart, let's ride some more."

We played in the water until we were waterlogged and decided to head in. We rode the board towards shore until the water was at mid-thigh level. We stood up and headed slowly back to our spot. I managed with Elle's help and the board. Happily I didn't fall on my ass once. Elle tossed me a towel and we dried off.

I collapsed into the chair. The water wore me out, but it was a good kind of fatigue. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, enjoying the sun's warmth on my face.

"Hey, are you hungry? I'll go get us some hot dogs."

I opened my eyes_. FOOD! _"Yeah, great idea. Get a twenty out of my wallet."

"Oh, I got it." Elle pulled some money out of her bag and headed off towards the boardwalk. I watched her walk away. She really did have a nice ass. I leaned back and closed my eyes again.

I must have dozed off because she was back before I knew it. She was carrying a small cardboard box loaded with goodies. She put it down on the blanket and sat cross-legged next to it.

"I took you for a mustard-and-sauerkraut kind of guy. Was I right?"

"That works, hand them over".

Elle chuckled as she handed me two hot dogs with the works on them. She got two dogs with those tomato-y onions on them for herself. She also got a couple of potato knishes. All in all, a great feast for the beach.

After we ate, we laid around for a while, just soaking up the sun. It was warm and relaxing. We didn't talk much; we were comfortable enough with each other to just lie side by side.

After a while, Elle was itching to hit the arcade, so we packed up the cart and headed off to the boardwalk. It was slow going for me again trudging through the sand and using the board for a cane. I was relieved to get to the boardwalk where I could walk on a firm surface again. However, the walk was tiring and I headed right for a bench. I'm sure Elle sensed my fatigue, but she was nice enough not to say anything.

"Hey, will you sit here with the stuff for a minute? I just want to run over to the shower and rinse the salt out of my hair."

I nodded and she scurried off. I took the moment alone to swallow two Vicodins. Elle was back in a few minutes, soaking wet and looking delicious. She grabbed a towel and started drying off. She sat down to dry her legs and feet, putting on her flip-flops when she finished.

"Do you want your sandals?"

I nodded and she pulled them out of the bag for me. I motioned for the towel and dried my feet before putting them on.

The Vicodin hadn't kicked it yet and I was reluctant to move. I sought a distraction to keep us on the bench a little longer.

"You're like a little kid at the beach. Why do you like it so much?"

"Are you kidding? What's not to like? The water, the waves, the sun, the sand. And this beach is so cool cuz it has the boardwalk with the arcade and everything."

Her sunny expression darkened just a little. "It brings back some of my best memories. We would go to the beach a lot. We'd get up early on a Saturday and drive the hour to Crescent Beach. Or we would spend the weekend in Daytona. Daddy and I take the rubber raft out into the waves and ride them all day long, just like what we were doing."

She turned and smiled at me. Her voice grew more animated as she continued. "My uncle and aunt usually came along too. When Daddy got tired, Uncle Andy would take me out on the raft. It was a blast. Mama and Aunt Dani were always looking for shells. Daytona used to have this old arcade area on the pier. There were bumper cars and games. Uncle Andy was great at skee ball and he would always win me a stuffed animal. Daddy would play air hockey with me. We'd all ride the bumper cars and the little sky ride and the Ferris wheel and the carousel. And we would have ice cream and cotton candy." Her voice trailed off and she looked away from me.

I edged closer to her and touched her cheek. I turned her face gently towards me and saw the tear fall down her cheek before she quickly swiped it away.

She smiled, apologetically at me: "Sorry. I didn't mean to get all weepy on you. I try not to think about them too much. But it all came flooding back just then."

Another tear slid down her cheek. I caught this one with my thumb. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to prevent any more escapees. Then, very softly, she said: "You know what, next week, will be 25 years since the wreck. 25 years." Her voice broke as she said it.

I didn't know what to say, so I pulled her into my arms. Surprisingly, she didn't cry. She stroked my cheek while I held her. After a few minutes, I felt her lips on my neck. She tenderly kissed my neck several times moving up towards my cheek. Then she gently nipped my earlobe and whispered: "You know what we need? We need cotton candy. There's a stand just up there. I'll be right back."

Before I could say anything, she grabbed some cash from her bag and ran up the boardwalk towards the stand.

I watched her head off. I knew she needed a little space right now. I liked how she managed to take care of that need with little embarrassment for either of us. It dawned on me that I did really respect her. The events of the weekend showed me the type of person Elle is and I liked what I saw. Wilson was right, although I hate to admit it and I never would to him. I do like her. I feel good around her. I still couldn't figure out the 'why', but she seemed to genuinely care for me. I realized that I wanted more. As much as I knew it would irrevocably change our friendship, and as scary as that was, I wanted to take it further.

I thought back to what happened earlier. She was definitely into it, as much as I was. After her actions in the water today, I think if I give her a nudge, she'll jump off the deep end with me. Maybe I could suggest a shower together when we got home. Hmmm, no, too much in common with Friday night's barf session. We could cuddle up on the couch, watch some TV and see where it goes from there. Yeah, that's better.

I leaned my face up into the warmth of the sun. I smiled thinking of her lips on mine. I remembered how her body felt pressed up against me in the water and I ached to hold her again.

I was shaken from my thoughts by a familiar voice calling my name. _It couldn't be. _My mind refused to accept what it heard. I opened my eyes and shuddered inwardly. I could not believe who I saw walking towards me.

_**Elle**_

I hurried away from House towards the cotton candy stand. I couldn't believe I got all teary on him. He was really nice about it, though. As I waited in line, I thought back to what had happened in the water. Oh my God! He is so sexy. He is an amazing kisser. I briefly closed my eyes and remembered the feel of his body pressed up against me. He clearly desired me. All these nights that we have slept together and I wondered why he has not made a move. Then it dawned on me. Maybe he was waiting for me to make the first move. He knows the rape traumatized me and I had told him that I was scared. He doesn't want to push me. He's waiting for me to be ready. A smile broke over my face as I realized this. How sweet that he had not pushed me and waited for me. House was a constant surprise to me.

I was ready. I would let him know tonight. We would go to bed together like usual, but tonight would be a little bit different; actually I hoped it would be a lot different. I wanted him. I wanted to make love to him. I bit my lip, suppressing a smile, thinking of his hands and mouth on me. I could feel the warmth starting to pool in my belly. Yes, tonight's the night.

I bought 2 bags of cotton candy and headed back to him.

_**House**_

I couldn't believe my eyes. I struggled to keep my expression neutral. It helped that I was wearing my sunglasses.

"Greg. What a surprise running into you. What are you doing here?"

I looked up at Stacy and Mark Warner. My leg twinged as I looked at her. I could see the curiosity in her eyes. I couldn't help making comparisons between her and Elle. Stacy's face was hard and angular while Elle's was soft and round. Stacy looked older, tired, maybe had a few more lines around her mouth. She looked like life had not been good to her these past few months. Good. She had made my life miserable for the past 6 years.

Mark, on the other hand, looked good. He had graduated from a wheelchair to a cane since I had last seen him 5 months ago. From a medical standpoint it was good to see he had improved. From a personal view, I couldn't care less.

Stacy spoke again: "You didn't answer me. What are you doing here? Is this your cart?"

I looked up and finally answered her. "No. It belongs to my lady."

Mark's eyebrows shot up: "Your _lady_? You're seeing someone?"

I nodded, anxious for them to go away.

Stacy looked surprised: "I don't believe it. You're seeing someone?"

"Yeah, did you think I was going to pine for you forever?"

Her mouth tightened. That reaction pleased me.

Mark chuckled: "It never ends between you two."

I replied tersely: "Oh, yes it has."

I looked at her and was reminded of everything that had happened: her authorization of the surgery that crippled me while I was unconscious and her leaving me 6 months afterwards.

I felt a white fury of anger. I wanted her to go away. I didn't want my day with Elle spoiled by her presence.

I glanced up the boardwalk. Elle was walking back with 2 bags of cotton candy. She was still wearing just her bikini and looked incredibly sexy. I smiled; Stacy will be jealous and Mark will be impressed that I have such a good-looking babe. Now I just needed to convey the message to Elle that she was more than just a friend.

I could see the curious look on her face, as she got closer. I watch her eyes check them out and then come back to me with questions in her eyes. I stood up to greet her, masking the throbbing pain in my leg and pushed my sunglasses to the top of my head. I needed for her to see my eyes.

As she drew closer, I held out my arms to her and looking into her eyes, said: "Sweetheart."

She smiled and walked right into my arms. I hugged her close and she snaked her arms around my neck. I kissed her cheek and whispered very softly into her ear: "Play along, my lady." I pulled back and looked deeply into her eyes. She returned the gaze, touched my cheek and kissed me gently on the mouth. As she tried to pull back, I put my hand on the back of her head and pushed her forward. I deepened the kiss and she responded. This time it was her tongue circling my lips seeking entrance. I parted my lips and let her tongue in. There was nothing else in existence at that moment but her tongue dancing in my mouth and her body pressed against mine.

There was the sound of someone clearing his or her throat and I remembered that we were not alone. We slowly pulled apart. In unison, we turned so that we were facing the Warners. I was happy to see Stacy with a jealous look on her face. Mark was smirking. I noticed his eyes were taking in Elle's lithe bikini-clad body.

My arm possessively around Elle, I made the introductions: "Sweetheart, this is Mark and Stacy Warner. This is my lady, Elle Kaplan."

Elle looked at them silently for a moment, then looked at me: "Stacy?"

I nodded. She gave me a knowing look.

Politely, but with a touch of frost in her voice, she said: "Nice to meet you." She glanced at Stacy, and then held out her hand to Mark. He shook it, holding it a bit longer than I liked. Stacy got the snub. She also got that her husband was interested in my bikini-clad babe.

Stacy snarked: "A bit young for you, isn't she, Greg?"

Elle snarked right back: "Not at all. He's a BIG boy and he can make his own decisions".

I chuckled inwardly at her sexual innuendo and the remark about me making my own decisions. Elle didn't know anything about my leg and the decision being taken away from me and yet her snark made it sound like she did. It was a great dig on Stacy. I was enjoying this.

Elle turned and sat down on the bench on my left; I sat down also. As she sat, unfortunately the Warners got a good look at the bruise on her back.

Mark exclaimed: "Wow, Elle, how did you get that big bruise on your back?"

Elle giggled and looked at me. She kissed me on the tip of my nose and said, in French: "_It's alright. Don't worry about the bruise_."

Turning back to Mark, she explained: "We got a little frisky in the bathroom the other night. And you know the edge of the vanity is kinda hard when you're pressed up against it; although you don't feel it in the heat of the moment, well, you get the picture."

Elle looked smug. Stacy looked like she was in shock. A grin spread across Mark's face and he said: "House, you old dog. You still got it."

I snarked: "Never lost it."

Mark gave me a nod of admiration. I strangely found myself almost liking this man that I used to hate.

Elle turned to me and said: "Want some cotton candy, cowboy?" She opened one of the bags and pulled out a piece. She took a bite of it and fed me the rest. I ate the proffered bite and then licked the residual sweetness from her fingers.

Stacy regained the use of her voice and said: "Why do you call him cowboy?"

Elle immediately said: "Cuz he rides me so well."

Again, Stacy was stunned speechless. Mark was choking back a laugh. I was impressed with her. I wondered what she would say if she knew the whole truth about Stacy, concerning how snarky she was being knowing only a little bit.

Mark asked: "So how did you two meet?"

Elle looked at me questioningly. I nodded for her to answer. I felt sure she would come up with something good.

Elle said briefly: "We met at the hospital."

Mark asked: "Oh, do you work there? What do you do?"

Elle replied: "I'm a pharmacist specializing in oncology. Do you know Dr. Wilson? I work with him a lot."

"Ah, so you got to know House through Wilson."

Elle shrugged and pulled out some more cotton candy. She took a bite and fed me the rest. "Yeah, basically."

I was enjoying how she was answering his questions without giving too much away. I was glad that she didn't mention being my neighbor or that she was a pain management specialist.

Stacy nastily said: "So you were attracted to his good looks, his charm and his big income?"

Elle shot her a harsh look: "Yeah, and his big dick."

Mark couldn't hold back the laugh that time. Stacy's eyes shot daggers at him. Mark was going to pay later for that outburst.

I barely stifled the grin that threatened to overtake my face. Oh, I owed Elle big time for this.

Mark chuckled: "You are refreshingly honest. I think I understand what House sees in you."

Elle gazed at Mark, then said conspiratorially: "It was the cane.

The cane really is a chick magnet you know. Yours is kinda plain and boring. You ought to snaz yours up a bit. See how Greg has flames on his? It's bitchin'! I knew he was a stud the minute I saw that cane. You could do something like that to yours."

Mark smiled at her: "I'm married, but thanks anyway."

Elle just shrugged and smiled back.

Stacy looked like she was at her boiling point. Elle had the upper hand in the conversation and I knew she didn't like that. Her inner bitch made an appearance.

"Well, Greg, I can guess what you see in her. She's a pharmacist, so I'm thinking that she's your new Vicodin connection."

I didn't even have time to respond. Elle got to her feet; her face was like a storm cloud. Her hands were clenched into fists and she got right in Stacy's face. Despite the fact that Stacy was several inches taller than Elle, I would put my money on Elle if a catfight ensued.

"You better think again, you little bitch, before you accuse me of illegal activity. I'll have my lawyer on your ass and sue you for slander."

"Yeah, you and what army? I'm a lawyer. I'm sure I can handle any two-bit ambulance chaser that you might send my way."

"Bill Arnello is hardly an ambulance chaser."

Stacy paled at the mention of Bill's name. I guess she was aware of his mob connection and knew better than to piss off those guys. She backpedaled quickly: "I was just joking. Greg knows my sense of humor."

"Yeah, he probably spent a lot of time looking for it, since you obviously don't have one."

Elle sat back down and feigning nonchalance went back to feeding us cotton candy. This time, she placed a piece between her lips and I ate it off of her that way. I stole a kiss afterwards, her lips even sweeter from the candy.

Stacy looked shocked. "You were never into PDA's. You would never even hold my hand in public."

I shrugged: "People change."

She retorted: "You're not 'people' and you don't change."

I merely shrugged: "Believe what you want." I edged closer to Elle and put my arm around her shoulder. I made an 'AH' sound, indicating that she should feed me some more. At first she fed me with her fingers.

Then I nuzzled her cheek and whispered to her: "Feed me with your mouth again." And she did, scoring a kiss each time.

After watching us for a couple of minutes, Mark grabbed Stacy's hand and said to her: "Come on. Let's go. Let's leave the lovebirds alone."

Turning to us, he said: "Elle, it was nice to meet you. Take good care of the grouchy doctor."

Elle gave him a winning smile: "I intend to. Nice meeting you too."

Mark looked at me and said: "House. Good to see you again. Nice girl. Don't screw it up." He looked pointedly at Elle and shot me a thumbs-up.

I nodded: "It's good to see you vertical again."

I looked at Stacy and simply said: "Bye."

She nodded at me and said: "Bye."

She and Mark turned and walked off. I was happy to see their backs.

I finally felt like I had that thing with Stacy, that thing Wilson was always talking about. Closure, yeah, that was it. I finally felt like I had closure with Stacy.

I turned back to the beautiful snarky bikini-clad woman sitting next to me. "You were incredible. Absolutely amazing."

She smiled broadly at me: "That was kinda fun. So, that was **the** Stacy? The one who hurt you?"

I nodded.

"I zinged her pretty good, huh? Did you like the part where I said it was your big dick that I was attracted to?"

I chuckled: "Yeah, I did. You were amazing. I liked that way you stood up to her." I pulled her closer to me and kissed her forehead.

In a small voice, she said: "Cowboy. What did she do to you?" She pulled away a little bit and looked up at me. "It was more than just a relationship ends, breakup kind of thing, wasn't it?"

I stroked her face and said: "Yeah. It was more than that. But I don't want to wreck a beautiful day talking about it. Plus, if I tell you mine, then you'll have to tell me yours." I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

She smiled: "Yeah, let's not do it now. Let's go play some games for a while. If you feel like talking on the way home, we could do it then. If you don't want to, that's OK, too."

She stood up and stowed the cotton candy bags on top of the cart.

"Come on. I bet I can whup your ass in air hockey. Loser has to buy the frozen custard."  
We pulled on our t-shirts; Elle pulled on her shorts and pulling the cart behind her, we headed over to the arcade.

The air hockey tables were all the way in the back of the arcade. I guess they are not as popular as the newer video games. There was only one other table in use while we were there. Elle dropped in the quarters and we got started. She was very good and beat me 4 out of 5 times. I had a little difficulty shifting my weight back and forth, but I managed OK. It was fun watching her have such a good time. She did a little happy dance when she beat me the final time.

I put my arm around her and gave her a quick kiss. "Come on, let's go play some skee ball. I used to be pretty good at that."

Skee ball was more popular than air hockey, but we managed to find two lanes side by side. I discovered that I was still good at this, and if I kept my weight on my left leg, it was fairly comfortable to play. You won tickets with each winning score and we were mounting them up. My stack was bigger than hers and I teasingly lorded it over her.

She stuck out her tongue at me: "Big shot. Are you going to win me a stuffed animal?"

I smirked: "We'll see, little girl."

We played several more games until we were out of quarters. Elle was ready for frozen custard by then. We gathered up all the tickets and took them over to the redemption desk. Between us, we had 400 tickets and it was enough for a medium sized prize.

I nudged her: "Go on. Pick out what you want."

She looked at me and bit her lower lip: "Really, I can pick?"

I placed my hand reassuringly on her low back and murmured: "Of course, sweetheart. A cute little stuffed animal for you."

She smiled shyly and looked around at all the prizes. As she looked, I wondered why she suddenly felt shy about this considering she had been teasing me for a while about winning her a prize.

I was startled from my ponderings when she said "That one, please."

She pointed to a purple floppy-eared dog. The guy behind the counter snagged it and handed it over to her.

"Why did you pick that one?"

She shrugged and hugged the dog to her chest: "I like dogs and I like purple. Seemed like a win-win to me."

We walked over to the frozen custard stand. I got a zebra strip and Elle got a vanilla and orange stripe. We walked over to a nearby bench and sat, in a comfortable silence, eating our custard.

After we finished eating, we sat for a few more minutes snuggled up together on the bench. I carelessly stroked her arm as we sat.

"Greg."

I was startled by her use of my first name. She had never done that before.

"Yes, Elle?"

She turned to face me and wrapped her arms around my neck. "Thank you. This is the best day I've had in a long time."

I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her gently before saying: "Me too, sweetheart." And I kissed her again.

We drove home right after having the custard. We kept the conversation light. Somehow we came to a silent agreement not to talk about anything too deep. I knew I would tell her about my leg and about Stacy, but not today. Aside from our encounter with the Warners, it had been a truly excellent day. And even that part was rather amusing.

We listened to the Beach Boys and Tom Petty on the way home. The traffic was heavier on the way back and it took us 90 minutes to get home. I dozed off somewhere along the way and didn't wake up until Elle threw the car into reverse to parallel park in front of our building.

I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and said: "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you."

"That's OK. You were tired. While you were sleeping, I put the car on autopilot and took a nap myself."

I laughed at that. We unpacked the car and carried everything inside.

I unlocked the door to my apartment and said: "I'm going to take a shower and wash the beach off of me."

"Yeah, I'm going to do that too."

"Come over when you're done and we'll order dinner."

"Sounds good." And with that we parted company.

I limped down the hall to the bathroom. I turned on the hot water full blast and stripped off my clothes. I shampooed my hair and washed a half-ton of sand off of my body. I smiled thinking of our adventures in the water and what I had planned for the evening. A little dinner, a little TV and a little making out on the couch, which will hopefully lead us, back to the bedroom. Mt Gregory was rising as I was thinking about it. I couldn't wait to see her naked. I wondered if her breasts looked like the ones in my dream. I smiled thinking of those pretty pink nipples.

After drying off, I limped over to the sink to brush my teeth. Then I combed my hair back with my fingers. I examined myself in the mirror. Aside from my scar, I didn't look too bad for 47. I flexed my biceps and noted that my guns still looked pretty good. The swimming had been good today. It was the first physical activity I had attempted in a long time. I had long since given up on sports. But my leg hadn't complained while I was swimming. Maybe I would check out the pool at the hospital gym this week. I could try swimming some laps.

I limped into the bedroom for some clean clothes. I pulled on a pair of dark gray boxer-briefs and some clean jeans. I was happy to see that my favorite Rolling Stones shirt was clean so I pulled that on. I decided to stay barefoot, less to take off later.

It occurred to me that Stacy might call Wilson for confirmation of my story and to try to get more details from him. I debated calling him to give him a heads-up and put us on the same page. But Stacy wouldn't call him at home; she would wait until Tuesday and call him in the office. By tomorrow morning, I hoped that it would be true and not merely a fabrication to fool my ex-girlfriend. I decided to call him tomorrow and fill him in on everything.

Back in the living room, I poured myself a small scotch and sat, channel-surfing, waiting for Elle to come over.

_**Elle**_

It had truly been a fantastic day. I wasn't kidding when I told him that it was the best day I'd had in a long time. I turned on the shower and stripped off my clothes while I waited for the water to get hot. The shower felt really good. As much as I love the beach, it always feels good to wash the sand and salt out of my hair. With my hair wrapped up in a towel, I brushed my teeth and then padded into the bedroom to decide what to wear. I wanted to look nice but a little sexy. I found a pair of red lace panties and I slipped them on. Perfect. Then I settled on a light blue tank top and low-rider jeans. The color of the tank was light enough that you could just barely see my nipples through the fabric.

I unwrapped my hair and toweled it dry as best I could. It's so long and thick that it's hard to get it completely dry that way. I pulled out my blow dryer and worked on it for a few minutes.

I looked in the mirror and decided I looked all right, a little sexy, but not too slutty. I wanted to do this, but I still felt a little anxious. I headed into the kitchen and poured myself a small shot of liquid courage. I slugged it back and then I headed over to his place.

I walked in and House was sitting on the couch. I came up behind him and hugged him from behind. Pecking him on the cheek, I said: "House, what do you want for dinner?"

He watched me as I walked around the sofa and sat down next to him. He cupped my cheek and said: "You know, I really like it when you call me Greg." There was something about the look in his eyes; it made me want to melt right on the spot.

My breathing hitched. My mouth felt dry and I swallowed hard. I licked my dry lips and said: "OK. _Greg_, what would you like to eat?"

He leaned over and gently kissed the corner of my mouth and said: "You."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_House _

I leaned forward and kissed the corner of her mouth. Elle let out a small gasp and I pulled back to look at her. I saw desire in her eyes and I smiled. She smiled back and we closed the distance between us. I brushed my lips on hers and she captured my lower lip between hers. I felt her tongue lick my captured lip and a moan escaped my throat. I put my arms around her and pulled her closer. Snaking her arms around my neck, Elle released my lower lip just long enough to press both of hers against mine. I felt her tongue requesting permission to enter and I parted my lips. Her tongue slowly explored my mouth and mine joined her in the dance. Our lips clung to each other until our need for oxygen exceeded our passion. As we broke apart, gasping for air, my hand wandered under her shirt up her bare back. Her skin was so warm and smooth. Elle moaned and leaned her head back; her beautiful neck an offering to my mouth. I took the lovely gift and slowly kissed its lovely length. I found a particularly sensitive spot just under her left ear and I nibbled and sucked on it for a while. The most delicious moans escaped her throat while I nibbled.

I shifted my grip to pull her closer and she took the opportunity to slip off of my lap. Quickly she straddled me, taking care to put her weight on the sofa and not on my leg. She cupped my face in her hands stroking my cheek with her thumb. My hands slid all the way up her shirt. I encountered no bra so I slipped both hands around to the front and cupped her breasts. She gasped in surprise and then a look of pure delight took over her face. As I thumbed her nipples, she pressed her core against my growing erection. Growling, I ground my hips upwards into hers as my lips captured hers in a deep kiss. This time, my tongue was exploring in her mouth, tasting mint and scotch and something that had to be just her. I kissed her mouth as long as I could until the need for air became too great again. We broke apart only inches away from each other, breathing each other's air. Gazing into her eyes, I gasped out: "Bedroom?" She nodded and captured my mouth once again.

Elle carefully eased off of my lap while maintaining our lip lock. When she was standing, she let her hands slide down my arms until she grabbed my hands and tugged on me. I broke the kiss and extracted one of my hands to aid me in standing up. I used my free hand to help push me off of the couch and Elle pulled on my other arm.

Finally standing together, we embraced, pressing our bodies tightly together. My hand slid down to her ass and pressed her closer to my erection. She hummed as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss me again. Her lips were swollen and I licked and kissed them gently. I murmured: "Ready?" and I looked into her eyes. I saw no fear, only desire and I knew she was truthful when she replied: "Yes". I badly wanted to pick her up and carry her to the bed; my desire to possess her was quite strong. As that was impossible, I simply took her right hand in my left and we walked down the hall to the bedroom together.

As we came close to the bed, Elle playfully pushed me on the chest and I dropped onto the bed. She kneed my legs apart and positioned herself in between my thighs. I pulled her close and snuggled my face into the valley between her breasts. I couldn't wait to see them; I had dreamed of her breasts. I backed away and slowly slid her shirt up. Elle raised her arms to aid me and I pulled the shirt off over her head, tossing it on the floor.

I inhaled deeply when I saw them; they were just as beautiful as I had dreamed. They were small but perky with pink nipples that were already erect. I gently cupped each breast and then leaned forward and took one in my mouth. Elle moaned as I licked and sucked her nipple, while my thumb teased the other one. I felt her fingers stroking my hair.

Not wanting to play favorites, I switched my attention to the other breast eliciting another moan from Elle.

She tugged at my shirt and I helped her pull it off. It joined hers on the floor. She leaned down and tangled her fingers in my chest hair. Elle sighed: "I've been wanting to do this since the first time I saw you bare-chested."

Growling, I wrapped my arms around her and lifted her onto the bed. We lay next to each other, legs dangling off the edge of the bed.

She wrapped her arms around me and pressed her breasts into my chest. We rubbed out bare chests together and it felt delicious.

Our mouths found each other's again. We kissed as our hands explored each other's body.

Elle stroked my chest and ran her hand down my belly to my jeans. I felt her fumbling with my zipper and I chuckled: "In a hurry, little girl? You've already seen it."

She whispered her reply: "Yes, but I didn't get to touch it."

_Oh Sweet Jesus! _My eyes closed and my hands continued to caress her back as she unzipped my jeans and slipped her hand inside. I groaned at the first tentative touch of her fingertips. Then I felt her thumb encircle the head, catching the drop of pre-cum and smearing it around the head.

Her hand moved further down and grasped my shaft. I groaned again, my head lolling back at her soft touch.

She stroked me slowly while planting small kisses across my chest. She kissed my sensitive spot at the hollow of my throat and I moaned thrusting my hips against her hand.

I heard her chuckle as she licked that spot. Then she removed her hand and started tugging on my jeans. I raised my hips to help and Elle succeeded in pulling them off. They ended up in a heap on the floor.

There I was in my boxers while Elle was still wearing her jeans. I muttered: "This isn't balanced, must correct the imbalance".

I kissed her neck while I unbuttoned her jeans. I pushed them down over her hips and slowly down her luscious legs to join mine on the floor.

Elle was left wearing a small pair of red lace panties. She looked absolutely lovely.

I fingered the waistband: "Nice. Did you put these on just for me?"

She smiled shyly: "Yes."

My breath hitched; she had dressed for me. She had prepared for this before she came over tonight. My libido went into overdrive.

I hooked one arm under her knees and the other under her back. I gently lifted her and placed her further up the bed so her head rested on the pillows.

I gently spread her legs and kissed her inner thighs. I worked my way up to her center and mouthed her through the fabric. Her panties were saturated and I was thrilled with her response. I nuzzled her for a bit through the fabric eliciting some delicious groans from her. Then taking the waistband between my teeth, I gently tugged her panties down, revealing all of her beautiful body. When her panties were down to her knees, I grabbed them with my hand and pulled them the rest of the way down her legs. I untangled them from her feet and tossed them into the air, noticing that they ended up on the bedpost, hanging there like a red flag. I chuckled inwardly: "_Two points!"_

I turned and looked at her naked body. I had been hungry, starving actually, for such a long time. Now there was a grand feast before my eyes and I was going to devour every morsel of it.

My eyes moved up her body to her face. She was quietly watching me.

"You are so beautiful," I whispered as I lowered my mouth to her breast.

I laved each breast with my tongue; then I kissed my way down her belly. I tongued her belly button, eliciting a delightful squeal.

I nuzzled her soft hair and flicked my tongue over her nub.

"Oh my God," she sighed as I moved on to gently nibble the soft skin of her inner thighs. I lapped at her clit again; she moaned and pushed her hips towards my mouth. I teased her entrance with my finger; she was dripping wet. It was time for my feast.

I gently licked her outer lips and pushed my tongue inside. It elicited the loudest groan and the hardest thrust yet. I alternated between fucking her with my tongue and lapping up her juices. Occasionally I would move up and suck gently on her clit. This threatened to send her over the edge too quickly and I wanted to stretch things out. I lapped her entire core with occasional forays to nibble at her inner thighs. My finger carelessly stroked in and out of her entrance.

Elle was thrashing her head from side to side. She was moaning and muttering almost incoherently, switching from English to French and back again: "_O mon dieu_, oh yeah, _si bon_, fantastic, oh_, c'est si bon_."

I pressed my flattened tongue hard against her clit; she let out a small scream and bucked up against my mouth. I rubbed her nub hard with my tongue and then I felt her hand cup my cheek.

She was breathing heavily, almost panting. She moaned: "Greg. Come up here. I want you inside me when I come."

I needed no further invitation. I hurriedly slipped my boxers off. Mt. Gregory was fully erect. There was only one other decision to make.

"Condom?" I asked breathlessly.

"I'm on the Pill and you've seen my blood tests, so you know I'm clean. What about you?"

"I got tested 3 months ago. Clean. I haven't been with anyone since then."

"I think we can go bareback, don't you?"

I nodded and kissed my way back up her body.

I lay between her spread legs, my weight mostly on my left elbow and left leg. We kissed while I teased at her entrance, first with my fingers and then with my head. When the head of my dick first touched her entrance, Elle moaned out: "Oh! That's so good. More."

I pushed into her slightly and just held it there. I wanted to go slowly and not hurt her. I pushed a bit more. She was incredibly tight. I felt her deliberately clench and unclench her walls around my dick. That felt amazing and I knew I was going to have to focus or I would lose it too quickly.

Elle thrust against me and whispered: "Come inside, I won't break." She smiled, appreciating my concern and indicating that it was OK to proceed.

I started gently thrusting, going deeper with each one. My eyes stayed focused on hers; I wanted to be able to see right away if she had any fear or discomfort. But I only saw pleasure and desire in her eyes. I continued to thrust until I was completely inside of her. Her walls were tight around me; the feeling was incredible. It was a lovely fit.

We lay looking into each other's eyes while my cock was buried completely buried inside her. She gently clenched me and I moaned. She smiled at my reaction and pushed against me. I started thrusting, slowly at first, and then as our passion increased, so did my speed. We fell into a glorious rhythm.

I sensed that we were both getting close and I wanted her to come first. I licked my thumb and place it between our bodies, right on her clit. I continued to thrust and I pressed on her clit at the same time.

It didn't take long to send her over the edge. A few more thrusts and she moaned: "Oh, god, oh Greg, I'm gonna come."

I whispered: "Come for me, sweetheart." I couldn't take my eyes off of her; I wanted to see her face when she came. She looked right into my eyes and I felt the wave hit. It was category 4 hurricane force. Her walls clamped down tightly on my dick and I felt a flood of moisture.

She moaned: "Greg, oh, Greg." Elle tried to keep her eyes open, but her eyelids won and they slowly closed. I continued to thrust and rub while she rode out her orgasm. Finally she clutched my right arm and I interpreted that to mean that she had had enough for now. I removed my thumb from her clit and stilled my movements.

She panted: "Oh, wow, oh, wow. Just give me a sec." Her eyelids fluttered open and she reached out to caress my cheek.

I nuzzled and licked one nipple and then the other. I moved up to her neck and nuzzled and kissed her sweet spot until she was purring again. I slid one hand down to her ass and pushed her against me. She responded by wrapping her left leg around my ass and pushing me closer.

I growled; I could hardly contain myself any more. Then she sent me over the edge by whispering: "Fuck me Greg. I want to feel you come inside me."

I growled again and started thrusting harder than before. I put my hand under her thigh and hitched her leg up a little higher, allowing me just a bit more access. Elle's arms were wrapped around my neck, one hand caressing my hair.

It didn't take long, 5 or 6 good hard thrusts and I exploded deep inside her. I heard myself moan: "Elle, oh, god, Elle". Sparks exploded behind my eyelids. I clutched her tightly to me. I pumped her 3 or 4 more times riding out my orgasm and then I collapsed on top of her.

Conscious of my body weight on her small body, I wrapped my arms around her and rolled us until I was lying on my left side, my cock still buried deep inside her. I wanted to stay inside her as long as I could.

My chest heaving, I peppered her face with kisses with she eagerly returned.  
"Sweet, so sweet" I whispered as I nibbled on her earlobe. She purred in response and clamped her walls on my softening member as if to keep him inside as long as possible.

Our lips met and we kissed deeply with our tongues dancing in a now familiar rhythm. As we kissed, Mt. Gregory softened enough to fall out of her; I immediately felt the loss of her warmth. Elle must have felt it also as she pressed her core up against me.

I kissed her cheek and moved over to the sweet spot on her neck again. This time, I kissed harder. I nipped and sucked, Elle purring contently under my ministrations. I sucked harder, wanting to leave my mark on her.

When I had finished to my satisfaction, I leaned back to admire my work.

In a deep voice, I whispered in her ear: "Mine."

Elle sighed and buried her face in my chest. Right before we both dozed off, I heard her murmur: "_Je suis a vous_."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

**_House _**

The first time you have sex with someone, the moments immediately post-coital can be a bit awkward. What to say? Where to touch? Will she want to have another go? Am I up to it? Would it be rude to just roll over and go to sleep?

None of these usual questions went through my mind after my first time with Elle. We contently dozed in each other's arms. I vaguely remembered a line from one of Richard Pryor's routines. He said something like this: "You know you've satisfied a woman if she falls asleep immediately after sex."

I was happy to see that I had done that to Elle. I kissed and nuzzled her forehead. She sighed and smiled in her sleep. I couldn't help smiling back. She was so sweet and affectionate. I bent my head down and brushed her lips. She sighed again as she snuggled in closer to me.

I was amazed. This beautiful creature wanted me: an old scarred gimp with a Vicodin habit. How did I get so fucking lucky? If I believed in a god, I would be down on my not-so-steady knees thanking him right now.

I tenderly kissed her forehead again, savoring the taste of her skin.

She hummed and opened her eyes: "Hey, I fell asleep on you."

"That's alright. I fell asleep too."

"You did?"

I nodded, cradling her closer. I was never much of a cuddler after sex, but she felt so good that I didn't want to let go of her.

Elle reached up and stroked my cheek. I pressed into her hand, and then turned my head to kiss her palm. I bent down and pressed my lips to hers. She parted her lips immediately and I slipped my tongue in. our bodies rocked together as we kissed. Suddenly I rolled her on top of me, never breaking our lip-lock. I ran my hands down her back until I cupped her sweet ass.

Mt. Gregory was rising again and I pressed her hips down onto my growing desire.

She giggled against my mouth: "Um, somehow, we've ended up in your favorite position."

I licked her lips as I squeezed her ass: "Any complaints?"

"No," she breathed against my mouth, rubbing her core against me.

She lifted up on her knees a bit to take her weight off of me, but I pressed her back down. "You weigh nothing, lay on me."

She did lying down on top of the length of my body, her legs straddling my hips. She planted little kisses on my chest and licked my nipples, flicking at them with her tongue. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensations; my hands busy stroking her hair and her ass.

"Tell me the most unusual place you ever did it."

Elle giggled: "Hmm, let me see. Out in the woods. That was fun. I really liked that."

She giggled again and pressed her face into my chest. "Oh wait, I have a better one. At the university library, they had these little study rooms. We'd tape a piece of paper over the window and, you know, have a study break."

She giggled some more and I relished the feel of her body vibrating against mine.

"Oh, but there was that one time." She looked thoughtful as she mentally reminisced the event. I stroked her thigh to encourage her to continue.

"It was probably the riskiest time. We stood the most chance of getting caught."

She blushed a bit. "We were on the 3rd floor of the library late at night. Hardly anyone ever went up there. That floor had the old bound pre-1960's journals. Well, we did it on a table right out in the middle of the room. Anyone could have walked up the stairs and seen us."

I loved how open she was with me, telling me these stories.

I smirked: "Was it hot?"

She giggled again: "Yes."

She looked at me with mischief in her eyes: "And what about you?"

I continued to tenderly caress her ass as I said: "In the anatomy lab at University of Michigan."

Her eyes were wide as she said: "With the cadavers lying around?"

I nodded: "Yep. I was a teaching assistant and well, sometimes a student would need some extra tutoring." I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

She smirked: "I bet the pretty ones needed a lot of extra tutoring."

"Well, there were so many, I had to be selective."

She chuckled and sprinkled kisses across my chest: "Where else?"

"Um, glass elevator in a Vegas hotel. I'm still amazed we didn't get caught, although I'm sure someone was watching on the security cameras. I bet they had an eyeful that night. Although I must say, it's very handy when you women go commando under a dress."

Elle giggled again and crawled up my body. She gently kissed and suckled the tip of my nose then her lips found my mouth and we kissed tenderly.

My hands were all over her body, exploring, touching and caressing. I wanted to know her, know all the spots that make her sigh and the ones that make her scream.

As I stroked her, she started kissing her way down my body. When she got to my belly, she flicked her long hair to one side. Gathering it in her hand, she started stroking my dick and balls with it.

OH, the sensations were incredible. Her hair was so soft and it felt absolutely amazing. No one had ever done that to me before. Elle watched my face as she caressed me, smiling at my reaction.

After that attention, Mt. Gregory was back at his full height. Elle flicked her hair out of the way and proceeded to lick my shaft. She gave one long lick from top to bottom and then she gently licked my balls.

After giving my balls a few minutes of attention, she licked her way back up my length, swirling her tongue in a most delightful manner. She encircled the head with her tongue, licking up my pre-cum.

I moaned as she took me in her mouth. In one thrust, she swallowed as much of me as she could take. As she came back up, she sucked and swirled her tongue against the underside of my shaft. It was incredible. She circled the head with her tongue and suckled it gently. Then she swallowed me again and repeated the sucking and swirling on the way back up.

It felt amazing. I closed my eyes and let the sensations flood my body, my hand stroking her hair. She shifted her body on the bed and was able to take me in a bit deeper. I groaned. I didn't want her to stop, but I knew this would finish me for the night and I wanted to share the fun.

I put my finger to her throat to stop her. She looked so incredibly sexy looking up at me with my dick in her mouth. I almost lost it right there.

I managed to croak out: "Climb on top, sweetheart."

She smiled around my cock, and with one last delicious lick/suck, she straddled my hips. She took my cock in her hand and teased her entrance with the head. She was very wet. She positioned herself and slowly slid down my length. I groaned as I watched her do it. Her eyes were closed and she had the most blissful look on her face.

With her hands on my chest for balance, she started riding me, slowly at first, and then picking up the tempo. My hands held onto her hips encouraging her on. I leaned forward and took a nipple into my mouth. Elle moaned and grasped the back on my head urging me on. I switched to the other one and received an equally loud moan.

I lay back and watched her. Her skin was flushed with excitement and her small breasts bounced so nicely. Watching my cock go in and out of her was an exceptional visual. I was getting so close.

I stuck my thumb in her mouth and she eagerly sucked it. When it was nice and wet, I applied it to her clit and she gasped in pleasure. She trembled and her head lolled back, showing me her creamy white throat. I leaned forward and bit her neck gently. She cried out and I bit harder, sucking on the spot.

I could feel her walls spasm and I knew she was close. With one hand I squeezed her ass and the other pressed harder on her clit. I took her nipple in my mouth again and sucked hard; that sent her over the edge. I felt her orgasm come in waves; my cock flooded with a fresh flow of her juices.

I could hear her cries but I couldn't comprehend them. I was too caught up in my own passion. Holding her down, I thrust hard up into her probably 3 times when my own orgasm rocked me. I came just as she was riding the end of hers and the explosion made her come again.

Our cries were incoherent moans as we thrust again each other riding out our orgasms. Elle collapsed on me and I wrapped my arms around her. We were both panting, unable to speak. A thin sheen of perspiration covered our flushed bodies.

We lay together like that for a while, neither of us wanting to move. My cock started to soften and I felt her clench her walls in an attempt to keep him inside of her. It was a losing battle and after a few minutes, I fell out of her.

We both sighed at the loss. I gently stroked her damp hair away from her face and kissed her gently. I held her for a few minutes, and then gently rolled our bodies until we were lying on our sides.

We simply lay there for a while, holding each other and gently kissing and stroking each other. Then a spasm shot through my leg and I hissed in pain, clutching my thigh.

I felt Elle's hand atop mine immediately. Embarrassed, I tried to shake her off, but she hung in.

"Lay back cowboy."

I did as I was told. It hurt too much to think.

She sat up and her hands moved over my damaged thigh. The perspiration gave her enough lubrication that she didn't need to get the lotion. As she massaged my thigh, she talked me through it: "Don't hold your breath. Just breathe. Don't think of anything else. Just focus on your breath. Feel it entering your body through your nose and exiting through your mouth. In through your nose and out through your mouth. Just breathe."

I focused as hard as I could on her words and tried to follow. She continued to massage my thigh and speak calmly and softly to me. After 10 or 15 minutes of her treatment, the spasm subsided to a more tolerable level. My breathing was even and my heart rate was back to normal. I opened my eyes just in time to see Elle plant a tender kiss right in the middle of my scar. Tears welled in my eyes; I had to blink rapidly to get rid of them.

I saw Elle's eyes scan the nightstand. There was nothing there but the lamp and a journal. "Want your Vicodin, cowboy? Scotch or beer to wash it down?"

"Scotch, please. I think I left them on the coffee table."

She nodded: "I'll be right back."

I watched her pad out of the room, stark naked. She had such a lovely ass.

I closed my eyes and tried to calm my breathing as the spasm threatened to return. _Why was she so good to me?_ I tried my best to analyze this question and I could not come up with an answer.

Before I could ponder it any further, Elle walked back into the room. She shook out 2 Vicodins and handed them to me along with the glass of scotch.

I swallowed the tablets and slugged down the shot of scotch.

Elle set down the box of lidocaine patches on the nightstand and said: "I'll be right back."

I heard the water run in the bathroom and I wondered what she was doing. She didn't keep me waiting long. After a few minutes, she walked back in with a towel and a damp washcloth.

She started to rub the washcloth gently over my scar.

I asked: "What are you doing?"

"Washing off the sweat, so the patches will stick better."

"You know you don't have to play nursemaid to me."

She smirked: "I'm not playing nursemaid. If you want me to do that, I'll get a naughty nurse outfit and wear it for you. Then I'm sure we could come up with lots of fun things for me to do for you. Perhaps a sponge bath, or checking **all** of your vitals."

"That might be fun."

I watched as she gently washed and dried my scar and the surrounding area. She pulled 2 patches out of the box and tore open the envelopes. Elle gently placed them over my scar and pressed them on securely.

She glanced at the clock: "10:30."

I nodded, making note of the time in my head.

I pulled her into the bed next to me. She lay down with her head on my chest and stroked my happy trail.

I chuckled: "Are you still horny?"

"Not at the moment. I feel VERY satisfied." She continued to stroke me and then said in a soft voice: "I just like to touch you."

I smiled and stroked her hair. "I like that too."

I looked down at her, still lying on my chest and stroking me. She was beautiful and so sweet. Eventually she would figure out what a bastard I was and leave my sorry ass. Hopefully that day was a ways off and we could have some fun for a little while. She could find someone younger and healthier than me. Maybe I could just help her heal from the rape. That would be good. Then she could find someone else, someone who deserved her.

Today had been good, really good. She made me feel young and desirable again. I wanted to enjoy it as long as I could.

Elle suddenly poked her head up, jolting me from my depressing thoughts.

"Are you hungry, cowboy? We never did have dinner. How about I order us some Chinese?"

"Yeah, that sounds good."

Elle jumped off the bed and headed down the hall, returning with the phone and the menu.

As she pondered the menu, I asked: "Are you going to answer the door naked, too?"

She looked at me with mischief in her eyes: "Are you daring me?"

I grabbed her and pulled her, squealing, back onto the bed. "Nope, no dare. No one can see you naked except me. Mine. All mine." I growled in her ear.

She laughed: "A tad possessive there, cowboy?"

I brushed my lips on her, and then I licked hers top and bottom. "Yes," I whispered.

Elle chuckled and we scrutinized the menu together. She phoned in a feast of beef lo mein, sizzling shrimp and General Tso's chicken. We decided we would eat in the living room so I pulled on a pair of boxers and grabbed my biggest t-shirt for Elle. It covered all of her assets, but just barely.

I sat on the couch watching as she answered the door. The guy's eyes bugged out of his head, but he saw me glaring at him, so he conducted the transaction quickly and got out of here. Elle brought the food over to the coffee table. As she bent over to set it down, the shirt rode up a bit and I got a fine view of her ass.

Then I noticed something that I hadn't seen before. Elle had 3 thin scars on her right cheek. They were thin vertical lines, almost side by side. They were very faint. I gently stroked the scars and she stiffened immediately.

Looking over her shoulder at me, eyes wide, she said softly: "Don't ask. Not tonight."

I nodded, never taking my eyes off of hers. She broke eye contact first, heading to the kitchen for plates and beer. I watched her walk away and then closed my eyes, wondering for the umpteenth time how many bad things had happened to her in her life.

We ate our feast while watching TV. There was a 'Sex and the City' marathon on channel 12 and we watched several episodes of that.

Dinner and 3 beers later, we were feeling sated and decided to head off to bed.

Elle pulled back the sheet and before she could climb it, I tugged the t-shirt off of her.

"I want you naked in my bed."

She gave me a sultry look and with one good yank, my boxers were at my ankles. "Likewise, cowboy." She reached out and stroked Mt. Gregory.

I hummed and said: "I'm not sure he'll wake up again tonight. He's had a good workout."

She smiled and said: "That's OK. Told you, I like to touch."

I put my hands on her shoulders and pulled her to me: "Touch all you want."

We climbed into bed and rubbed our naked bodies against each other. We touched and tickled and kissed and caressed. Even our toes tangled with each other's. We didn't have sex again, but our playtime was fun. Finally tuckered out, I turned off the light and pulled her close to me.

Elle snuggled into my chest and murmured: "Thank you, cowboy."

I whispered: "For what, sweetheart?"

She yawned as she caressed my chest: "For the very best day I've had in a very long time." She planted one more kiss on my chest and sighed. She was asleep within seconds.

I smiled. It was the best day I'd had in a long time too. And tomorrow was the 4th of July, which meant another day off. We had another day together before going back to the grind.

I reached down to pull the sheet over us, but it was all tangled up in our legs. I couldn't untangle it without disturbing Elle and I didn't want to wake her. It was a warm night and we really didn't need the cover. I wrapped my arm around her and fell asleep with Elle cuddled into my chest.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

_**Wilson **_

It was a strange message that Stacy left on my cell phone. I must have been taking out the trash when she called on Sunday night. So it wasn't until Monday morning when I checked the phone that I heard the message.

She sounded quite agitated. She spoke of running into House and his 'girlfriend' at the beach and wanted me to call her and tell her the whole story.

I knew House had gone to the beach with Elle. What bad luck they had to run into Stacy. But it sounded like they had pulled some scam on her and tricked her into believing that Elle was House's girlfriend. I bet this was a good story and I couldn't wait to hear it.

Holiday or no, Julie was off to her tennis lesson again. I puttered around the house for a while, and then I tried calling House around 10:30 AM. Naturally, he didn't answer. I would have been surprised if he had.

Since I had nothing else to do, I decided to pop over there and get the story straight from the horse's mouth about their interaction with Stacy.

I banged on the door, but there was no answer, so I let myself in. I could see that Chinese food and beer were on the menu for last night's dinner by the debris remaining on the coffee table. I smirked. I wondered if Elle 'slept over' again last night to keep the nightmares at bay.

I shouted "House!" as I walked down the hall. I may as well give him some time to wake up before I walked in.

I banged my fist on the door as I walked through the opening, and then my jaw hit the floor.

_**House **_

I thought I heard the phone ring, but I ignored it. There was a warm naked beautiful woman in my bed and nothing else mattered. I pulled her closer to me and dozed back off.

Sometime later, I thought I heard some banging. Elle groaned and burrowed her face deeper into my chest. I kissed the top of her head and rested my chin there. One arm slid lower down her body and gripped her ass, pulling her hips closer to me. My morning erection was wide-awake and even if I wasn't, I wanted to feel her core next to me. Elle was still mostly asleep, but she still wiggled her hips towards me and maneuvered herself until Mt. Gregory was pressed up against her center. I heard her sigh at the contact and I smiled. The rest of me was starting to wake up and morning sex seemed like a great idea. My hand started to caress her body when I was startled by a shout, then another loud knock.

My eyes popped wide open when I realized that Wilson was standing in the room. Elle and I were both completely naked and uncovered and he was getting an eye-full.

_**Wilson **_

I stood there stunned. Well, there was no doubt this time that they were doing it. Clothes were all over the floor; a pair of red lace panties hung on the bedpost. And the two of them were completely naked in the bed curled up together. They were so entwined that I couldn't see much, but I could see that Elle's gorgeous ass had a huge bruise on it. I wondered where that came from.

House had woken up and he hissed at me: "What the hell are you doing? Get out of here!"

"Naw, this is too much fun. You've been lying to me, pal. Told me that you two weren't knocking boots and here you are. STACY tipped me off; I have to hear it from your ex. You couldn't tell me."

"That's because last night was the first time, damn it. Now, go on, get out of here."

"Naw, I think I'll stay. Consider it payback for all the times you tormented me."

"Elle never did anything to you. Don't embarrass her."

"If she wants to be with you, she'll have to learn to put up with the whole package, won't she?"

House leaned down in a vain attempt to grab the sheet to cover up. I chuckled at his desperation and pulled out my cell phone. I thought a little photographic blackmail was in order.

He looked even more horrified. "You wouldn't dare. You wouldn't do that to Elle."

"It's you, I'm doing it to, pal."

As I aimed the phone, a quiet voice piped into the conversation. I turned and looked at Elle. She was wide-awake now and quite serious-looking.

"Jimmy, please turn around." She said it in such a commanding, no-nonsense manner that I felt compelled to comply. I turned around and slipped my phone back into my pocket. I was beginning to feel a bit foolish.

_**Elle **_

I thought I heard some banging, but it seemed too early to get up. I groaned and buried my face into Greg's chest. I felt so safe and warm all wrapped up in his arms. I could feel his erection and I wiggled closer. It felt so good pressed up against my center. The rhythm of his breathing and heartbeat were soothing. I sighed with contentment. I must have dozed back off because when I became aware again, I could feel tension in his body. His heartbeat had increased and his breathing was ragged. I stroked his chest to try to calm him and then I heard him hiss: "You wouldn't dare."

Then to my complete surprise, I heard another voice answer him, a voice I recognized. That woke me up fully. I poked my head up and saw Wilson standing next to the bed. He had his phone out and was aiming it at us! We were naked and completely uncovered. Greg was trying to reach down and pull the sheet over us while shielding my body from Wilson's sight, but the sheet seemed out of his reach.

I was getting mad. How dare Wilson disturb us like this? Who does he think he is barging into Greg's bedroom this way? I forced myself to be calm and, in my most commanding voice, said: "Jimmy, please turn around."

**_House _**

I wanted to kill him. How dare he come into my home, gape at my girl and threaten to take photos no less! I tried to grab the sheet, but it was still hopelessly tangled. I pleaded with him to leave to spare Elle's embarrassment, but instead he whips out his cell phone to take a photo.

In the midst of all of this, Elle woke up. I felt horrible as she realized that Wilson was seeing us naked. I could see she was on the road towards MADville.

In a serious tone, she asked Wilson to please turn around. Surprisingly he complied. She quickly bent down and grabbed the sheet and pulled it up over us. I tucked it around her, making sure she was completely covered up.

Wide-eyed, she looked at me and asked, in French: "_What the hell is he doing here?"_

I shook my head: "_I don't know. I woke up and he was here."_

She rolled her eyes: "_Mon dieu_."

Then switching back to English, she said: "Jimmy, you can turn around now, and tell us why you are here."

He turned and managed to look sheepish this time. His cockiness was gone, but I still wanted to punch him for ruining our morning. He nervously rubbed the back of his neck and said: "Stacy left me a very strange message. She said that she and Mark saw you two at the beach, and you were all lovey-dovey. She wanted to know when you acquired a new girlfriend, and why was she only 20? She sounded very agitated, angry almost so I wanted to find out what happened. As usual, you didn't answer the phone or the door, so I walked in."

He plopped down, uninvited, on the edge of the bed and said: "So, what happened at the beach? Oh, and let me say from the get-go, I'm extremely happy that you two are finally knocking boots."

Surprisingly Elle laughed. "This is just too funny. First we run into your ex and her husband and they give us all kinds of shit. Then she calls Wilson to tattle on us, and now Jimmy comes over here to give us the third degree. This is just hysterical. Does anyone let you mind your own business or is everyone up your ass?"

Relief rushed through my body. I was glad that she saw some humor in it. I was concerned that she was going to be extremely mad about all this.

I said to her in French: "_Jimmy's always up my ass about something, usually it's my Vicodin use. Are you alright?"_

"_I'm pissed that he disturbed us. And I'm pissed he saw us naked"_

"_He'll pay for that. I'm going to get him back."_

Elle smirked and smoothed her hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. Then she repositioned her head on my shoulder and snaked her arm across my chest. Then she asked: "_So what are we going to do with him now?" _

"_You can tell him what happened at the beach if you want. It is a pretty funny story. And once he hears the tale, I'm sure he'll leave."_

"_You want me to do it? You don't want to?"_

I shook my head: "_Naw, you tell it."_ I just wanted to lie there and hold her, but I couldn't tell her that.

Elle nodded. She started telling Wilson the tale: how when she walked back from getting cotton candy that the Warners were there, how I kissed her in front of them and introduced her as 'my lady'. She explained how Stacy seemed to be jealous and Mark was ogling her in her bikini.

I interrupted her story: "I didn't realize that you noticed his reaction."

She giggled: "Oh, please. He was so obvious. That's why I was kinda flirting with him. I knew it would piss her off."

Wilson said: "You wanted to piss her off? You just met her and you wanted to do that already?"

"Yeah, she was mean from the get-go. Insinuating that I was too young for Greg and I was attracted to him for his money. I got her back good. I told her I was attracted to him for his big dick."

Wilson burst out laughing. "I bet that went over well."

"Oh yeah, it did. And I guess you saw the bruise on my back?"

He nodded sheepishly.

"Well, I told them that I got that from Greg screwing me bent over the bathroom sink and how I didn't feel it in the heat of the moment. Mark was impressed and Stacy was shocked!" Elle giggled at the memory.

Elle was warming to telling the story now. "Oh yeah, and I called Greg 'cowboy' and Stacy wanted to know why I called him that and I told her that it's because he rides me so well. And I told Mark he should jazz up his cane cuz it's a chick magnet and the flaming cane is what initially attracted me to Greg. Mark said thanks but he's married."

Wilson chuckled. We waited for Elle to continue, but she pressed her face into my shoulder and didn't say anything more.

I nudged her: "Are you going to tell him the rest?"

She shook her head: "You tell him. I didn't like that part. Really made me mad." She buried her face into my neck.

I looked at Wilson and said: "Stacy wanted to know how we met. So to keep the record straight, we met at the hospital. She works with you as an oncology pharmacist and that's how I met her. We didn't tell Stacy that Elle does pain management or that she's my neighbor. She thinks we've been together for 3 weeks. Got it?"

He nodded. He glanced at Elle and back at me with a questioning look on his face.

I continued: "When Stacy found out that Elle is a pharmacist, she made a crack about what I see in her is my new Vicodin connection."

Jimmy looked stunned: "No. She didn't,,,,"

I continued: "Yeah, she did. But Elle was great. She got right in her face and told her that if Stacy ever accused her of illegal activity again, she'd sue her ass. And when Stacy heard that Bill Arnello was Elle's lawyer, Stacy backed right off."

Jimmy said: "Good for you, Elle."

Elle still had her face buried in my neck. I hugged her reassuringly and continued: "Then we started making out in front of them. Mark managed to get the hint and he dragged Stacy out of our hair."

"So that why she called for the inside scoop. You two put on a good show. Well, I'll stick to the party line and feed them the same information."

I nodded my appreciation.

Elle still seemed uncomfortable. It was kind of hard to reassure her with Jimmy still in the room. I whispered in her ear: "_I didn't get to tell you before, but I was really proud of how you handled that with Stacy. You were fantastic."_

She looked up at me with a surprised expression on her face: "_Really? You were proud of me?"_

I nodded: "_Oui."_ And then I kissed her. I didn't care that Wilson was watching. I needed to kiss her right then.

She smiled shyly. She seemed pleased by the compliment. "_Merci,"_ she whispered before she buried her face in my neck again.

I stroked her cheek. I wondered what went on in her mind. One minute she was so saucy and feisty, and the next she seemed really shy and unsure.

I felt the bed bounce as Wilson stood up. I looked up at him as he spoke: "So, what is all this?"

"What do you mean?"

He waved his hand between the two of us: "This, the two of you. What is going on? What about at work?"

I shrugged: "We don't work together. I'm not her boss. So I don't see why there would be any problem at work."

"So does this mean you two are an item now?"

Elle popped her head up. "What is this, the Inquisition? We slept together one night and you're analyzing us? Are we on Oprah or something?"

Elle looked at me and asked in French: _"Why is he still here?"_

I shook my head: _"I don't know."_

She looked at Wilson and back at me and then announced: "I'm going spelunking." And with that, she ducked under the sheet. I could feel her body sliding down beside mine.

I saw a puzzled look on Jimmy's face and he said: "Spelunking? What the heck is,,,,?"

He never got to finish the question as I exclaimed: "AHHHHHH!"

You could see her body moving under the sheet. It really took no imagination at all to figure out what Elle was doing under there.

I lifted the sheet to get the full view and liked what I was seeing. Grinning,

I lowered the sheet just a bit and said to Wilson: "Jimmy, I think you better leave now. Spelunking requires privacy." I pulled the sheet over my head and reached down to her.

I heard Jimmy chuckling as he walked out of the room. Finally we heard the front door slam.

"He's gone, sweetheart."

Elle smiled as best she could, considering that she had Mt. Gregory in her mouth.

I smiled and stroked her inner thigh as I watched her continue with her spelunking.

**_Wilson _**

I couldn't believe that the two of them had actually done the deed. I couldn't believe that I walked in on them. I couldn't believe that House was allowing himself to finally get involved with someone again. I couldn't believe that Elle would get involved with someone as complicated as House. I couldn't believe their bad luck with running into Stacy at the beach, but maybe that was the straw that broke the camel's back. Perhaps their faux "make-out session" is what stirred their passion enough to do something in bed together besides sleep.

All these thoughts were running around in my brain and crashing into each other. This was all so unbelievable.

I sat in my car, frozen, unable to decide where to go or what to do.

I knew Stacy expected a return phone call, but I just couldn't do it yet. I needed to calm down. I was expected to have known about this for the last 3 weeks, so I couldn't have any surprise in my voice as I spoke about them. I would wait until later tonight or tomorrow to call her back.

I had to chuckle at Elle's boldness to go 'spelunking' with me in the room. I knew it was just a signal for me to get the hell out of there, but the look on House's face had been priceless. I wish I had taken a photo of that.

Elle was a little pistol. I think House has finally met the right girl. She seemed like she could handle him. If he tried any crap with her, she would give it right back, gift-wrapped. Witness her behavior at the poker game and how she handled Stacy at the beach. Elle was no pushover. He won't admit to being in love, but he was certainly showing all the signs of it. Certainly his possessiveness and overprotective behavior spoke volumes of the feelings that he would probably never admit to having. I wonder if House realizes how lucky he is. Knowing him, probably not. He will undoubtedly screw it up in the near future and I'll have to pick up the pieces again, just like after Stacy left.

I needed to talk about this with someone and there was only one person that I could think of. I picked up my cell phone and punched in a number. Fortunately that person was home and available for a visit, so I started up my car and headed over to Lisa Cuddy's home.

I arrived at Lisa's in about 20 minutes. She answered the door right away. It was apparent that she had already been on her morning run as she was still wearing track pants and a sweaty tank top. Her hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail. She had a fine sheen of perspiration on her face that she was wiping away with a small towel. I could see her semi-erect nipples through the thin damp fabric of her tank top. I felt my cock twitch. She actually looked incredibly sexy all sweaty and messy like this. She was always so neat and pulled together at work; I had never seen her like this.

Geez, what a morning. First I walk in on naked House and Elle; now I'm finding a sweaty Cuddy sexy. I tried to think back to the last time Julie and I had sex and I realized that I couldn't remember. That was really pathetic.

Thankfully, Cuddy interrupted my thoughts by offering to make me some coffee. I accepted gratefully and followed her into the kitchen. She started the coffee brewing and we both sat down at the kitchen table.

Lisa began: "So what's up that you needed to drop by on a holiday? What couldn't wait until tomorrow?" She laughed and said: "What has he done this time?"

I couldn't help smiling at her comment: "What makes you think that it's House?"

She threw up her hands: "Who else could it be? Come on, spill it."

"Are you aware that he is neighbors with Elle Kaplan, the new pharmacist?"

"What? Do you mean, live-near-each-other, neighbors?

"Exactly. They are in-the-same-building, across-the-hall neighbors."

"Oh my Gawd, what has he done to her? Is she going to quit or sue?"

I laughed: "Actually, neither. He's befriended her."

Cuddy looked shocked: "What? House made friends with her? You're joking? What's his ulterior motive? He must have one."

"Well, it's kind of a long story."

"I've got time. All I have to do is some paperwork and believe me; it can wait. This is much more interesting. Start while I get the coffee."

Cuddy walked over to the counter and poured coffee into 2 mugs. Her ass looked terrific in those clingy track pants. No wonder House stared at it all the time and made those comments. It was bodacious.

When she returned to the table and had taken her seat again, I started the story. I told her the whole thing right from the very beginning when I held the door open for Elle the night she started painting the apartment. I told her about the meal deal and the coffee arrangement. I told her how House had gone to see her play at the club.

She was surprised. "He's really into her?"

"There's more." I told her about the nightmares and how he comforted her through them. And the fact that he let her sleep in his bed so she wouldn't be scared.

Cuddy seemed completely stunned: "House comforting another human being? Are we in the Twilight Zone or something?"

I waited for her to digest that piece of news. This whole tale was a lot to take in.

She shook her head in disbelief. "House let a pretty girl sleep in his bed with him and without getting any? He comforted her through nightmares? You are sure of this?"

I nodded. I told her about the time I walked in on them and the time House broke into her apartment.

She was completely flabbergasted. I sat there waiting to dump the last bombshell.

She looked up at me and said: "And there's more, isn't there? I can tell by the look on your face that you have something else to tell me."

"Yes, there is one more part. They went to the beach yesterday. They ran into the Warners there."

Her eyes grew big: "They ran into Stacy and Mark?"

I nodded. I told her how they had faked them out, pretending to be lovers and about Stacy's phone call to me wanting confirmation of what she had seen.

"So, House wants you to confirm this fake story that he has a girlfriend to fool his ex?"

"Yes, well, it's not fake anymore."

She sputtered: "What do you mean?"

"It's not a false story anymore. I walked in on them this morning. They're lovers now."

"You're kidding? You caught them in the act?"

"Naw, they were asleep, completely butt naked. But then they woke up and that's when I got the whole story about what happened at the beach."

"So what does this mean? Is this serious? Are they going to be open about it at work?"

"I don't know. They wouldn't answer me about that. Elle dismissed me with 'what is this, the inquisition?' I don't think **they** know. Last night was the first night they slept together, you know, in the biblical sense."

Cuddy leaned back in her chair, a thoughtful expression on her face: "Wow. House involved with someone other than Stacy. This is big."

I nodded. "Yeah, it is."

We sat in silence for a few minutes. Then Cuddy said softly: "I wonder what he'll be like, if this will change him. I just can't imagine House in love, can you?"

"Regular sex might do wonders for him. This will be interesting. Of course, when it all blows up, it will be bad. With her working in the same hospital and living across the hall, the close proximity will be a big problem."

"You already have them breaking up? You're not even giving them a chance? They just slept together once and you've already doomed them?"

I shrugged: "I know House. He'll fuck it up, I'm sure of it."

"Oh, stuff it. Give them a chance. If that man could tolerate her sleeping in his bed **platonically** several times before he got anything, he must be seriously interested. He might not blow this; he may really want it. For Gawd's sake, he has been alone long enough."

I shook my head. "It's House. He'll do something to screw it up. He will say something mean or start ignoring her or something. I bet it won't last a month."

Cuddy narrowed her eyes: "I'll take that bet."

I snorted: "Fine. One hundred bucks says they won't last a month. Today's the 4th of July. It will be over by August 4th."

"Two hundred bucks says it won't."

"Fine!"

I stuck out my hand and we shook on the bet. Her hand was warm and I held it a few seconds longer than necessary, but I don't think she noticed.

The touch reminded me again of how long it had been since Julie and I had been intimate. The anger rose in me. I needed to get out of Cuddy's house before I did something inappropriate. I could still see the outline of her nipples through the thin tank top and I felt aroused. My misanthropic crippled friend was getting some and I wasn't. There was something askew in this universe and I needed to correct it pronto.

_**House**_

Spelunking is an art form. And I was finding out that Elle was definitely a master artist. Now that Jimmy had finally left us alone, I tossed the sheet back so I could have the best possible view.

I was lying on my back and she was kneeling next to me. Her small hand was wrapped around the base of my cock. She stroked me up and down at a slow steady pace. Her mouth and tongue were busy, kissing, licking and sucking. Her other hand was ever so gently caressing my balls.

Frequently she would look up at me with this devilish look in her eyes. She was enjoying this, licking and tasting and nibbling at Mt. Gregory as if he were a gourmet feast.

I tried to pull her up next to me so we could have some mutual fun, but she slid out of my grasp and shook her head. I settled back to watch and enjoy the sensations, my hand resting on her hip.

She licked her way up the underside of my shaft and swirled her tongue around the head. A drop on pre-cum appeared and she gently licked it off with her tongue. She took the entire head in her mouth and sucked lightly swirling her tongue around the opening at the same time. She slowly backed away, her warm breath tickling as she blew on my wet cock. Her lips sealed tightly around my cock, she slowly slid down the entire length, taking all of me into the mouth. Her tongue licked from side to side as her mouth slid up and down my length.

Mt. Gregory was hard as a rock and thoroughly enjoying the attention she was lavishing on him. She slowly slid her mouth up and suckled the head again. With one hand still stroking the base of my cock, she moved over to my balls and started licking them. I groaned at the new sensation. Elle was watching my reactions learning what I liked. I smiled knowing that soon I would turn the tables on her, but in the meantime, I was enjoying this.

Ever so gently, she took one of my balls completely in her mouth. She gently juggled it in her mouth, while licking it with her tongue. After a few minutes, the other one got the same treatment.

That hot tongue of hers moved back to the base of my cock and licked its way up to my frenulum. It was incredibly sensitive there and she teased it unmercifully with that wicked tongue. Then quickly she slammed her mouth down my length again and started sucking vigorously.

It was fantastic and I was getting close to the edge. I wanted to be inside of her, but she seemed to have other ideas.

I gripped her hip tightly and hissed: "Elle, if you keep this up, I'm going to come in your mouth."

That wicked look was back in her eyes. It was sexy and mischievous and seemed to say: 'bring it on'.

Her lips were tightly sealed around my shaft as she moved up and down my length. One hand cupped my balls and the other was wrapped around the base. She looked so incredibly sexy moving on my cock, breasts bouncing and hair falling around her face.

My hand moved up to her hair entangling her soft locks around my fingers. I didn't push her head, but let my hand rest there encouraging her movements.

I was so close; it was hard to keep my eyes open. They wanted to close so badly, so I could just FEEL the fantastic sensations.

She varied her licking a little bit and then I felt her press on the ultra sensitive spot just behind my balls. That sent me over the edge. I could feel the pressure build up in my balls. I was about to explode.

"Oh Gawd, Elle" I moaned. She took me in as deeply as she could and I felt the tip of my cock rub against the back of her throat. I gripped her head, thrust twice into her mouth and then I came hard. Sparks exploded behind my eyes and I moaned Elle's name.

I could feel her swallow and then slowly she slid up my cock. When she got to the tip, she stayed there for a bit gently suckling until it got too sensitive and I hissed. She understood right away, and with a couple of gentle licks, moved away from my cock and started tenderly kissing my inner thigh. I gave myself a minute to recover, and then I leaned down to her. I scooped her up in my arms and brought her up to lie next to me.

I kissed her cheek and nibbled on her ear, murmuring: "You hot little vixen. Did you like that?"

"Check for yourself" came the cheeky answer.

I pushed my hand between her thighs and was surprised to find her absolutely dripping wet.

"Hmm, guess that would be an affirmative. I'm hungry. Now it's time for my snack."

_**ELLE**_

The look on his face when he came was exquisite. I loved that I had put it there, that I had given him that much pleasure. I enjoyed tasting him and it had really turned me on.

He seemed surprised but pleased by my wetness and wanted to reciprocate.

Slowly he kissed his way down my body until he rested in between my thighs. He caressed my folds with his tongue. I moaned from the pleasurable sensations, my hand stroking his hair. Every time I moaned, Greg would look up with those bedroom eyes of his.

He 'snacked' as if he had all day. He would flick his tongue on my clit and I would come so close to falling over the edge and then he would change the rhythm and draw me back again. His tongue slid in and out of my core, and then moved back to flick at my clit.

My moans grew more intense as his tongue worked his magic. He was an amazing lover. My body was glistening with perspiration; my breathing was ragged. I was almost there.

Greg slipped two fingers inside me thrusting up against my g-spot. He lapped hard at my clit and I hit my peak. I managed to keep my eyes open and saw him watching me. His eyes crinkled as if he were receiving pleasure from my own.

My hand fisted in his hand and I moaned his name as I came. His ministrations slowed and then speeded up again, sending me over the edge once more.

As I lay there, panting, recovering from my intense orgasms, he kissed and nipped my inner thigh. I reached down and tugged on his arm; I wanted him next to me. I wanted to be wrapped up in his arms.

He slid up the bed and embraced me.

All that 'snacking' had gotten him worked up again. I reached down and stroked his erect cock. A shiver ran through his body at my touch.

I gently kissed his cheek and said: "Can't leave him out in the cold now, can we?" I continued to stroke him.

Greg's eyes were closed, a small smile on his face. His enjoyment was obvious. He murmured: "No. Mustn't do that."

"I know a nice warm place for him. I think he'll like it there."

"Mmmmm, you do? OK."

I wrapped my left leg around his waist and guided him to my entrance. He slid easily inside me.

He groaned as he filled me: "Oh, so warm, so nice. Mmmmm, he likes it here."

One hand slid down my back to my ass where he gripped me as he thrust into me. I pressed my leg into his back and pulled him as close as I could.

He kissed me hungrily, his tongue exploring in my mouth. Taking my hair in his hand he pulled my head back exposing my throat. He kissed and nibbled my neck until I thought I would explode from the pleasure.

He was getting close; I could tell by the change in his breathing. Looking right into my eyes, he slowly licked his thumb. My mouth went dry; my breathing more ragged, because I knew what he was going to do with that wet thumb.

He slid his hand between our bodies and started stroking my clit as he thrust into me. Just as I was about to fall into the abyss, he suddenly took my nipple into his mouth and sucked hard. That pushed me over the edge and I cried out. His mouth, his cock and his hands sent me to a most pleasurable place, full of sparkly white lights and intense delight. It was a high better than any drug. I felt tingling throughout my body and then I felt him explode inside me. I heard us each moan the other's name as we thrust against each other, riding out our orgasms.

Our movements finally slowed and then came to a stop. We looked into each other's eyes as we tried to catch our breath. Greg gently stroked my damp hair away from my face and then brushed his lips against mine. I smiled and cupped his cheek. He was flushed and sweaty but he looked so incredibly relaxed. I had never seen him look like this before. There was absolutely no tension showing in his face. I bet his pain level was at zero at the moment.

I brushed my lips against his and whispered: "Hey, cowboy."

He chuckled: "Hey, baby."

He kissed my forehead and I snuggled into his chest.

Arms wrapped around each other, and completely exhausted, we fell asleep.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18 

_**House **_

It was 1:00 when I woke up. My thigh was aching and I realized that it had been a while since I had any Vicodin. I rubbed my thigh and found I still had the lidocaine patches on. It was a few hours after the time I should have taken them off. Elle was still sleeping, curling into my chest. I hated to disturb her, but I had to move. I gently tried to dislodge my arm from under her head, but I woke her up anyway.

She stretched and sighed: "Where you going, cowboy?" Her fingers tangled in my chest hair.

"I gotta get up. I need my Vicodin; I need to get these patches off and I have to pee."

"Oh, OK." She rolled over and closed her eyes again.

I had to chuckle; this crippled old man had fucked that hot young thing into a coma. Man, that was good for my ego.

I hobbled into the bathroom and took care of business. I peed and pulled off the patches. I filled a glass with water and guzzled half of it right away. Then I refilled the glass and took it back into the bedroom. I sat on the bed and used it to swallow my Vicodins. I set the glass on the nightstand and lay down next to Elle. She was laying on her left side now, her back towards me. She had flung her long hair up over the pillow leaving her neck exposed.

I cuddled up next to her and started kissing her neck. She hummed and wiggled closer to me.

I gently kissed her neck and started on her shoulders. Elle had a lot of freckles sprinkled across her shoulders, broken up by those scars. I was getting a good look at them for the first time. There were 5 of them, round and the size of a nickel. I gently kissed each one as if somehow I could make it better.

She turned her head to look at me: "You're looking at my scars, aren't you?"

I just nodded.

She stared at me intently for a moment: "You want to know about them, don't you?"

I nodded again: "Yes. I want to know what happened. I want to know who hurt you"

Elle placed her hand gently on my thigh.

I grimaced, but not from physical pain. I knew what she wanted.

She said softly: "I want to know what happened to you too. Do you feel like telling me?"

I shook his head. I couldn't let her see my pain, so I closed my eyes.

"It's painful to talk about, right?"

I nodded again.

She gently stroked my scar: "I know. It's painful for me to talk about these things too."

I stilled her hand by placing mine on top.

Tenderly, she kissed my cheek. "We'll tell each other at some point. It doesn't have to be now. When we're ready. OK? Let's just enjoy the rest of the day."

I squeezed her hand: "Look, you don't have to tell me everything. I just want to know about those scars right now. It's been bugging me since yesterday when you mentioned the cigar. Did someone burn you with a cigar?"

"If I tell you, you've gotta give me something. Can you do that?"

I swallowed hard. "OK. I'll tell you something, but not my leg. Not today, OK?"

Elle nodded: "OK."

She eased out of my embrace. I didn't stop her, as she seemed to want to put some physical distance between us. Elle lay on her stomach hugging a pillow to her chest. She buried her face in the pillow for a moment and then began talking.

"It was the middle of the summer when my parents died and social services really didn't have anywhere to put me. Families that had space were away on vacation or didn't want to disrupt their summer with taking in a new child. So they sent me to Miss Mamie. She was an old black lady, living on the poor east side of Gainesville. She took in the crack babies and older kids like me that they couldn't place right away. She was really good to me and I wanted to stay with her, but they wouldn't let me. I found out much later that they just didn't want a white kid staying permanently on the black side of town. Later on, when I started running away, they knew where to find me cuz I would always go to her house."

"So, anyway, it's the end of August and they found a home for me. It seemed like a typical home, mom, dad and 2 kids. So I get uprooted and taken there. So in 6 weeks, I had gone through losing my parents, living with a woman that I liked and who I felt cared about me, to moving again and living with these strangers who were basically indifferent to me. I was having severe adjustment problems. I was reassigned to a new school and didn't have any of my old friends around. You think, they would have sent me for grief counseling or something but they didn't."

"So I was acting out. I was doing OK in school, but I was a terror at home. I would revert to speaking in French and get so frustrated that they didn't understand me. I refused to do my chores and would hide in my closet or out in the yard, until the dad came and dragged me out of my hiding spot. Then he would spank me. I had never been spanked in my life until then. I was basically a good kid and rarely did anything worth punishment. And if I did, my parents just spoke to me about it. They never hit me. I was so appalled the first time he spanked me. But he spanked all the other kids too, so I figured that just what they did here. But I didn't like it at all."

She looked so uncomfortable reliving all of this; I felt a twinge of regret that I had started this conversation, but not enough to stop her. The need to know overwhelmed everything else.

"So the day it happened was a really horrible day. It was Hanukkah and I was used to celebrating it with my family. We would fry latkes and light the candles and there would be presents. Of course, these people weren't Jewish, so they didn't know about it. When I tried to explain it, they just brushed me off. I just wanted to light the candles; for some reason that was extremely important to me. But they wouldn't let me. I was screaming at them in French and in English and finally the dad blew up. He said you're not going to light any candles, but I'm going to light something on you. You're going to learn respect."

Tears were leaking out of her eyes at this point. I reached over and touched her cheek, but she pulled away from me again. My regret at starting this conversation grew larger.

"He pulled my shirt off and forced me to kneel on the floor. He had the brother hold me down. He lit up his cigar and waved it right in front of my face. He said are you going to shut up and respect me? And I said no. I screamed at him in French some more. So he burned me. I screamed and he asked me again and I said no again. This went on 5 times. Then the cops showed up. The neighbors couldn't take the screaming anymore and had called them. My social worker came and packed up all my stuff. They took me to the hospital to treat my burns and then I went back to Miss Mamie's for a while. It was January before they found another home for me."

"So that's how I got those scars." She rubbed her face against the pillow, wiping away her tears. Finally she looked up at me and said: "Your turn, cowboy."

I reached out to her and murmured: "Elle,,,". But before I could say anything more, she stopped me.

"I don't want your pity, cowboy. Just tell me your tale. Then we'll go take a shower and wash the stench of our pain off of us. Then we can go have some fun for the rest of the day."

I rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling. I knew I had to tell her something, but I had never spoken of these things with anyone. It was hard. I was feeling a new appreciation for the fact that she had already shared with me. I didn't want to look at her as I spoke, so I close my eyes and began.

"My dad is a Marine; he retired at the rank of colonel. We moved a lot when I was a kid, almost every year. There was hardly any point to making friends cuz I would just be leaving soon. So I've pretty much always been a loner.

My dad was always trying to 'make a man' out of me. He thought I was a wuss; thought my mom babied me too much. He hated that she taught me to play the piano. He wanted me to grow up to be a tough Marine like him and it was the last thing I wanted to do. I played sports but that wasn't enough for him."

"So he used to do things to 'toughen me up'. He'd make me take baths in ice. He'd make me sleep out in the yard in all kinds of weather. When I was small, he would lock me in the closet overnight. He'd beat me with his belt. He punched me in the face. Sometimes, he would hit Mom too, especially if she tried to defend me."

I looked away from her, embarrassed. I had never told anyone about this before, not even Stacy. She knew something was amiss in my relationship with my dad and I'm sure she suspected abuse, but I had never said the words to her.

Elle said softly: "That must have been tough to live with."

I shrugged: "Nothing compared to what you dealt with."

She sat up: "No, don't do that."

I looked at her questioningly: "Don't do what?"

"Don't minimize your pain. Your pain is equally as hurtful."

"I'm just saying you went through a lot more crap than I did."

She gently stroked my face: "No, cowboy. For one thing, we both went through a lot of crap. Secondly, I think yours was worse."

I looked at her, puzzled: "Why would you say that?"

"Strangers did all this to me, people who didn't give a shit about me. Your own father did this to you. To me, that's harder to deal with."

She laid her head on my chest and caressed my chest hair. I absentmindedly stroked her hair. I was sinking into the abyss. I closed my eyes and sighed:

"You were right; we shouldn't have wasted the day talking about this."

"No more talking. It's a holiday, let's do something fun."

Suddenly her head shot up; she had a gleam in her eyes. She grinned and bounced on the bed until she ended up straddling my hips. On all fours, leaning over me, still bouncing the bed, she said excitedly: "I know what!"

I tried to mimic her enthusiasm: "What?"

She squealed: "Take me for a ride on your bike!"

She had the biggest shit-eating grin on her face as she begged: "Please, please, please!"

I grabbed hold of her hips to get her to stop bouncing the bed. She stilled her lower body, but used her hands to bounce my pillow instead.

"Stop! Stop bouncing and I'll take you."

Elle squealed like a little kid going on a roller coaster. "Really? You'll take me?"

I pulled her body to me, and rolled us over so that I was on top on her. I had her pinned and unable to bounce. Planting several kisses on her face, I said: "Yes, little girl, we'll go for a ride. You got a helmet?"

Her face fell: "No."

She looked so disappointed like maybe now I wouldn't take her. How she could go from bouncing on the bed like a sugared-up kid to looking like she was going to cry in under 10 seconds was amazing to me.

"That's OK. We'll go get you one. There's a shop near here."

Her face brightened a little bit: "Really?"

"Of course, sweetheart. Come on, let's shower and then you can make me some coffee."

The smile returned to her face about three-quarters as bright as before, but that was enough for me.

She squirmed beneath me: "Race you to the shower?"

I laughed and rolled off of her.

After a hot shower and a large cup of coffee, we headed out to the bike shop. It was only a couple of blocks away, so we strolled over. I needed to walk a bit to stretch out my leg and I didn't want Elle on the bike without a helmet.

The bell dinged as we walked through the door. From behind the counter, Mac looked up from his paperwork and grinned when he saw me.

"House, how's it hanging?"

"Long and low, Mac. I think this babe's going to send me to an early grave, but I'll die with a smile on my face."

He laughed and I could see him giving Elle the once-over. He nodded appreciatively at me. Mac was probably impressed that an old guy like me could get a babe like Elle.

I felt a pinch on my ass and Elle snarked: "Well, for an old guy, I gotta say you have stamina."

Mac laughed again: "So what are you here for?"

"I need a helmet for my lady."

"OK, come over here."

We followed him over to the display. After looking at several and discussing their merits and faults, we settled on a flip-up N102 Secret in platinum blue. It was lightweight and fit her well. I palmed the price tag so she wouldn't see how much it cost. I feared she might balk when she realized how expensive it was.

My eyes glided over the other contents of the shop, thinking about what other type of protective gear she might need. She was wearing jeans and boots, which were good, but she needed a good jacket.

I asked: "Elle, do you have a leather jacket and gloves?"

"I have some gloves somewhere in with my winter clothes, but I don't have a leather jacket."

I steered her to the other side of the room: "Come on, let's look at these."

Elle seemed kinda shy about picking out a jacket. I couldn't stop her from seeing all the price tags this time. I think she was intimidated by the prices and unsure if she should let me buy it for her on top of the helmet. With Mac's help, we found the perfect jacket. It was soft black leather, had hand warmer pockets and fell just to the top of her hips. It looked great on her.

Mac found some lightweight but sturdy leather gloves that fit her small hands and we were all set.

I handed Mac my credit card and he walked over to the register to ring it up.

Elle seemed embarrassed: "Greg, this is all really expensive. You shouldn't spend so much money on me."

"It's not so much money. You need protective clothing when you're riding. And that jacket looks great on you."

I bent down and whispered in her ear: "Plus, I'm picturing you wearing nothing but that leather jacket and a red thong with your legs wrapped around my engine. VROOOOM."

She giggled at that.

"Besides, you're saving me SO much money on hookers, I'm coming out way ahead."

She playfully slapped my arm: "There you go with those hooker jokes again."

She looked up at me with a shy smile. Placing her hands on my shoulders, she tiptoed up and kissed my cheek. "Thank you."

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. Lowering my voice, I said: "You can thank me later, sweetheart."

"With brownies?" Her laughter vibrated against my body.

My hands slid down to her ass and pushed her hips into mine: "I'm sure you'll come UP with something."

I bent down and brushed my lips on her. I started to deepen the kiss and then I heard a throat clearing behind me. Mac had finished the credit card transaction and was waiting for me to sign the slip.

I chuckled inwardly. This woman had given me 4 orgasms in less than 24 hours and I was raring to go again. There was a part of me that felt 25 again. We could simply purchase everything, stroll home and hit the sack again. But it was a gorgeous day and a ride seemed like a good idea. Like the beach, it seemed to bring out the little kid in Elle and that was fun to watch. Later on, after the ride, I'll bring out that sex kitten part of her again.

The day planned, I turned to Mac and signed the receipt. Grabbing our purchases, we headed out.

I gave Elle some quick instructions on riding bitch. I showed her the pegs where she needed to keep her feet. I explained about leaning with the bike on turns and looking over my inside shoulder. We worked out some signals: one pat on my chest for 'OK' and two pats for 'stop'. I planned to take it easy this trip so she could get used to the feel of the bike.

I got on first, lifting my bad leg over the bike. Then I secured my cane in its special holder. Elle climbed on behind me. I had her stand up on the pegs and then sit straight down. That put her in the proper sitting position. She wrapped her arms around my waist. I revved the bike and pressed my left leg back against hers, my sign for 'you ok'? I received one pat on the chest signaling that she was so I took off.

We had not eaten yet so I thought I would take her to one of my favorite diners. We cruised through town and I headed over to Route 173. About every other traffic stop, I would press my leg against hers and she would respond with one pat, so I knew she was doing OK. I rarely rode with a passenger and the extra weight changes the way the bike handles the road, so I was being extra cautious.

We rode faster once we got to Route 173, but I stayed within the speed limit.

It took us about an hour to get to Clinton where I pulled into the parking lot of Louise's diner.

I killed the engine and took off my helmet. Looking over my shoulder at her, I asked: "How was it?"

I waited while she pulled her helmet off and shook out her hair.

Excitedly, she said: "That was fun! I liked it." She leaned forward and kissed my cheek.

I found myself grinning at her. I squeezed her leg and said: "Great. You get off first."

Elle hopped off and stood next to the bike. I lifted my right leg and swung it over the bike. Then I grabbed my cane from its holder and stood up. Sometimes I'm a bit wobbly at first after a long ride, but I balanced quickly and we headed into the diner.

We were both starving and ordered burgers and fries. She ate about three-quarters of her plate for a change. It was nice to see her eat so much for once. I finished off her fries and then ordered us each a piece of apple pie a la mode. Elle could only eat half of hers so I had to finish it off. Thoroughly stuffed, we sat there for a bit, digesting and sipping our coffee.

Elle was staring out the window, a small smile on her face. I wondered what she was thinking. I reached across the table and grabbed her hand. She turned to me and squeezed my hand.

"Sorry, I was lost in the ozone for a minute."

I hesitated to ask, but my mind wouldn't let go: "What were you thinking about?"

She gave a little shrug: "Aside from your food poisoning and Wilson seeing us naked, it's been a nice weekend."

"And running into Stacy."

"Yeah, that must have been hard for you, but you have to admit it had its funny moments."

I chuckled: "Yeah, it did. You steamed her good a few times. And the whole thing with Wilson had some entertaining moments too. I'm sure I'm going to hear from him about your spelunking."

She smiled but said nothing more.

I wondered what else she was thinking. Did she have any regrets about what happened? Was she wondering where this was going between us? I sure as hell didn't know and I didn't want to talk about it either.

I squeezed her hand: "Hey, you must like the Twilight Zone cuz you keep going there."

"I'm sorry. I keep ruminating over what we talked about earlier. I can't seem to keep my mind from going there. The ride was good. The ride helped, but I can't completely turn it off. Friday's the anniversary of their death and it so freaks me out that it's been 25 years."

I picked her hand up and brought it to my lips. I tenderly kissed her palm. Her eyes closed and her lips parted at my touch. She was so incredibly sensual. Gawd, I wanted her again right now.

Distraction seemed like the best tactic right now, so I suggested we leave and she agreed. I paid the bill and we walked out to the bike.

As she started to pull on her helmet, I stopped her. Wrapping one arm around her waist, I pulled her closer to me.

I nuzzled my cheek against her hair and said softly in her ear: "Elle, are you OK?"

"Yes. I'm sorry if I'm a bit melancholy. Talking about my past does that to me. If you need to know more, I only want to tell you a little at a time. It's too hard for me to talk about."

"No more for now. Doctor's orders. I have a prescription for you."

I dropped my helmet and cane and wrapped both arms around her. My lips crashed down on hers and my tongue begged entrance into her mouth. Her lips parted and I gained access. I grabbed her ass with one hand and pushed her hips into mine. I felt her arms snake around my neck as she rose on tiptoe for better access. I ground my erection into her pelvis as we kissed passionately. We were getting quite worked up standing there in the middle of the parking lot.

Suddenly we heard someone yell: "Hey, you two, get a room already?"

We broke apart laughing.

I glanced around quickly; no one was near us. I took her hand and placed it right over my hard shaft.

"See what you did to me? You know how HARD it will be to ride a motorcycle in this condition?"

She gave Mt. Gregory a gentle squeeze and said: "Yeah, and my panties are soaking wet. You did that to me. I'll have to ride like that all the way home. He'll go down, but I'll still have wet panties."

"I don't think he'll go down knowing that you are sitting behind me with wet panties."

She gave me a beautiful smile. Her melancholy seemed to have faded away. The light was back in her eyes.

I bent over and picked up our helmets and my cane. Handing her the helmet, I simply said: "Let's go home."

It was an enjoyable ride back. Mt. Gregory did mostly subside and I was fairly comfortable riding back. Every time we stopped at a light, I covered her hand with mine. I liked feeling her thighs squeeze around my hips. I smiled thinking about what I wanted to do to her when we got home. Neither of us was going to be able to walk tomorrow.

&&&&

I backed her up against the door as soon as we walked in. Helmets, cane and purse hit the floor as we wrapped our arms around each other. Our kiss was passionate, our need urgent. I pushed her jacket off of her shoulders and shrugged my way out of mine. I pulled the hem of her shirt out of her jeans and ran my hands up her bare back. She moaned at the contact. I ground my hips into hers and she thrust back at me. I broke the kiss long enough to pull her shirt off over her head. She was a vision of loveliness in her lacy pink bra. Pure lust shown in her eyes and I'm sure mine mirrored the same. I popped her bra in a flash and slid the straps down her arms. I tossed it away as I focused on her breasts. Her pink nipples were already erect with excitement. I cupped one in each hand and thumbed the nipples. Elle let out a soft cry as I bent down and took one in my mouth. Her head lolled back against the door as she ran her fingers through my hair.

I fumbled with the zipper on her jeans and pulled it down. Still sucking on her breast, I stuck my hand into her pants and found her delightfully wet. Elle started tugging at my shirt and I let go of her breast long enough so she could pull it off. I started sliding her jeans down and I realized it would be difficult for me to fuck her up against the door. I doubted my leg could support the weight. Lips locked together, I guided her over to the couch. Swiftly, I pulled down her jeans and panties and bent her over the back of the couch intending to take her from behind. I started unbuckling my belt, when I heard her whimper.

"No, not like this. I want to see your face."

I looked down at her. She was looking up at me over her shoulder; the lust in her eyes had been replaced by distress.

My brain tried to process this, but most of my blood was down in my groin by now. All I knew was that I wanted her right now. Elle squirmed to turn over and flip right side up.

We needed a different spot. I looked around and got an idea. I scooped her up in my arms. She immediately touched my face. I tried to get a feel on what was going on with her, but she closed her eyes and pressed her lips to mine. We kissed tenderly as I slowly walked towards the kitchen. She weighed next to nothing, so carrying her that short distance wasn't too hard on my leg.

I set her down on top the kitchen island. Keeping my eyes on hers, I pulled off her boots and socks. Then I slid her jeans and panties the rest of the way off. I gazed at her naked body. I cupped her face and said: "You're so beautiful." I kissed her as tenderly as I could. I wasn't sure what happened on the couch, but I want to give her some reassurance.

Her hands cupped my face as we kissed, then I felt them slid down my body until she reached my jeans. I could feel her unbuckling the belt and unzipping my pants. Her hands pushed my jeans down and then slid into my boxers. I growled as her hand made contact with my cock.

I wanted to be inside of her so badly, but I wanted to make sure she was ready for me. I gently laid her back on the island, and I bent down to taste her core. She moaned delightfully as I licked her folds and gently sucked her clit. After a few minutes, she was thrusting against my mouth and I knew she was ready.

I pulled her closer to the edge of the counter and she sat back up. I shoved my boxers down and slowly entered her. Elle moaned from the sensations. She wrapped her arms around my neck, her fingers moving up to tangle in my hair. I nibbled her neck as I slowly moved inside of her. She was so warm and wet. Then she wrapped her legs around my back encouraging me to thrust harder.

I picked up the pace, Elle matching my thrusts. I kept one hand on her back to support her and my other hand roamed her body. I cupped her breast and pinched her nipple as she squealed with delight. Her eyes never left my face. Occasionally they would close from the pleasurable sensations but then they would open right up again.

My hand slid up into her hair and I pulled her closer for a deep kiss. She moaned, as we broke apart; she was so close. I could feel her walls clenching my cock. I pressed my thumb on her clit and whispered: "Come for me, Elle". That sent her over the edge.

She cried out: "Greg, oh Gawd, Greg" as she came. The intensity of her orgasm was incredible. Her walls tightened so hard on my cock that I lost it right then. I buried myself deeply within her body and shot my load. We thrust again each other a few more times riding out our orgasm. Finally, panting with our exertion, we collapsed. Elle lay back on the island and I rested myself on top of her. My head lay in the valley between her breasts and I listened to her racing heart.

My leg sent out warning messages that I had better sit down soon, so I reluctantly pulled out of her. As I kicked my clothes the rest of the way off, I tugged on her hand and said, "Couch." She jumped off of the island and I wrapped my right arm around her shoulders. Leaning on her a bit for support, we slowly made our way to the couch. I collapsed immediately and lifted my right leg up to rest on the coffee table.

Elle leaned over me, gently stroking and planting little kisses all over my face.

She whispered in my ear: "Where's your Vicodin?"

"Jacket pocket."

Another gentle kiss and she walked behind the couch to retrieve my jacket. Fishing the bottle out of the pocket, she handed it to me and strolled into the kitchen. As I popped the vial cap and shook out 2 Vicodins, Elle returned with an opened beer. She handed it to me and I washed down the pills.

In a low voice, I said: "Come here, sweetheart" and I patted my left thigh indicating where I wanted her.

She stepped over my outstretched leg and settled herself on the left half of my lap. I put my arms around her and held her close, her head resting on my shoulder. We sat in post-coital bliss for a few minutes passing the beer back and forth.

Elle felt so good that I found myself unable to stop touching her. I stroked her hair; I caressed her breasts. My lips nibbled on her neck and earlobe. Elle purred contentedly at my ministrations.

She murmured: "You're so sweet."

I chuckled at the thought that anyone would find me sweet.

Her eyes locked on mine and she cupped my cheek. "No, really, you are. You are an amazing man."

Her lip started trembling and she went on: "Look, I'm sorry about before. I don't know what came over me. I used to like that position. But, I don't know. Suddenly I got scared and I needed to see you. I needed to see your face to feel better. You're not upset with me, are you?"

The light bulb went on. Being taken from behind reminded her of being raped. The woman who just gave me a huge orgasm was afraid I was mad at her because she didn't want to be screwed doggie-style.

"Of course not. You just gave me a mind-blowing orgasm. Why would I be upset with you?"

"Well, cuz, you know, you wanted to do it like that,,,,and I didn't."

I brushed my lips against hers in a gentle kiss. "Shh. It's OK. If you don't want me to do something, tell me. And I won't do it."

Her eyes looked down, and I lifted her chin so she had to look at me.

"I never want to force anything on you. Promise me if I ever do something in bed that you don't like that you will stop me or tell me."

There were tears in her eyes, but she nodded.

That wasn't enough for me. Firmly I told her: "Don't just nod. I want to hear you say the words."

Eyes shining brightly with her tears, she looked right at me and said: "I promise to tell you if you do something I don't like."

I planted a big noisy kiss on her forehead and said: "Good girl."

Elle smiled and then buried her face in the crook of my neck.

We sat silently for a few minutes, just holding each other.

Then I heard her small voice in my ear: "Greg?"

"Yes, Elle?"

"I don't like to be spanked, ever. Not even in fun. OK?"

I gripped her tighter: "Neither do I, sweetheart. Neither do I."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19 The Morning After

_**Wilson **_

Leave it to Cuddy to call a board meeting the day after a holiday. Since it was a short week, I had back-to-back patient appointments, which meant charting and a ton of paperwork afterwards. I really didn't need a board meeting to interrupt the flow of my day.

I tapped my pen against the desk in frustration. After leaving Cuddy's place yesterday, I was at a loss of what to do. Since my hormones were running amok, I decided to make a romantic dinner for my wife in the hopes of getting lucky.

She didn't get home until 6PM. I couldn't believe that she had been at her tennis lesson all that time, but I didn't want to start a fight. I suggested that she take a shower and join me in the dining room when she was ready.

I set the table with the good china and the silver candlesticks.

Julie was quite surprised when she came down. "What's all this, James? Why are we using the good china?"

I nuzzled her neck and was disappointed when she flinched. Keeping my voice as steady as possible to hide my disappointment, I said: "I just wanted to make you a nice dinner. We haven't seen much of each other lately. I've been working so much and I wanted to make it up to you."

Her voice was steely as she replied: "You have nothing to make up for. You are a very busy, very important doctor. I understand that."

"Thank you for your understanding, but I just wanted to make a nice dinner for us. Come and sit down."

I pulled the chair out for her and she sat down. I poured wine for both of us and brought out the first course: oysters Rockefeller. Julie merely picked at the food while drinking several glasses of wine. My attempts at conversation fell flat; Julie answered only in monosyllables. My appetite diminished with each passing minute. She didn't seem interested in either the food or me. After dinner, I tried to steer her to the couch with the rest of the wine, but she wasn't interested. She said she was tired and wanted to go to bed. I was eager to join her, but she stopped me in my tracks by saying: "You are going to clean up the kitchen before you turn in, aren't you James? Can't leave all that food lying around; it will attract bugs."

I muttered: "Yes, dear." She allowed me to give her a chaste kiss on the cheek before she turned and headed up the stairs. By the time I had cleaned up the kitchen and joined her in bed, she was fast asleep. I undressed quietly and climbed into bed next to her. She was facing away from me and I cuddled up to her back. I pressed my face into her neck and wondered where it had all gone wrong. My marriage was in shambles and this time it wasn't because I was cheating. I didn't know what the problem was.

Sighing, I tried to refocus on my paperwork. But there were too many distractions. I wondered what was going on with Julie. I still needed to call Stacy back.

And then there was House. It was early yet, too early for him to come in. The last time I saw him was in his bedroom cuddled up to a very naked Elle. I wondered how he would be when he saw me. I wondered if he was still pissed. I wondered what he was going to do to me. With House, payback can be hell.

I threw my pen onto the desk in frustration. I couldn't deal with Julie right now and I would be forced to deal with House once he arrived at work. But there was one thing I could take care of now. I could call Stacy back and get that over with.

I punched in her cell number and she answered on the second ring.

"Hello."

"Hi Stacy, it's James. Sorry it took me so long to call you back. I didn't check my cell phone for messages until yesterday."

"That's alright, James. How are you?"

I wasn't going to unload my martial issues on her, so I just said: "Fine. Just staying busy at work, as usual. How are you? How's Mark's rehab coming?"

"Mark's rehab is doing really well. He is walking with a cane, although our mutual friend who also uses a cane probably told you that."

I chucked: "Yeah, House told me that you ran into him at the beach."

"Not just him. He was with a girl, a very young girl. I'm not sure which was more of a shock, House at the beach or with such a young girl."

"Elle's not that young. He is not robbing the cradle."

"Well, she looks really young. Is she really his _'lady'_ as he called her?"

"Is that what he called her? Wow, he's defining the relationship. That's big for him."

She spat out: "_Relationship?_ House is unable to have a relationship except with himself and his scotch. Well, and you and the Vicodin. So, spill it. Give me the scoop."

In a gentle voice, I said: "Stacy, you're married. You're with Mark. What difference does it really make to you if House is with someone?"

Harshly she said: "I just want to know. Tell me."

I gave her the agreed upon story. I told her that they met in the hospital and had been seeing each other for about 3 weeks.

After listening to my tale, she said: "And they are definitely an item? They are sleeping together?"

I laughed out loud at that; I couldn't help myself. "Oh, yeah. They are definitely sleeping together."

I could just picture her eyes narrowing as she said: "And what's so funny about that?"

I snorted as I pictured it in my head again: "Because I accidentally walked in on them"

"You walked in on them having sex?"

"No. They were sleeping, but it was very obvious. Then they woke up and that was really weird, so I left quickly. But, yes, they are definitely knocking boots."

There was silence for a couple of minutes. I finally asked: "Stacy, are you OK?"

She quickly said: "Yes, I'm fine. I'm just surprised. I never thought he would find someone else."

"You did."

"Yeah, I know."

Then it dawned on me: "You were keeping him as a back-up, weren't you? If things went south between you and Mark, you'd go running back to him. That's why you're so upset about him being with Elle."

In a voice not much louder than a whisper, she said: "I still love him, James."

Coldly, I said: "Well, he doesn't love you anymore, Stace. You need to get over him. He deserves to be happy and he seems happy with Elle. Just leave him alone."

"Who do you think you are telling me what to do? I thought we were friends, James."

"Stacy, I still consider you a friend, but House is also my friend. _You_ left him, and _you_ found someone else. Now he has too, and it's about damn time. He's been miserable for too long. I'm happy that he's found someone and if you are his friend, and if you truly care, you would be happy for him too."

"Is my lecture over, Doctor?"

I smirked: "For now. Stacy, just enjoy what you have with Mark. Forget about House. You both have moved on and it's a good thing."

"Yeah, I suppose. It's just, sometimes I feel like having some curry. Thanks for calling me back. Bye, James."

She hung up before I could say good-bye. I set the receiver back in the cradle and buried my face in my hands. I told Stacy that if she were House's friend, she would be happy that he had found someone. I was going to eat my own words. I should be happy for him and not betting against him. I couldn't believe I felt jealous of my best friend for finally getting some after a very long dry spell.

I glanced at the clock; it was just 10AM. House would be coming in soon. I took a deep breath and tried to psych myself up for whatever payback was coming my way. I just hoped it wouldn't hurt too much.

_HOUSE _

I woke up alone Tuesday morning. I expected it, but it was still a disappointment. I missed her warmth and the feel of her body next to me. We had woken up together all weekend and I had already become accustomed to it. I rolled over and glanced at the clock; it was only 9AM, but Elle had been up since six and her side of the bed was cold.

I pressed her pillow into my face and felt rather sappy for doing so. But her scent was there and I liked it.

I thought back to last night. We cuddled on the couch for a while until the tantrum in my thigh subsided. We finished that beer and popped open a couple more. Elle ordered a pizza and answered the door again in just my long t-shirt causing me to growl at yet another delivery guy.

We ate and watched TV for a while. Around 10, Elle yawned and said she needed to get ready for bed.

She stood up and said: "I'll go brush my teeth and come back, is that OK?"

I thought it was obvious that I wanted her here, but she was waiting for an answer.

I took her hand and pressed it to my lips: "Why don't you bring your toothbrush over here?"

She gave me a small smile: "I didn't want to be presumptuous."

"You're not. I want you here. I want you sleeping in my bed."

She cupped my cheek: "I'd like that too."

I pressed my cheek into her hand, cupping it with my own. Then I kissed her palm and said: "Go get what you need and come back."

She saluted me: "Aye, aye, captain." She grabbed her keys and walked to the door.

I watched her go. I wanted her here and she was going to stay. I didn't know what this 'thing' was between us and I didn't feel like analyzing it right now. I liked what was going on at the moment. I was surprised but pleased that she was being cautious. We both needed to take it slow for our own reasons.

Wilson had wanted an answer this morning. I smiled remembering what Elle had said to him. She had really set him straight. I wondered how much crap he was going to give me tomorrow at work.

Work. Shit. The biggest gossip at PPTH had caught us naked. It would be all over the hospital tomorrow.

I groaned. I knew I could take it. Hell, it only made me look good, sleeping with the cute new pharmacist. But what about Elle? She had been the hot topic at PMMC after the rape and that must have been extremely hard on her.

Before I had the chance to think further about the implications of this, Elle walked back in. She started down the hall but then glanced at me and stopped. "Why the long face? Something wrong?"

I nervously drummed my cane on the floor and then slowly said: "You know Wilson is a huge gossip. Word will get around the hospital about us. People may start talking behind your back. I'm used to them talking about me, but"

I drifted off. I didn't know what else to say. I was concerned, but didn't know how to express it. I wanted to wrap her up in a protective cocoon, but that was just not possible.

She flopped down on the couch next to me and leaned her head against my shoulder. "At PMMC, everyone was talking about what happened to me. It was extremely personal and private, and of course, I didn't want anyone to know. But word got around and management let it happen. They didn't punish anyone involved. I was embarrassed that people knew this about me. Then I got angry. The leak was a violation of the confidentiality laws, a HIPPA violation. So after I got fired, I sued them."

She raised her head to look at me and gently stroked my hair: "This is different. This is People magazine gossip. What are they going to say? _'Did you hear? The new pharmacist is dating Dr. Crankenstein. What does she see in him, that tall handsome blue-eyed grumpy doctor? I heard he has a 10-inch schlong and a tongue that won't quit. Damn! Lucky girl'_

I chuckled at that.

She smiled: "They will talk about us for a while, and then some new gossip will pop up. I'm not worried, but I appreciate your concern for my feelings."

"Well, you know, I don't want my hot little vixen being bothered by those peons."

"Maybe Wilson won't say anything for a while. After all he still needs to figure how what's going on between us."

I grabbed her and pulled her onto my lap. She was still just wearing my huge t-shirt. I pulled it up exposing her body. I planted a loud wet raspberry on her belly and she squealed with delight.

"I'll tell you what's going on between us. Hot animal sex, that's what. Bedroom, now!"

I chased her down the hall to the bedroom. She dove onto the bed and rolled right into the middle. I followed a bit more slowly. I stood at the side of the bed and looked at her lying there. The shirt had ridden up and I could just see a bit of her pubic hair. I climbed into bed and scooped her into my arms. She giggled as I slid the shirt slowly up her torso.

The snooze alarm went off again and I slammed my hand down on the clock. How dare it interrupt my reminiscing of our hot sex last night? I slowly sat up, trying to ignore my partial erection. Certain muscles had gotten a really good work out these last 24 hours or so and I knew I would be extra sore today. But it had been SO worth it. The sex had been fantastic. I popped two Vicodins into my mouth and headed off to take a very hot shower.

As I climbed out of the shower, I thought again about Wilson. I needed a way to get back at him for walking in on us. But I also wanted him to keep quiet about what he saw. A plan came to mind. This was going to be tricky but if I planned carefully I was sure I could pull it off.

_**Elle **_

My alarm went off at 6AM as usual. I quickly turned it off so it wouldn't wake Greg. He was sleeping so peacefully, lying on his left side facing me. I very gently stroked his hair. He stirred slightly in his sleep and then settled back down. I wished it were still the weekend so I could just stay in bed with him. These past couple of days has been so nice, I didn't want them to end.

I lay there watching him sleep. Greg was very complex. He could be so snarky and nasty, yet this weekend I'd seen another side of him. He could be so sweet and playful at times. The beach and the motorcycle ride had been so much fun. It really had been my best weekend in a very long time.

The sex had been amazing. He was definitely the best lover I had ever had. What a way to get back into the game after being raped. He made me feel beautiful and sexy again. He was such a considerate lover, making sure I was satisfied. A shiver ran through my body as I remembered the feel of his hands and mouth on me.

I peeked under the sheet and saw his morning wood. I wanted to take him in my mouth and wake him up that way. But it was too early to wake him up on a workday and I needed to get going. So I bent down and took the head gently in my mouth and swirled my tongue around it, just to taste him. He hummed in his sleep and a small smile appeared on his face. I smiled, thinking about all the things I wanted to do to him later. I found myself hoping that he didn't have to work late so we could be together.

He was sleeping very peacefully. The last thing I did before we went to sleep was to put the lidocaine patches on his thigh for him. I knew he was really sensitive about his scar and I was really pleased that he allowed me to touch it and give him a little bit of help with his pain. I think the patches have given him a little relief. Between the patches and orgasms, he seemed to be sleeping more peacefully than just a few nights ago. I almost giggled out loud at the thought of sex as pain management.

Wilson had wanted to define what was going on between Greg and myself. I'm sure I didn't know, but right now, I just wanted to enjoy it, whatever it was.

I wondered if things would be awkward with Wilson at work. I planned on maintaining my professional decorum and I hoped he did too. I really hoped he wouldn't talk about us. Granted it was just idle gossip and nothing that I really minded people knowing. But I still liked my privacy and I sensed that Greg did too. Well, I'm sure Greg will take care of things with Wilson and I'll just act professionally with him. If someone asks me, I won't deny it, but I won't offer any information either.

I watched him sleep for a few more minutes and then reluctantly got out of bed. I padded quietly to the bathroom, taking note of my aching muscles. I was walking a bit bow-legged this morning from all the extracurricular activities this past weekend. But a hot shower and some ibuprofen would help a lot.

After using the bathroom, I wandered to the living room to gather my clothes that were still scattered across the living room floor and headed over to my place. After a hot shower, 2 cups of coffee and 800 mg of ibuprofen, I was ready to go. I poured the rest of the coffee into the carafe, left it in Greg's kitchen, and headed off to work.

_**HOUSE**_

I limped into the hospital a little bit after 10. I headed to the pharmacy to secure what I needed for my 'payback Wilson plan'. I assured the pharmacist that the pills were not for me, but he shot me a knowing look that spoke volumes. One of those 'yeah, right, I've heard it all' looks. With minimal hassle, I secured what I needed and then headed over to the coffee cart.

I managed to balance the two cups of java, one of top of the other and headed up to my office. It would only take me a minute to grind up the tablet, add it to the coffee and then I would head over to Wilson's office.

As I exited the elevator and started towards my office, I saw an interesting scene. Chase was standing outside the conference room having a heated discussion with our former patient Amy.

I chuckled as I stared at them. Chase heard me and looked in my direction. He closed his eyes in dismay while Amy tapped him on his shoulder to redirect his attention back to her.

I walked to my office door and as I unlocked it, I said: "Come see me when you're finished there and bring cash. I don't take checks."

I glanced into the conference room. Foreman and Cameron were watching the drama in the hallway and laughing about it. Smirking, I set down the coffee and shrugged off my backpack. I grabbed my mortar and pestle and sat down at my desk. I ground up one tablet and added it to the cup on the left. Then a thought occurred to me. Wilson might get suspicious about the coffee. After all, I never bring him coffee. He may want to do the old switcheroo with the cups. I took a healthy sip of the undosed coffee and then added a ground up tablet to it also. I would just pretend to drink it and get some of Cameron's coffee later.

Loud laughter assailed me from the conference room. I looked over and Chase had entered the room. The other two ducklings were giving him a hard time about Amy.

He needed a bit more embarrassment so I hobbled into the conference room.

"Pay up," I said, holding out my hand rubbing my fingers together in that universal sign for money.

Chase sighed and pulled out his wallet. He found a 50-dollar bill and slapped it into my hand.

I grinned evilly. "Told ya. So, are you two kids going to the prom? Daddy's not going to let you borrow his car."

Chase smirked: "Yeah, like I'd want to drive your heap. And no, we are not going out."

"Why not? She seems like a nice girl, a bit misguided perhaps, but you could easily get laid. After all, she was screwing a married senator. She should have no qualms about going to bed with a single wombat."

"We're not going out. I'm not interested in her."

I remembered his unwanted attention towards Elle. He needed a bucket of cold water poured over him to dissuade him about her. "Well at least

AMY is interested in you as opposed to other girls that you might ask out who aren't."

He looked suspicious: "What are you talking about?"

"I'm just saying you should go out with Amy cuz at least SHE is interested in you as opposed to, ummm, someone else that you asked out who is not interested in hooking up with a wombat."

He stood up and tried to stare me down: "What do you know?"

I stared back: "A lot of things. I'm a walking, talking encyclopedia."

I pulled out my wallet and shoved the 50 into it. "I'm just saying if you ask a girl out and she tells you 'no' a couple of times, you should get the hint. She's not interested. So stop being an idiot and go out with Miss I-Have-a-Boo-Boo-on-My-Butt. And that's the end of our little father-son chat for today."

I turned and faced the other two kids and asked: "Do we have a new case?"

Foreman answered: "Yes we do. Cuddy called to let us know. Someone is bringing up the file in a few minutes."

I exclaimed: "Great! I gotta go see Wilson and then we'll get started. Review the file until I get back."

I limped back into my office, restacked the coffee cups and headed over to Wilson's office. I barged in as usual without knocking.

Wilson was sitting at his desk flipping through some charts. He glanced up at me and then did a double-take as he noticed the coffee that I was holding.

Hesitatingly he said: "You brought me coffee?"

I extended my hand indicating that he should take the cup on top. He slowly complied and I sat down on his sofa.

He stared blankly at the cup of coffee in his hand and said: "You brought me coffee? You never bring me coffee. What did you put in it?"

I rolled my eyes and tisked: "Jimmy, can't I bring my best friend a cuppa?

You have to get all suspicious on me."

"You want something then?"

I heaved a theatrical sigh: "OK. You caught me."

He smirked: "Ha! Knew it! What do you want?"

I looked down at my feet as I tapped my cane on the floor. After a decent dramatic pause, I went on: "I would really appreciate if you wouldn't talk about what you saw yesterday at my place. I don't want Elle to be the 'topic of the week' on the hospital grapevine."

He sat back with a smug look on his face.

Inwardly, I smiled. I had him right where I wanted him.

"Soooo, you want a favor? And you think bringing me coffee will convince me to do this?"

"I was hoping that our long years of friendship would be enough of an incentive for you to do me this small favor. However, if that's not enough, I'll buy lunch today."

He actually chortled at that. "And I will take you up on that offer. Well, there is one small problem. Cuddy already knows. I had coffee with her yesterday and spilled it."

I nodded slowly: "That's OK. I'll talk to her. But no telling the nurses or the lab techs or the janitors or any of the other people that you gossip with, deal?"

He stared at me for a moment: "She's really important to you, isn't she?"

I was dead serious when I answered him this time: "Yes, she is."

He nodded: "OK. No problem."

I lifted my coffee cup in a semi-salute to him and pretended to take a sip. He brought his cup to his lips and took a long swallow.

"Thanks. There is a board meeting in 20 minutes and I'll need to stay this awake."

I nodded. I kept pretending to sip my coffee. Every time I took a sip, Wilson did too.

He continued: "By the way, I spoke to Stacy this morning. I confirmed your story."

"What did you say?"

"Just what we talked about. You met here at the hospital, you've been seeing each other about 3 weeks and you're sleeping together."

I snorted: "She wanted confirmation of that? She couldn't figure that one out herself?"

"She wanted to know for sure. She seems to still have some feelings for you. I told her to get over it. Enjoy her life with Mark and leave you alone."

Skeptically I asked: "You told her that?"

"Yup," he said with such a sincere smile on his face that I almost regretted dosing him. Almost.

I nodded: "Thanks, Jimmy. Maybe she'll get the hint."

"Do you still have feelings for her?"

"No. That ship has sailed. Actually that ship sank in the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean, never to be seen again."

He smiled: "Good. By the way, when I walked in on you two yesterday, I noticed something."

I snarked: "That Elle has a great body?"

He chuckled: "Well, yeah, I did notice that. Whoa. Simmer down. I don't mean any offense."

I was starting to bristle and he had noticed.

He hurriedly went on: "No, I noticed you had some white patches on your thigh, over your scar. What was that?"

"Oh, that. Lidocaine patches."

"What? Where did you get those?"

I shrugged "From Elle. She had some left over from when her shoulder was dislocated and I tried them."

"You acted on one of her recommendations? Did they help?"

"A bit. She suggested I try them as an adjunct to the Vicodin, not a replacement, so don't get any stupid ideas that I'm getting off the Vicodin"

"You tried one of her recommendations? I'm impressed."

"Why are you impressed?"

"I just can't believe she talked you into trying something."

"She didn't talk me into anything. She suggested it and I thought it was worth a try. No big deal."

He shrugged: "OK. Glad it helped somewhat. Is she going to make any other recommendations for you?"

I closed my eyes and tried to contain my frustration at his line of questioning. "I have not asked her to. I didn't ask her for this; she just suggested it."

"Well, maybe she'll suggest something else."

"Yeah, and if she does, are you going to prescribe it for me? I'll bet you that if Elle suggests anything else for me, it is going to be long-acting morphine or oxycodone."

He shook his head: "I'll write scripts for lidocaine patches or for gabapentin or pregabalin. I think you could use one of the neuropathic agents."

"I need an opioid. Neuropathic agents alone are not going to help my pain."

"Maybe if you used one, you could cut down on the amount of Vicodin that you take."

I would have walked out of the room right then, but I really wanted to see him finish more of the coffee. I pretended to take another sip and was pleased to see that he did also.

I asked him, in a serious manner: "Wilson, what would you do if Elle suggested long-acting morphine? Would you accept her recommendation? Would you prescribe it for me?"

He shook his head: "She wouldn't do that."

My anger was leaking out: "You don't know that. She might. What if she did? Would YOU prescribe it for me? It's for pain control. It's not like I'm going to get high on it. Would you prescribe it?"

He slowly shook his head: "I don't know, House. I'd have to talk to Chris Guskiewicz and see what he says."

I was doing a slow burn. I knew he would say 'no' in a roundabout way. He didn't know what it was like to be in constant pain. He had no understanding at all. Why is it that he could have all the sympathy in the world for his bald-headed cancer patients and none for me, his best friend? Maybe I should talk to Elle about it, after all. It would be fun to see what she would recommend and throw it in his face. After this past weekend, I felt sure which way she would go. After all, she helped me shoot up some morphine. She is not going to take me off of opioids. It slowly dawned on me that she was probably the only person who did seem to understand my pain.

I was just about to open my mouth and make a snarky remark when Cuddy walked in. Being heterosexual males, we both shut up and stared at her. She was wearing a very low cut v-neck black knit top and a tight gray pencil skirt. Her usual 4-inch black pumps showed off her calves nicely. She bent over slightly to hand some papers to Wilson and we both got a good look at the twins. Cuddy has the kind of cleavage that you just want to bury your face in. I saw Wilson's Adam's apple bob as he stared. If my deductions were correct and he wasn't getting any at home or on the side, he was in for a rough board meeting.

Cuddy looked at me and said: "What are you doing here? I sent you a new case. Why aren't you working it up with your team?"

"I needed a little talk with Wilson first."

"Oh, yeah? What about? The new nurse on Med-Surg with the 40 DD's?"

I smirked: "Believe it or not, no. I asked him not to start any gossip about Elle and I hope you will respect her privacy also. You know what happened to her at PMMC."

She looked at me sharply: "Yes, I know about that. But this is a little bit different. If she is crazy enough to get involved with you, she had better be tough enough to take the heat."

Her voice softened as she continued: "House, you know me better than that. I hear all the rumors but I don't start them. No one's going to hear anything from me. The case file has been delivered. Quit stalling and get to work or I'll give you some more clinic hours."

"Yes, Mistress."

I set my coffee on the desk as I prepared to stand up.

Cuddy said: "Is that your coffee? Gawd, I could really use some, but I don't think I have time to grab some before the meeting."

She picked up my cup: "Can I have the rest of yours? Cameron will make you more."

I waved my hand in her direction: "Help yourself. I need you awake at these meetings to make sure the other idiots don't vote to fire me."

"Yeah, right. Like that's going to happen." Cuddy took a healthy swig and motioned to Wilson. "Come on, we have got to get going. It starts in 5 minutes and you know I hate to be late." She turned and walked out the door taking the coffee with her.

Wilson grabbed the papers from his desk, his coffee and followed her out the door.

I smirked as they left the office. They both had been dosed. This was going to be interesting. Wish I could be a fly on the wall in that board meeting.

I had to get going. I needed to review the new case, send the ducklings off on their tasks and then head up to the boardroom so that I could be there when they got out. Wilson would need some relief after all that coffee and I wanted to be there to get photographic evidence. Now that Cuddy was getting dosed too, this could be even more interesting.

_**Wilson**_

Once again, I marveled at how fast Cuddy could walk in those 4-inch heels as I trotted along just behind her towards the elevator. I stared at her shapely legs as we hurried along. They sure looked sexy in those heels. I felt an unexpected stirring in my pants and was horrified at my response. Geez, if the sight of Cuddy's gams was giving me this type of reaction, then it had been WAY too long since I'd had any. I held the papers in front of my pants to hide the reaction while I tried to think of something else. That proved to be impossible as Cuddy and I stepped into a crowded elevator and were squeezed up next to each other. I could feel her arm pressed up against mine and the contact was unbelievably exciting. I wondered how this could be as it wasn't even bare skin; we were touching through our clothes. I glanced over and watched her sipping House's stolen coffee. I had a great view of her cleavage and that reinforced my reaction. I stared up at the elevator numbers, watching the floors blink by. Every time the elevator stopped to let someone off, Cuddy was pushed up against me. I couldn't wait until we got to the 11th floor. I sipped my coffee and tried to focus on the flavor. I recited the 12 cranial nerves. I ran through all the different types of leukemia and their various treatments. Nothing was proving to be a distraction from the very attractive and thankfully oblivious woman standing next to me.

Finally we reached the 11th floor and exited the elevator. Walking was a bit difficult, as I needed to keep the sheaf of papers strategically placed. Finally we made it to the boardroom and found our seats. Cuddy always sat at the head of the table and I sat on her right hand side. I sank gratefully into the chair, happy that the table would hide my problem from the others.

The other board members trickled in and found their seats. Once they were all seated, Cuddy was ready to start the meeting. As she reached over to grab the papers from me, her hand brushed against mine. The contact felt like electricity coursing through my body. It seemed to have a similar effect on her judging by her wild-eyed look. She pulled back quickly and we just looked at each other. Finally she reached for the papers again, more slowly this time. The contact was deliberately slower, but the same electrical buzz was there. I was rock hard. We looked into each other's eyes and I felt certain that the desire I saw in her eyes was mirrored in my own. This was going to be the longest board meeting ever.

_**Cuddy**_

Maybe the coffee had been too hot. Maybe I was coming down with something. By the time we sat down in the boardroom, my body, specifically the lower region, was feeling very warm. I put my hand on my forehead but it wasn't hot, therefore, no fever. I didn't seem to have any other symptoms except that it felt as if all of the blood in my body was pooling in my pelvic region. There was a certain familiar throbbing that I associated with sex. Oh, Gawd, board meetings are turning me on now? I really needed to get a life beyond these hospital walls. I needed to get laid and soon. Too bad House was now preoccupied with Elle; we could have tried for another tumble.

The other board members came in and took their seats. I reached over to grab the papers from Wilson and our hands touched. It was a jolt, like I had been hit by lightening. I know he felt it too, I could tell by the look in his eyes. I instinctively pulled my hand back. But I needed those papers to get the meeting started. Maybe it was just a shock like you get when you walk over carpet or touch a door in cold weather. So this time I reached over more slowly but it happened again. I looked up at Wilson. I could read in his eyes the same desire that I felt in my body. I could see that he felt it too. I carefully took the papers from him, never breaking eye contact. This was going to be one damn long meeting.

_**House**_

I figured that I had about an hour before I needed to be in position so I limped back to my office to start the DDX. The ducklings had read the file already and called the symptoms out to me while I wrote them on the whiteboard. The patient was a 44-year-old female who presented with fever, weight loss, lethargy and itching. I tapped my marker against my chin. These were extremely vague symptoms and could be due to anything. We really needed more information, but I decided to drill the kids anyway.

I turned to face them and said: "SOOOO, any ideas?"

The usual answers were thrown at me: lupus, autoimmune, infection, cancer. It could have been any of those things. There was no way to tell with just these few symptoms.

We needed to run a whole panel of tests to get to the bottom of this. I had them start with extensive blood work, chest X-ray and a better history. They ran off to do their assigned tasks.

I returned to my office and dug into my backpack. I was going to use my cell phone but decided I wanted better quality for this shot. I found my digital camera and double-checked the battery. Everything seemed in good working order. I still had about 15 minutes before the meeting was due to end, but I headed out to the elevator anyway. I wanted to be ready in case the meeting broke up early.

I took the elevator up to the 11th floor and hid around the corner from the boardroom. I had a clear view of the door, but no one leaving the room would be able to see me unless they decided to walk behind the tall potted plant that I was hiding behind. I checked my watch; it should be breaking up in about 5 more minutes. I smiled as I waited. This was going to be fun.

_**Wilson**_

I thought the meeting would never end. The endless discussions of the budget were boring but at least it was having one desired effect. My 'problem' would start to shrink. But then Cuddy would start talking and every time I looked at her, my 'problem' would return to its full size. I could not believe how turned on I was getting from my boss. As attractive as she is, I had never had this extreme effect before. I chalked it up to a lack of sex, and seeing Elle nude the day before. Then I remembered being in Cuddy's kitchen and how great her ass looked in those track pants. I remember being aroused by her body, but not nearly as bad as this. As soon as this meeting was over, I needed to get some relief. Somehow I had to get to the men's room and take care of my problem. I was disgusted with myself for needing to relieve myself at work, but there was no other way around it. My penis had a mind of its own today, and was not going down without some playtime. I had a full schedule of patients and there was no time to run home for a quickie. Julie probably wasn't home anyway and even if she was, I doubted that she would be willing. If a romantic dinner didn't get her in the mood, my running home in the middle of the day for a quickie sure wouldn't.

Dr Simpson was rattling on about radiology's budget when I felt something press up against my left leg. I glanced over at Cuddy and she was looking right at me. Her eyes were soft and I could see desire in them. She pressed her leg against mine again and I pressed back. I dragged my eyes away from hers and tried to focus on what Simpson was saying. Then I felt her bare foot on my ankle and then slowly ease under my pants leg. Agonizingly slowly Cuddy slid her foot up my leg. I thought I was going to lose it right there. I couldn't believe how turned on I was. And Cuddy's behavior was completely out of character for her. She has never been anything but professional with me. Occasionally she flirts with House and I know that they have some history between them although I never found out the details. But she has never flirted with me.

I took another swallow of coffee, hoping it would help me focus on Simpson's budget monologue. It proved impossible as Cuddy left her foot resting on my leg.

Dr Peevey concluded the meeting by announcing that no lawsuits had been filed against House this month for the second month in a row. Dr Taylor cheered, certain that it was a record for House. We all had a good laugh about it and the meeting broke up.

Cuddy's foot slipped away from me and after a moment she stood up. Everyone was gathering their things to go. There was no way that I could stand up at that moment. My problem was at full force and would be easily seen. I sat and shuffled papers, pretending to organize them as everyone said their good-byes and left. Cuddy walked the last person to the door and after he walked out, she locked it.

To say I was shocked would have been an understatement. Although I felt the attraction and knew she had also, I never thought that she might act on it. She turned and pressed her back up against the door.

Softly, she said: "James."

I almost moaned out loud at the way she said my name. I stared at her and then slowly rose from my seat, my erection plainly evident to her eyes. Her skin was flushed and her erect nipples were pushing against the fabric of her top. I don't think I had ever been this turned on in my entire life.

I wanted her badly. I needed her right now.

She walked slowly towards me.

I licked my dry lips and held out my arms. "Lisa, I,,,"

She entered into my embrace and placed both hands on my face. "Shhh, it's OK."

She brushed her lips against mine and that's all it took. My hormones went into overdrive. I crushed her body tightly against mine and passionately kissed her. She returned the kiss with equal fervor. I grabbed her ass with both hands and thrust my erection against her. I felt her smile against my mouth. Encouraged I slid my hand under her top and touched the bare skin on her back. It was so warm and soft. Again I was reminded how long it had been since I had been with a woman.

I threw caution to the wind. She seemed to want it just as much as I did. I grabbed the hem of her top and slid it up and over her head. She was wearing a black lacy bra. It looked exquisite against her white creamy skin. I bent and kissed her neck eliciting a moan of delight from her. As I kissed my way down her neck towards her breasts, my hands were busy fumbling with the zipper on her skirt. I finally succeeded in unzipping it and slid it down her hips. It dropped to the floor and she stepped out of it. I sucked in my breath as I stared at her. Her body was perfection. My eyes traveled from her big beautiful breasts in that black lacy bra down her flat tummy to the matching black thong that just barely hid her assets. My hands slid down her back and cupped her bare ass cheeks. A smile slowly broke across my face and she smiled back.

Softly she said: "I think you have on too many clothes."

"Hmm, you're the boss so I'm sure you're right. Can you rectify that for me?"

"I think so."

Lisa reached for my belt and quickly unbuckled it. She unzipped my pants and pushed them down over my hips. I moaned as she caressed my erection through my boxers.

"Still too many clothes, don't you think?"

I moaned my agreement and she slid my boxers down, finally freeing my erection. Her hand closed around my shaft and I thought I would lose it right there. I lifted her up and set her on top of the table. She continued to stroke me gently as I tore off my tie and my shirt. I slipped my fingers into her panties and found her extremely wet and ready for me. Our mouths crashed together and we kissed deeply our tongues dancing in each other's mouths. Just as I was about to slip her panties off, there was a flash and I was momentarily blinded.

_**House**_

I watched the board members file out. Peevey was the last one to leave. I saw Cuddy close the door behind him and then I heard the soft click of the lock being thrown. I grinned; the game's afoot. Fortunately I had a copy of the key to the boardroom. I figured on giving them a few minutes to get into a compromising position and then I would sneak in on them and snap a picture. I couldn't believe my luck. I figured Wilson would get excited and bag some nurse and I would have a photo for blackmailing him. I never dreamed that I could get both of them in one fell swoop. This would keep Wilson quiet about Elle and get me out of clinic hours with Cuddy. I found myself looking forward to telling Elle all about it. I could just hear her giggling now when I show her the photo. Too bad she wasn't here to catch them in the act the way Wilson had walked in on us. That would be true payback.

I glanced at my watch; it had been 6 minutes since Peevey left. I quietly walked to the door and leaned my ear against it. It was a fairly solid door and I couldn't hear anything. The blinds were drawn, but I noticed that one of them was bent. I was able to get a small glimpse into the room and, oh yeah, it was time to sneak in.

I leaned my cane up against the wall so that I would have both hands. The camera was out of my pocket and ready to go. I put the key in the lock and very quietly turned it. I opened the door very slowly. I smiled at the sight in the room. Cuddy was down to her bra and panties sitting on the boardroom table with her legs spread. Wilson had shed his clothes and was standing in between her legs with his hand inside her panties. I could see he was ready for action. The magic tablet had done its job. They were kissing passionately and he was starting to slide her panties off. I would have really liked to see Cuddy completely naked but if I didn't hurry and take the photo they might see me. I focused and clicked the shutter. The flash startled them, which I knew it would, but I managed to get one more shot before Wilson screamed: "HOUSE!"

I laughed manically and made my exit. They were in no condition to follow me. I grabbed my cane and hurried to the elevator. It took its sweet time arriving, but I managed to get on board just as a very disheveled Wilson poked his head out of the door.

He hissed angrily: "You're an ass, House!"

I waggled my fingers at him as the elevator door closed.

_**Wilson**_

I closed the door and locked it. This was so embarrassing. I could not believe that House caught us liked this. He could not have gotten better payback for yesterday if he had planned all of this himself. I looked down at my still completely erect penis. And suddenly it dawned on me. He did plan this. The coffee. He dosed me. My first instinct had been right.

I heard her soft voice call me: "James."

I turned around. I tried to hide my erection behind my hands. I was so embarrassed that I couldn't look at her.

I began: "Lisa, I'm so sorry about all this."

"James,,,"

I didn't let her finish her sentence. I continued to ramble: "I think House did something. I think House dosed my coffee with Viagra. My, um, it won't go down. Lisa, I don't know what to say. You know this isn't like me. I mean, you're my boss."

A bit forcefully, she said: "James."

I looked at her fully expecting her wrath to unleash upon me.

Instead she crooked her finger at me, beckoning me closer. When I was within her reach, she grabbed me and pulled me between her legs again.

"So he dosed you. I suspect it was in my coffee also. He would have dosed both cups just in case you refused the one he handed to you."

She reached down and moved my hands to rest on her thighs. She took my shaft in her hand and started to stroke it. I finally looked into her eyes and saw that the desire was still there.

"James, it's been a long time for me. Let's not waste it." And with that Lisa reached behind her back and popped her bra. She slid it off and set it on the table. Finally I had the full view of the twins. They were the most beautiful set of breasts I had ever seen. I couldn't stop staring. Lisa picked up my hand and placed it on her left breast. With her other hand, she cupped my cheek and guided my face down to hers.

Breathlessly she said: "James."

I moaned: "Lisa" right before I crashed my lips to hers.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

**_House _**

I hurried back to my office. I wanted to put these pictures on my computer so I could see them in a larger format. Thankfully the ducklings were still busy with the patient. I hooked the camera up to the computer and downloaded the pictures.

The first one was fantastic. Wilson and Cuddy were locked in a passionate kiss. He had his hand in her panties and her hand was wrapped around his full erection. It was extremely erotic. If Cuddy had been naked, it would have been perfect.

In the second shot, his hand was still in her panties, but they had pulled apart from each other. Cuddy was glancing over her shoulder at me, and Wilson had a surprised look on his face. If that photo had a title, it would be 'Caught in the Act'.

I snickered; I had the perfect blackmail photos.

Wilson would never talk about Elle and me now. I would merely threaten to send these to Julie and he would cave.

Now, Cuddy would be more interesting. I wondered what I could get from her. I would certainly start with no more clinic duty and no more required appearances at hospital charity balls. I knew if I racked my brain I could come up with even more creative ways to torture her with these photos.

I quickly e-mailed the photos to my home e-mail address and closed the page. I disconnected the camera and slipped it back into my backpack.

The ducklings were still off running tests so I put the Stones on the stereo and leaned back in my chair to listen.

**_Wilson _**

It was quick but hot and satisfying for both of us. We held each other afterwards and kissed tenderly for a few minutes. I think we both felt embarrassed at the same time. We turned our backs to each other and started dressing. I was struggling to get my tie on right without a mirror when Cuddy came over to help me. I looked over her shoulder while she worked on it.

Softly she said: "James, I don't want things to be awkward between us. This happened and it was great. But we need to put it behind us so we can carry on working together. You're married. I don't expect a repeat, OK?"

I nodded: "You're right."

"And try not to feel too guilty. Remember House dosed us both. This will just be between us."

I replied bitterly: "Yeah, between us and House who now has photographic evidence of my cheating to show Julie. And Gawd knows what he'll do to you with those pics."

"Oh, I know House. He will want to get out of clinic duty and stuff like that. But we can turn the tables on him."

I brightened at the thought of getting back at House about this. "Oh yeah, how?"

"Well, here's my idea."

We put our heads together for a few minutes and came up with a plan to circumvent House's evil plot.

**_House _**

It was 1PM when Wilson walked into my office. He looked completely pulled together as if he had just arrived from home, instead of returning from screwing the boss.

He stood there for a moment without saying a word.

Finally I broke the silence: "I'm supposed to buy you lunch today. Still UP for that?"

He chuckled: "I'll take a rain check for tomorrow. I'm very satisfied right now."

My mouth fell open: "You did it with her? Even after that interruption, you did it?"

With a big grin on his face, he nodded. "Didn't want to waste the moment".

I burst out laughing: "You did it with the boss? You are DA man. Was it sweet?"

"Oh, yeah. And the girls." He put his fingers to his lips and blew a kiss.  
"Magnificent! The best rack I've ever had in my hands. And mouth."

I chuckled: "You horn dog. Want me to e-mail you the photos?"

He nodded: "Yeah, send them to my personal account."

I smirked: "Well, it's good to see you get some."

His expression became serious and he said softly: "That's the first time I ever cheated on Julie." He put his hands over his eyes and his shoulders slumped.

"Hey, don't go all guilt-ridden here. You aren't going to do something stupid and tell her, are you?"

He looked right at me and said: "I don't know. I don't know what I'm going to do. What are **you **going to do with the photos?"

"Nothing as long as you keep your mouth shut about Elle."

He turned and walked to the door. He pulled it open and then let it shut again. Turning back to face me, he said: "You know, you didn't have to do this. I had already told you that I wasn't going to say anything about Elle."

I replied bluntly: "Insurance."

He closed his eyes briefly and said: "Yeah. Thanks." Then he turned and walked out the door.

I watched him leave. I felt a slight pang of guilt over tricking him this way. Then I brushed it off. At least he got laid. I'm sure that was the first time in a long while for him. Maybe even Cuddy would be in a better mood now. She hadn't had any in a while either.

After Wilson left, I wandered down to the cafeteria. It wasn't as much fun lunching by myself. For one thing, I had to pay. And I had no one's French fries to steal. I didn't feel like sitting alone so I took my Reuben back to my office to eat.

I had just finished when my pager went off. The message was from Cuddy: "My office, stat". I smirked and wondered what had taken her so long. I had expected to be summoned immediately afterwards. Maybe she had needed a post-coital cigarette.

Chuckling at that thought, I pocketed my camera to show her the evidence and headed down to her office. Her assistant told me to go right in, so I did.

Cuddy was sitting behind her desk working on her computer as I entered.

I snarked: "You summoned me, Mistress. What is your bidding?"

She narrowed her eyes at me and commanded: "Sit." She pointed at the sofa.

"The sofa? Well, I'm not really into sloppy seconds, but if you insist I can service you."

She growled: "House. Sit. Down."

I complied, waiting to see what she was going to do next. She surprised me by walking to the office door and locking it.

"Oh, so you really are interested in seconds. Wilson wasn't completely satisfying, huh?"

I expected her to deny it, but she surprised me again. She looked like the cat that ate the canary as she said: "Oh, House, you are so wrong. James was completely satisfying."

I checked my pulse, yep, still alive. The clock was still ticking so the world had not ended. And yet Cuddy had just called Wilson by his first name and claimed satisfaction.

I kept my face neutral as I said: "Well if you don't want seconds, why did you call me in here and lock the door?"

She sat down next to me and said: "I want to see the pictures."

I smirked: "Don't ever bother trying to delete them. I have already e-mailed copies of it."

"Who said I wanted to delete them? I want to see how I look."

I slowly pulled the camera out of my pocket and handed it to her.

She looked at the pictures, flipping back and forth between them a couple of times.

"I look pretty good. The Pilates is paying off."

"Yeah, I thought you looked great. Your ass looks fantastic in that thong. Too bad you weren't completely naked; that would have been even better. Want me to load it on your computer? It looks better on a bigger screen."

She slapped my arm, hard. "No, I don't want you to load it on my computer, you ass! What the hell did you do this for?"

I rubbed my aching arm: "OW! It was just too good a photo op to pass up."

"Yeah, and how did you know that there was going to be a photo op? Cuz you dosed the coffee, that's why. And I'm asking again, why did you do it?"

I shrugged: "Payback. Wilson walked in on us naked. He was acting like an ass and threatened to take a picture of us."

"Did you actually take an picture of you two?"

I had to admit that he hadn't. "But he tried."

"You are such a child. I can't believe you did this. You dosed your best friend! And your boss."

I shrugged: "You were an accident. If you'd had your own coffee, it wouldn't have happened to you. He would have found some willing nurse to screw instead of you."

She slapped my arm again. "And that makes it better? You know he's never cheated on Julie before."

"So what? His marriage is in the toilet anyway. What difference does it make?"

"It makes a difference to him. And who are you to take that decision to cheat or not away from him?"

That remark cut me. I lashed back. "I didn't take that decision from him. He could have just gone in the bathroom and jerked off. Instead he spilled his seed in you. Still trying to get pregnant? Maybe doing it the natural way will work for you."

She paled at that remark and I realized the implications of what I just said. They were in such a hurry that I bet they didn't use condoms. I quickly calculated dates in my head to see if she was ovulating. It was actually close to her time. If her cycle were just a bit off, there could be the possibility of a Wilson/Cuddy joint venture. Now **that **could be a big problem for Wilson's marriage.

In a harsh tone, she said: "You are no longer giving me the shots, so my fertility issues are none of your business. Now, what are you planning to do with these pictures?"

I shrugged: "Insurance. Wilson keeps his trap shut about Elle and Julie doesn't see the photos. He talks and I play show-and-tell."

"And that's it? This is all just to keep Wilson in line."

"Well, now that you mention it. I'm sure you would not like the hospital donors to see you in such a compromising position with the head of oncology. So I think I could keep these pics to myself if you release me from clinic duty and other obligatory appearances like the charity ball."

"Oh, really? So you are saying that you will show off these photos if I don't release you from the hospital obligations that are in your contract?"

I nodded smugly: "That's right."

She got right in my face, plastered on a big smile and said: "No."

I was taken aback and she saw the expression on my face. She leaned back and smirked.

I stammered: "No? What do you mean, no? I'll show these to the donors and to the board of trustees."

She got that evil look on her face, the look that I absolutely hate. "Go ahead, show them. Want to know what will happen when you do?"

Without waiting for my answer, she continued: "Oh, yeah, I'll be a bit embarrassed. But then I'll explain to them that these photos are fakes. I'll explain that **Dr House** went on Photoshop and made these pictures. **Dr House** did this to defame my character and that of Dr Wilson's. And who do you think they will believe, me or you?"

She went on: "They will believe me. You know that. And then you want to know what will happen? You think I make your life miserable now? Just wait until after this whole photo thing dies down and see how miserable I make your life."

I snarked: "Yeah, some more clinic hours I suppose."

She laughed: "Oh no, nothing as mundane as that. You know, those little tidbits of gossip that you don't want all over the hospital."

I felt my stomach drop: "You wouldn't."

"Oh, don't push me. The whole hospital will know that you and Elle are doing it. And I'm sure that the story will get even more elaborate. There could be hookers involved or some bondage. Yeah, Elle as a dominatrix tying you up and Wilson walked in on that. That would be a good one."

She leaned forward and got right in my face again. "Remember, I am the eyes and ears of this hospital. I know everything that goes on here. And I know what happened to Elle at PMMC. You want that to happen to her again?"

I felt the fear and I know Cuddy saw it before I could hide it away again.

She sat back: "I thought so. You really care about her and I'm glad. It's about time you stop mooning after Stacy and moved on. So here's the deal. You keep the pictures to yourself, stop torturing Wilson and there will be no bad rumors spread around about your girlfriend. Your clinic hours and other obligations will remain the same, although I really should raise your clinic hours for all this crap today. But I won't _this_ time. Spread those pictures around and the gloves come off. Do we understand each other?"

For once I didn't have a snarky comeback. I held out my hand and she placed the camera in it. I hated losing to her, but I had no choice at the moment. I took some consolation in the fact that I had seen her in her undies today and had a photo to prove it. I'd get her back at some point.

As I took the elevator back to my office, I ruminated over what happened. The day had started so well. The plan seemed perfect. If Cuddy hadn't gotten entangled in my plot, it would have gone really well. Leave it to her to screw up my genius plan. And I still owed Wilson lunch. Crap.

I was not in the best of moods when I limped back into my office. The ducklings were waiting in the conference room. I held up a finger to indicate one minute and sat down at my desk. I pulled the camera out of my pocket and slipped it into my backpack. As I quickly swallowed two Vicodins, my phone beeped indicating a new text message.

It was short and to the point: _"Meatloaf tonight?"_

I couldn't help but smile. I turned my back away from the conference room so that the ducklings wouldn't see me. Such a feeling rose in my chest staring at those 2 small words. She wanted to see me. She wanted to cook for me. And I bet she wanted some more of Mt. Gregory who was starting to stir as I stared at my phone. Geez, how pathetic. I was getting turned on more by looking at my phone than by those pictures of nearly naked Cuddy.

I shook my head to clear that image and I sent a reply text message: "_Mash pot 2?"_

I stood up and made my way into the conference room. I headed right to the coffee pot without saying a word and poured myself a cup. As I turned around, my phone beeped again. I pulled it out and glanced at it. The message was brief again: _"Of course!"_

The corners of my mouth turned up a bit before I realized it. I heard a gasp and looked up. All three ducklings were sitting there with shocked looks on their faces.

I glanced from face to face: "What?!"

After a moment's hesitation, Chase said: "You were smiling. It was scary."

I smirked: "Good news. Hooker's coming over tonight and bringing a friend. Love those threesomes. So what do we have?"

I quickly hit _"kk"_ and 'send' and then turned to the whiteboard. I tapped the marker against the board and said: "Results, people?"

As usual, Cameron had taken the history. The patient had been having these symptoms for 4 weeks now. She had lost 10 pounds without dieting. She just lost her appetite and had no energy. She had a fever between 99 and 101 for the last week. Her BUN and creatinine were elevated. Her white count, red count and platelets were all low. She was anemic, hence her lack of energy.

Chase had taken the chest X-ray. He popped it on the light box for us to examine. The lungs themselves looked unremarkable, but at the very bottom of the film was just a bit of something. It wasn't enough to make out. It could have been just a blip, but I didn't like it.

I pointed to it: "What's this? Did you palpate her abdomen?"

Cameron shook her head: "She didn't complain of any abdominal problems."

I threw the marker down in frustration: "And you call yourselves doctors? Did you skip that day in medical school when they lectured about how to do a complete examination? Christ!"

I grabbed my cane and headed out the door, the ducklings following on my heels.

I slid open the door to her room and observed the pale blond woman lying in the bed. I limped in slowly and said: "I'm Dr. House. And you are the patient."

Cameron said: "Judith Woodyard."

I nodded: "Right."

I grabbed the control for the bed and lowered it so she was lying flat.

"I need to examine your abdomen. Just lie still."

I lowered the blanket to her hips and raised her gown baring her abdomen. The blip was on the right side of the X-ray so I focused on the left side of her torso. I found the swelling immediately. It was right there. Cameron would have easily found it if she had bothered to examine the patient.

"Does this hurt?" I pressed a bit harder and the patient winced.

"Yes," she whispered.

"How long have you had this?"

"I noticed it about a week ago, but I've been constipated so I didn't really think much of it."

I raised my eyebrow at that, but didn't say anything more. I could palpate the lymph nodes on the left side of her groin but not on the right side. I examined the others and the lymph nodes in her left armpit were also swollen. Cancer was definitely moving up on the list.

I commanded: "Examine her abdomen, Dr Cameron."

Cameron did and immediately found the lump. She looked at me wide-eyed, knowing that she had screwed up. She looked away from me, lowering the patient's gown and covering her back up with the blanket.

I said to the patient: "We're going to need to run some more tests. These doctors will be back with you in a few minutes."

Motioning to the ducklings, they followed me out of the room.

Once outside, I scolded Cameron: "You could have easily found that if you had bothered to examine the patient properly. That would have saved us some time.

"Hydrate her and let's see if her renal values improve. Get a CT of her chest, abdomen and pelvis."

Foreman said: "So you're thinking cancer or infection?"

I said: "I'm thinking we'll know more when these results come back."

I left them to run the tests and I headed up to Coma Guy's room to watch General Hospital.

After General Hospital was over, I headed back to the conference room. The kids were still off running tests. I limped over to the whiteboard and added the new symptoms to the list. The list now included:

_Weight loss_

_Decreased energy_

_Fever_

_Itching_

_Low RBC's, WBC's, Platelets_

_Increased BUN, creatinine_

_Constipation_

_Mass in abdomen_

Swollen lymph nodes, left side

I stared at the list for a few minutes. Then I shifted the board so that I could see it from my office. I limped to my chair and found my I-Pod. I stared at the board, listening to Clapton until the ducklings returned.

It was almost 5PM when they finally made it back to my office. I was tired of waiting around and was just about to page them when they walked back in. Cameron started off with: "CT was backed up. It took us a while to get in."

I interrupted her: "I don't care about how long the line was. I want to know how the movie ended."

Foreman gave me the results: "CT shows a single extranodal tumor around her left ovary and it is pressing on the bowel causing a slight obstruction. That could explain the constipation."

"Well, constipation is the least of her worries at this point. She has a tumor in her abdomen. We need to find out what it is. Get a bone marrow biopsy. And while you're at it, get a biopsy of the inguinal, axillary and cervical lymph nodes. Let's see how far this puppy has spread. Chase and Foreman help draw the samples, then you can go and Cameron can run them and monitor the patient overnight".

Cameron huffed: "Me? Why me? It's because I missed the mass on the physical exam, isn't it?"

I limped around my desk and got right in her face: "It's your turn! Chase stayed over with Miss Boo-Boo Butt, so now it's your turn."

I shooed them out and limped over to the whiteboard. I added 'abdominal mass' to the list. I stood there for a few minutes, lost in thought. Then I headed back to my office and packed up my gear. We would have the biopsies tomorrow and I felt sure they would tell us what this is.

After a quick stop at the liquor store for a new bottle of scotch, I headed home. As I parked the bike, I noticed the lights on in Elle's apartment. It was only 6PM, a little early for dinner. I figured I needed to give her some time to cook. I entered my apartment and tossed my backpack onto the couch. As I was taking off my jacket, I noticed the silence. My apartment was really quiet. I usually like the quiet, but tonight it felt too still. It hadn't felt like that in a while. I turned on the TV for some sound as I headed back to the bedroom to change. I stripped off my button-down and my t-shirt and rummaged in the drawer for a clean band tee. The bedroom felt quiet and still also. The bed was still rumpled from last night so I made it up. As I fluffed her pillow, I could swear that I still smelled her scent on it.

I wandered back to the living room and cracked open the bottle of scotch. I poured myself 2 fingers and sat on the couch flipping channels.

I didn't want to go running over there the minute I got home. I didn't want to look too needy. But my body ached for her. I hadn't seen her or touched her since last night and I wanted her. I wanted to hold her in my arms and kiss her. I wanted to feel her legs wrap around me as I slide inside of her.

She was all I could think about. I tried to focus on the TV and I tried to think about my case, but it was futile.

Finally I said: "fuck it" and slugged back the rest of the scotch. Wiping my mouth on the back of my hand, I grabbed my cane and headed over to Elle's apartment.

I knocked, but she didn't answer, so I let myself in. Meatloaf was blasting on the stereo; no wonder she didn't hear me. She was in the kitchen with her back to me, mashing the potatoes and singing along to 'You Took the Words Right out of My Mouth'. I rapped my cane hard on the door and she turned around. The startled look on her face turned into a big smile when she saw me. I was struck by the fact that she was happy to see me. It was something that I was not used to; most people were not exactly pleased to see me, much less happy. She set down the pot, wiped her hands on a towel and came over to me. She seemed so genuinely happy to see me that I smiled back.

"Hey," she said and then she tiptoed up on her bare toes and put her arms around my neck. I dropped my cane and wrapped my arms around her. Our noses nuzzled each other's. I brushed my lips against hers and then deepened the contact. Her lips parted and allowed my tongue to enter. I realized that this is what I had craved all day, her lips, her touch. I felt her fingers tangling in my hair and I pulled her closer. We kissed passionately for several minutes, until her toes wobbled a bit from standing so long on extreme tiptoe. I tried to stabilize her and we ended up falling back against the door.

She giggled: "Oops. Wish I were taller. It would be easier to kiss you standing up if I were."

I swooped down for one more kiss and then I said: "No. You're perfect just the way you are."

I was taken aback by the look on her face. It was surprise, disbelief and a host of other emotions that flashed across her face for a minute, and then were gone. She looked down and I saw her swallow hard and then bite her trembling lip. She turned away and headed back to the kitchen calling to me in a shaky voice: "Are you hungry? Dinner's not quite ready yet. I'll get you a beer."

I wondered why that little comment had upset her. I had not said it in a snarky manner; I had really meant it. She obviously didn't want to talk about it so I figured I would leave it alone for now.

I called back to her: "Yeah, a beer would be great."

I followed her into the kitchen and accepted the beer that she handed me. She turned back to the stove and continued working on the potatoes. The next song started on the stereo and it was Meatloaf's 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now'.

I said: "So we are listening to Meatloaf while we have it for dinner?"

She giggled: "Well, I asked if you wanted Meatloaf for dinner. Oh, you _assumed_ I meant to _eat _meatloaf as opposed to our musical accompaniment."

I sighed dramatically: "So what are you making me to go with those mashed potatoes?"

She giggled some more: "Meatloaf!"

I came up behind her and brushed the hair away from her neck. Her hickey was a lovely shade of purple and I nibbled on it.

"Little minx. You're in a very giggly mood."

She turned and flashed me her 100-watt smile. "Why not? Go check out my bedroom."

"Why? What's in there?"

She gave me a nudge. "Just go look."

I humored her and went into the bedroom. I was surprised to see a bed where previously there had been a big empty space. It was made up with blue and brown striped sheets and a matching comforter. Four big pillows were at the head of the bed and that silly purple dog was parked right in the middle. No wonder she was happy. That meant no more sleeping on the futon.

I frowned wondering about the implications of this. I wondered if it meant she would not sleep with me as often, now that she had her own bed.

As I stood there pondering this question, she came up behind me and put her arms around my waist.

"Your bed is here." Then I mentally kicked myself for stating the obvious.

She squeezed me and said: "Yep, and the cable was installed today too. Gen was nice enough to come over and hang out waiting for everything while I was at work. Now I just need to get a dresser and maybe some nightstands and I can get my clothes out of the cardboard boxes. It's looking a bit more like a real apartment now, don't you think?"

"Yeah, it does." I smiled down at her. She seemed happy again and I wanted to keep her that way.

"You know what this means?"

She looked at me and shook her head.

"We have to christen the bed. How much time until dinner is ready?"

"About 30 minutes."

"That will do for an appetizer. Come 'ere."

I took her hand and pulled her over to the bed.

We stood next to the bed. I cupped her face and leaned down to kiss her. It was slow and gentle. I brushed her hair away from her face and said: "Let me unwrap you."

She nodded and I grabbed the bottom of her tank top and slowly pulled it over her head. I smiled when I saw she wasn't wearing a bra. Her nipples were already erect.

I thumbed them and teased: "Cold?"

She smiled and said: "No, just happy to see you."

I grinned and started licking her nipple while unbuckling her jeans. I pushed them down over her hips and she stepped out of them.

She looked luscious wearing just a pair of light blue lacy panties. I picked her up and gently laid her on the bed.

My eyes feasted on her body. Then I started kissing her neck and I worked my way down her body. She shivered and sighed as I worked. I paid a lot of attention to her beautiful breasts licking and sucking them until the nipples were hardened nubs.

Elle tried to pull my shirt off, but I shook my head and said: "no". She contented herself with playing with my hair while I feasted on her body. I worked my way down to her panties and mouthed her through them. She moaned: "Gregggggg" and I pressed harder. She thrust her pelvis up at me and I knew she was ready. I slowly pulled her panties off. Her legs parted for me and I positioned myself in between them. I nuzzled her soft hair and then gave her one long slow lick down her entire core. A delicious moan emanated from her and that was all the encouragement I needed to start in earnest. I licked and nibbled until I thought she was getting close. Then I thrust 2 fingers inside of her and sucked hard on her nub. It sent her right over the edge. Her cries of pleasure hit my ears as I felt her walls spasm around my fingers. I kept my mouth on her, but eased up on the pressure. As soon as she started coming down from that high, I thrust my fingers in again, hard up against her g-spot, and sucked hard on her clit. She came again, harder this time. Her fingers gripped my hair tightly and I looked up at her.

Elle was mumbling in French: "_mon dieu, mon dieu, c'est fantastique." _

Her eyes were wide open and I could see the pleasure in them. I smiled against her body, knowing I had put that look there.

I slowly pulled my fingers from her core. I brushed her lips with one to put her taste there and then I stuck them in my mouth to lick them clean. She was delicious and I couldn't get enough of her.

I murmured: "Great appetizer." I moved up on the bed and crashed my lips on her. As we kissed hungrily, Elle's hands were busy unzipping my jeans and trying to push them down. I quickly toed off my sneakers and pulled my shirt over my head. Then I eased my hips up so that she could finish undressing me. She started stroking me as soon as my pants were off. I stilled her hand as I was so turned on that I didn't want to finish prematurely. I wanted to be inside her warmth.

I gently spread her legs and positioned myself between them. She was so wet from her orgasms that I slid inside easily. I hooked my arm under her left leg and lifted it up over my shoulder so I could go even deeper. She moaned and thrust up against me. She cupped my face with her hands and pressed her lips on mine. I thrust hard several more times and just as I was slipping over the edge, I felt her crash again. I felt her walls spasm against my cock and a fresh flood of moisture surround me. Elle cried out and thrust against me and I thrust deeply into her as I came. I pumped 3 or 4 times until I was completely spent and I collapsed on top of her.

It felt so good to lie on top of her and be buried deep inside. But I felt like I was crushing her so I rolled us onto our sides.

I felt her shiver and she made a soft cry.

"Are you OK?"

She panted: "Uh-huh. Aftershocks. So sensitive right now."

Elle buried her face in my shoulder and I held her tightly. She caressed my beard while she planted small kisses on my neck. I just lay there in a very contented post-coital bliss. My member softened inside of her until it finally fell out. Just then a bell went off.

I heard Elle mumble: "Round one is over. Let me know when you're ready for round 2." And she burst into giggles again.

I stroked her hair away from her face and gently kissed her: "My little nympho. Just can't get enough, can you?"

"_Mon Dieu_, you've just fucked me into next week. If that wasn't the timer telling me that the meatloaf is done, I wouldn't be moving for an hour. But by then, it would be burned, so I guess I should get up."

She tenderly kissed my cheek and then she moved from my embrace. Smiling, she said: "Did you work up an appetite?"

"Yeah, I'm starving."

"Good," she said in a low and seductive whisper. She planted a kiss on my chest, right above my heart and slowly slid out of bed. She walked over to the closet and rummaged in a box for a moment before extracting something. I watched as she slipped it over her head. It turned out to be a lavender-colored cotton nightgown. It had little spaghetti straps and only came down to mid-thigh. It wasn't overtly sexy, but she looked quite fetching in it.

"I like that on you."

She smiled and said: "Thank you."

She reached down to pick up her panties and I growled: "Uh-uh. Don't put them on."

Elle laughed and said: "You want me to eat dinner commando?"

In a low and authoritative tone I simply said: "Yes."

She smirked and said: "Fine. But you have to eat naked."

"Oh, like that will be hard for me."

"No, but you might get _hard_ during dinner". Giggling, she scampered out of the room.

I grinned as I watched her go. She was such a feisty little thing.

I slowly climbed out of bed. I felt a twinge in my thigh from all the exertion and I reached for my jeans to grab my Vicodin. Gawd, I just told her I was going to eat in the nude. My scar would be in plain view as I walked around her apartment. What was I thinking? Obviously I wasn't at that moment when I said I would do this. Shit. I didn't want to cave it, yet I hated to flash it around. Screw it; I wasn't backing down. She's seen it. If it ruined her appetite, there would be more for me. I swallowed 2 Vicodins and hobbled out into the kitchen.

Elle was just sliding the meatloaf onto a serving plate as I came in.

She pointedly looked me up and down and smiled. "Like what you're wearing."

I took my cane and lifted the bottom of her nightgown exposing her ass. I grinned lasciviously and said: "_Moi aussi, mon cher_."

She glanced down at the cane and said: "I prefer that other big stick of yours poking at me."

I lowered my cane to rebalance myself and made Mt. Gregory twitch. "You mean, this one?"

Elle walked over to me and cupped my package with her small hand. It was so soft and warm. "Yes, this one."

I smiled down at her. She had this way of making me feel sexy despite the scar.

I smirked: "Be a good little girl and feed me. Then I'll have the strength to poke you with my big stick again."

Elle leaned up until her lips were just millimeters from mine. "Aye, aye, captain," she whispered before kissing me gently.

"Why don't you grab us each a beer, and sit down? I'll bring it out to the table. Oh, and grab the ketchup too while you're in the 'frig."

"Yes, mistress." I grabbed the requested items and headed to the table.

Elle followed me with the meatloaf on a platter and a big bowl of mashed potatoes. She went back and grabbed plates and silverware. She cut me 2 big slabs of meatloaf, loaded on a big serving of potatoes and set it down in front of me.

"_Bon appetite_, cowboy."

I smiled my appreciation, waited for her to serve herself and then dug in.

We ate in companionable silence for a bit. The food was delicious and I was hungry. I took a second serving and started eating slower.

Then I realized I hadn't told her about the photos yet.

"I kinda got back at Wilson today."

Her eyes lit up: "You did? What did you do?"

I proceeded to tell her the whole story. In the beginning, she smirked. Then she chuckled. By the time I got to the part about snapping the photo, she was giggling uncontrollably.

"Where are the photos? Do I get to see them?"

"Of course. My camera is in my backpack. Oh, wait. I e-mailed them to myself. Let me use your laptop and I'll open my e-mail and you can see them now."

Elle fired up her laptop and passed it over to me. I logged into my e-mail and pulled up the pictures. I watched her eyes grow huge as she saw them.

"Oh, my Gawd. You really did catch them in the act, didn't you? Holy shit."

"Yep."

"Well, that's payback for him walking in on us and trying to play Dr Phil. But what about Cuddy? I bet she was really mad at you."

Pensively I said: "Yeah, she was."

She picked up on that right away. "Oh, oh. What did she do to you?"

I hated to tell her, but she needed to know. "She warned me not to tell anyone about it or show anyone the photos, or she would do something very bad."

"What?"

"She said she would float around the rumor that you and I are seeing each other, but with enhancements. Like throwing in some BDSM or other embarrassing items."

She looked shocked, but recovered quickly. "I see."

I took her hand: "You don't have to worry. Cuddy is not going to talk as long as I don't show the photos to anyone. Wilson is definitely not going to talk; that's why I took the pictures in the first place."

Elle looked thoughtful for a moment and then said: "I don't care if they talk."

"What?"

She shrugged: "Let them talk. I've nothing to be ashamed of. Let them think you're screwing me 6 ways from Sunday. I think most of the women in the hospital will be jealous that I'm doing you. Maybe _**Cuddy's**_ jealous that I'm doing you."

I smirked: "You think so?"

She shrugged: "I don't know her very well, but it's possible, don't you think?"

I shook my head: "No. We knew each other at Michigan. Had a very brief thing then. That ship sailed long ago."

"Really? You and Cuddy?"

I nodded: "Very brief and 20 years ago. Remember I mentioned tutoring students in the anatomy lab?"

She sniggered: "Oomigod! She was one of your students, huh? _**Nice.**_ Did you give her an 'A'?"

I wiggled my eyebrows at her: "Yep, she got an 'A', all right."

Elle convulsed in giggles. I watched, fascinated by her reaction. Most women get weird if you are still friends with someone that you used to sleep with. But then again, she was still friends with her ex-boyfriend Tony.

"Well, what would she think if **that** got around the hospital? The Chief of Medicine got an 'A' in anatomy cuz she screwed her teaching assistant!"

I smirked: "She needed to examine my uncircumcised penis very closely. She's Jewish so she hadn't had the pleasure of an uncut cock before."

"OH, like me!" Elle was laughing so hard that tears were leaking out of her eyes. It took her a few minutes to calm down and wipe her eyes.

Still chuckling, she asked: "Whom did you want to show the photos to?"

"No one at the moment. I thought I could use them as leverage to get out of clinic duty, but she says she will just claim that they are Photoshop fakes."

Elle nodded thoughtfully: "Oh, well. Maybe you will find a use for them in the future."

Elle turned towards the laptop and stared at the photos again. She didn't say anything for a few minutes; she just sat there staring.

Finally I said: "You can't stop looking at them. Are you brainstorming for ways to get back at them or are the pictures turning you on?"

Elle giggled and whispered: "Your dick is bigger than Wilson's."

I could feel my smile stretching across my face.

I chuckled: "You got that right. Now get over here."

I pulled her to me and she straddled my lap. As I slid her nightgown up and pressed my lips to hers, I thought this was definitely worth losing one round to Cuddy.

_**Elle**_

I couldn't believe the stunt he managed to pull off today. It was hysterical. I wish I had been there to see the look on Wilson's face, although the photos captured it well. Too bad Cuddy foiled his plot. Well, the photos were priceless and Greg may find a use for them yet.

While I was staring at the photos, he asked if they were turning me on. I **had **been staring at Wilson's dick and comparing it to Greg's. When I told Greg that his dick was bigger than Wilson's, he got excited again and pulled me to him. I straddled him and we had sex right there on the chair in the dining room. I couldn't believe he made me come for the 4th time that night. His eyes never left mine and his mouth rarely did except to breathe. It was hot and amazing. No man has ever turned me on as much as he does.

We both climaxed and I sat in his lap for a while, cuddling and kissing. As much as I tried to keep my weight off of his right thigh, eventually the pain in his leg caused him to ask me to get up. I could see the regret in his eyes at the loss of contact.

He covered it up with a smirk: "Had enough sex yet, my little nympho?"

I pointedly glanced at the clock; it was only 8:00. "The night is still young, my stud muffin. Perhaps I can persuade you to service me again before bedtime."

He smiled and I gave him a nice kiss on his mouth. What was intended to be a quick kiss turned into a long deep one as he wrapped his arms around me and wouldn't let me go. It wasn't as if I minded. I really couldn't get enough of him and sometimes I thought he might feel the same way about me.

I finally broke away from him and started clearing the table. I wrapped up the leftovers and stacked the dishes in the sink.

"I'm going to see my therapist after work tomorrow. There's plenty of leftovers so come over and help yourself if you're hungry."

"Poker game tomorrow night. We usually get pizza and other assorted junk food."

"Oh, right. Well, then I'll have the leftovers when I get home. Leave you boys to your junk food and your poker."

I started washing the dishes and he came up behind me and embraced me while I washed. He brushed the hair away from the neck and nibbled on my hickey.

He muttered: "I need to keep this looking fresh. I want the boys to know that you're mine. They gotta keep their hands to themselves."

I giggled: "Greg, I'm not going to be over tomorrow. You're playing poker. I'm going to stay home and let you enjoy your game with the guys."

"Well, they will see you when you come to bed."

I turned to look at him: "What do you mean?"

"On a work night you like to go to bed at 10 or 10:30, right? We'll probably be playing until midnight. So they will see you as you pass through on your way to my bed." He bent his head down and nibbled some more.

I closed my eyes to better enjoy the sensation and to contemplate what he just said. He assumed I would be sleeping in his bed every night and why would tomorrow be any different just because the guys were there? I smiled; it was a heady feeling knowing he wanted me like that. But I wasn't sure about parading through in front of the guys; that made me feel a bit uncomfortable. Maybe I should just sleep here on poker nights and at his place the rest of the time.

"Greg, I don't know if I feel comfortable just walking past the guys to your bedroom."

"Well don't just walk past. Stay and smooze for a bit first, and then go to bed."

I looked down embarrassed by what I was about to say: "You know, after therapy, I'm kinda at my worst. I've usually been crying, and I don't know if I want the guys to see me like that. And I'm afraid I'll go to sleep and have a nightmare and start screaming while they're still here. So, that's why I was thinking maybe on poker nights it would be better if I slept here."

A thought came to me and I brightened a bit: "I have a bed now. You could come sleep over **here** after they leave."

He frowned: "I like my bed. It's big and comfortable."

"I know. I like your bed too, but mine's not too bad. It's brand new; even have new sheets."

"But you'll already be asleep when I come over."

"I'd be asleep if I were in your bed too. You don't have to if you don't want to. But please think about it." That last bit came out in a pleading whisper that I wasn't too proud of. I bit my lip to stop the trembling and turned back to finish the dishes. I was blowing this already; I just knew it.

_**House**_

Elle turned back to the sink and resumed washing the dishes. I pondered what she just said. It was actually a reasonable request, but I stubbornly wanted what I wanted. I could hear Wilson's voice in my head, telling me not to be an ass about this.

I put my hands on her shoulders and I could feel her tremble beneath my touch. This wasn't what I wanted. I didn't want to make her feel bad.

I moved her hair away from her neck again and nibbled on my favorite spot. She let out a soft whimper and then smashed her hand to her mouth as if to stop any more sounds from escaping.

I whispered: "I just wanted to show you off. Maybe another time."

She squeezed her eyes shut and gave a small nod.

I gently nipped her earlobe and whispered: "Sleep at my place tonight?"

She let out a long sigh: "Yes."

"Good. Put on the least amount of clothes possible to walk across the hall and let's go."

She walked back into the dining room and picked up the discarded nightgown. She slipped it over her head and asked: "This OK?"

I nodded: "Perfect."

I chose that word specifically to see how she would react. That surprised look quickly flashed across her face again before she composed herself.

Pointedly looking me up and down, she said: "Going like that?"

"You'd like that, wouldn't you? You want to see me streak across the hall. I can't cuz if old Mrs. Harper walks out and sees me, I wouldn't want to be responsible for giving her a heart attack.'

"At least she'd die happy after getting a look at your big dick."

Grinning, I said: "Horny again, my little nympho? Let me grab my clothes and we'll go back to my place and you can ravish me again if you'd like."

I went back into her bedroom and picked up my clothes. I put on just my boxers and jeans; that seemed sufficient for just walking across the hall.

As I walked out of the bedroom, I saw her walk into the bathroom and open the medicine cabinet.

Curious, I wandered in behind her. She turned to look at me, her hand inside the cabinet.

"Whatcha doing?"

"Getting my pill. I always take it at night before I go to bed."

She held up her dialpak and I could see that she was in the middle of the last week of this cycle of pills. She popped out Wednesday's pill and dry-swallowed it. Then she slipped the dialpak back into the medicine cabinet.

"I'm ready, if you are. Going topless?"

I smirked: "Yeah, it's only across the hall."

She smiled and planted a big raspberry on my chest. "Shall we go? Or do you want to stand here in the bathroom for a bit first?"

"Smart ass."

"That's me."

She ducked under my arm and slipped out of the bathroom. I flicked off the bathroom light and followed her. I watched her pick up her keys and her cell phone and slip on her flip-flops. We stepped into the hall and while Elle locked up her place, I unlocked mine.

"Oh, I didn't get my mail today. Let me do that."

Elle moved over to the mailboxes and opened her, removing a small bundle of mail. She browsed through it as she slowly walked to my door.

"Junk, junk, important, junk, important. All right. Good mail today. No bills."

She strolled into my apartment still focused on her mail. I watched as she strolled to the trashcan and dropped in the junk mail, and then walked over to the couch while slitting open a large manila envelope. She sat and pulled the papers out of the envelope and started reading. I wondered what had caught her attention so thoroughly as I limped into the kitchen for a beer. As I opened the refrigerator, I heard her gasp.

I glanced at her; she was staring as if in shock at the paper. Shit, it looked like she got some bad news. I grabbed two beers and went to the couch and sat next to her. I set the beers down on the coffee table and put my arm around her.

"What is it, Elle?"

As she looked at me, one lone tear slid down her cheek. I captured it with my thumb, and then asked again: "What is it, sweetheart?"

Elle took a deep breath and then said: "They are going to publish my article."

"What?"

In a strangulated voice, she repeated: "They are going to publish my article. I can't believe it. I submitted it back in December and I hadn't heard anything all this time, so I figured that they didn't like it. But they did. Look! Here's a bound copy of it. It's going to be published in the September issue of JAPhA. I can't believe it!"

She seemed stunned by this. I took the bound article from her and looked at the cover: 'A Summary of Chemotherapeutic Treatments for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas' by Arielle S. Kaplan, PharmD, BCOP. I flipped through it; it was 12 pages long.

"Is this your first published article?"

Elle nodded: "Yes."

I grinned at her: "This is great. Congratulations. I want to read it."

She looked surprised: "You do? Really?"

I shrugged: "Of course."

She finally smiled: "Wow, thanks. I'm flattered that you want to read it. I'm sure you've published a lot of articles, right?"

"A few. But, hey, your first one is special." I cupped her cheek and stroked it with my thumb. Then I softly said: "I'm really proud of you."

A look of surprised disbelief flashed across her face. Her lip trembled and tears came to her eyes. "Really?"

"Yes, you silly girl."

She smiled and said softly: "Thank you." Then she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me on the cheek. I pulled her into my lap and captured her lips with mine. Our tongues struggled a bit for domination but mine won.

We kissed for a few minutes, and then sat quietly wrapped up together. I glanced at the cover again and then asked: "What is BCOP?"

"That's Board Certified Oncology Pharmacist."

"You're board certified? Really? I didn't know that existed for pharmacists."

"Pharmacists only have a few specialties, not like doctors. I had to have 3 years of experience and pass a certification exam first."

"Is pain management another specialty?"

She shook her head: "No, it's not. It's a subject that interests me. I made a lot of recommendations at PMMC and then the doctors started consulting me and it just grew from that. It does kind of go hand in hand with oncology patients and then I started seeing other chronic pain patients."

"You like doing pain management?"

"Yeah, I do. I like fine-tuning a patient's drug regimen to give them the best pain relief with the least amount of side effects. I don't think people need to live in pain. More doctors need to understand that, and not live in fear of their patients becoming addicts."

This subject was striking a little to close to home, so I diverted her by asking: "Did you know that your initials spell out the word 'ASK'?"

She laughed and said: "Yes, that has been pointed out to me before."

"You like to **ask** a lot of questions, little girl?"

"I've been told that. Although I think you ask a lot more than I do."

"What does the 'S' stand for?"

"Guess."

"Hmmmm, silly?"

She giggled: "No."

"Special? Superduper? Stupendous? Serendipitous? Smart? Svelte? Superb? Serene? Stunning? Sublime? Sensual? Sexy?"

With each word, I kissed her and inched my hand up her leg and under her nightgown. She giggled at the first few words and as my hand grew closer to her core, her giggles turned into sighs. When I got to the word 'sensual', I cupped her mound and she moaned into my mouth. As I whispered 'sexy' I rubbed my hand against her core and she whimpered and bucked against me. I was rock hard again for the 3rd time in as many hours.

"Bedroom?" I whispered.

"Bedroom" came the reply. Elle stood up and held out her hand. I took it and we walked down the hall to the bedroom together.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

_**HOUSE **_

I woke up earlier than usual the next morning. Elle and I had gone to bed at the ungodly early hour of 9:00. We had playful, passionate sex for the next hour and she fell asleep in my arms around 10:30. I got up briefly, just to find my Vicodin and slap on the lidocaine patches, and then went right back to bed. I gathered her into my arms again and reveled in the warmth of my little sex kitten. I had fucked her into a coma again and she had returned the favor. I fell asleep shortly after I returned to bed.

Now it was only 8AM and I was wide-awake. I eased myself out of bed and hobbled into the bathroom. After relieving myself and pulling off the patches, I went into the kitchen for a cup of coffee. The carafe was waiting for me as usual and I poured a cup and took it into the living room. Elle's article was still on the coffee table, so I picked it up to read while drinking my coffee.

It was a good article, in depth and well written. There are over 20 different types of non-Hodgkin's lymphomas and each one has its own specific treatment. Elle did a great job of summarizing the symptoms and treatment of the 15 or so more common ones. I was impressed and made a mental note to tell her later.

I showered, dressed and headed into work, arriving around 10AM. The ducklings were all in the conference room. After dropping my backpack in my office, I headed in there.

Addressing Cameron, I said: "I assume you have the bone marrow biopsy results."

She tossed the papers at me: "Yes, it's cancer, some type of lymphoma. We can give the file to Wilson as soon as he gets back from his meeting."

I scanned the file as I asked: "What type of lymphoma?"

"I don't know. One of the non-Hodgkin's type. She needs a biopsy of the tumor to be certain."

I looked at her; Cameron's appearance was unusually disheveled. I guess spending the night waiting for lab results will do that to a person. She seemed quite tired and exasperated.

Something about this case was bothering me. I could easily just turn it over to Wilson, but I wanted an exact diagnosis. Just knowing it was one of the many non-Hodgkin's lymphomas wasn't enough for me this time.

"Repeat the CBC and metabolic panel. Do an Epstein-Barr and a HIV test. And let's get a needle aspiration biopsy of that tumor. I want to see that bad boy. Cameron, are you fit to stay for the rest of the day? Cuz you look like crap."

She shot me death rays out of her eyes as she sneered: "I'm fine."

"Well, you don't look fine. Go shower and change clothes at least. The boys can start the tests and you can catch up. Now, go."

The ducklings scurried off to do my bidding. I headed out to the balcony, carefully climbed over the dividing wall and walked into Wilson's office. I scanned his shelves until I found the textbook that I was looking for and took it back to my office. Each type of lymphoma has a particular appearance when viewed under the microscope. I wanted this particular text with its great color photos for comparison when we had the results of the biopsy.

It would take them a couple of hours to get all of the tests performed. Wilson was in a meeting so I couldn't go annoy him. I wanted to avoid Cuddy for a while after yesterday's events. I'd like to see Elle and grab a morning kiss and grope, but I couldn't just show up on the 6th floor without raising questions. I sighed and took out my Gameboy.

Right before 1PM, Wilson poked his head in the door. "Lunch? And don't forget you're buying."

I smirked: "How could I forget?" I held up my wallet as proof that I would be able to pay and we headed down to the cafeteria. I got my usual Reuben and Wilson got a burger and fries. I paid and we sat down at a table in the back.

I asked: "You're in a pretty good mood so I'm assuming that you didn't tell her."

He looked confused: "Tell who, what?"

"Tell Julie what happened yesterday."

He closed his eyes and grimaced: "No. I didn't tell her."

"Smart move."

We ate in silence for a few minutes, then he asked: "Did you tell Elle what happened?"

I nodded.

"What did she say?"

I smirked: "You really want to know?"

"Yeah, I want to know."

I chuckled: "She said my dick is bigger than yours. Then she gave me a lap dance."

I stole a couple of his fries while watching his reaction. He looked surprised at first, and then he chuckled. "Well, I'm glad you're getting some. How many lap dances did you get last night?"

I stole 3 more fries, shoved them in between my fingers and held them up.

He sputtered: "Three? At your age?"

"Hey. That's not nice. You hurt my feelings" I put on a pouty face. "And it's true. We had 3 rounds last night, her bed, dining room chair, and my bed."

He went all slack-jawed. "Really?"

I munched the fries and nodded. "Yep."

"Damn, you're really getting some. You are a lucky guy. She IS smokin' hot."

I growled: "MINE. Back off."

He held up his hands in defeat: "Just complementing you on your taste in women. She's good-looking, smart and apparently very hot in the sack."

"Yes, she is. All of the above and more. Hey, she is having an article published."

"No shit! That's great. Which journal?"

"JAPhA."

"Which is?"

"Journal of the American Pharmacists Association. It would be kinda like getting published in JAMA for us."

He looked impressed: "Cool. That's great. Be sure Cuddy knows. She'll give Elle some recognition for it. You know how much she likes us to publish."

"Yeah, don't remind me."

We ate in silence for a few minutes and then Wilson asked: "Poker game still on?"

I nodded: "Of course."

He chuckled: "Just wondering. Thought you might be too busy getting laid to play poker."

"There's always after the game. A woman loves a big winner. Bring your wallet. And bring the beer."

After lunch, I headed back to my office. The ducklings weren't around, so I grabbed the oncology text and headed up to the lab.

Chase summarized the findings as soon as I walked into the room.

"Her RBC's, WBC's and platelets have fallen a bit. Her BUN and creatinine are better. I think the hydration helped. Her HIV test was negative and the EBV was positive."

Pleased at his concise report, I nodded: "And the biopsy?"

Foreman said: "Right here under the microscope. It's distinctive looking. I can't place the exact type, though. We should page Wilson for a consult."

I stepped over to the microscope: "Let me see."

Foreman stepped aside so I could get to the scope. I ran through all of her symptoms in my head as I stared at the slide.

Then Foreman said: "House, change the setting to low power. It looks different on low than it does on high."

I changed the setting and he was right. It did look different.

Foreman said: "It looks like little stars on top of the lymphoid cells, doesn't it?"

Stars. Starry sky. Where did I see that? Then I remembered: Elle's article. She had summarized the symptoms and mentioned a unique starry sky pattern seen under microscopy for one of them. I flipped to the index of the text and checked for that term. Sure enough, there it was: 'starry sky', page 498. I flipped over to that page and read quickly. Then I compared the photo in the text to what was under the microscope. It fit.

I lay the text down on the table, open to the pertinent page. Stepping back, I said: "Take a look."

Foreman glanced at the picture and then in the scope again. "Yeah, that looks like it."

Then Chase took a look and agreed with both of us.

This wasn't good for the patient. If it is what I think it is, this was a very aggressive type of cancer. We needed to do one more test to confirm it and then I'd call in Oncology's Boy Wonder for the treatment.

"Run a FISH for the C-myc and IgH genes. Look for translocation between them. Let me know if the break point in myc is between exons 1 and 2 and the break point in IgH is in the switch region."

Chase asked: "And what will that mean?"

I started out the door and turned back to answer him: "Bad news for our patient."

I headed back down to my office. I put on the Stones and sat down at my desk. I had stuffed Elle's article in my backpack before leaving home and I pulled it out now. I turned to the section on Burkitt's lymphoma and read it again. Our patient matched most of the symptoms. It was unusual to see it in an adult female who was not HIV-positive. There were probably only 300 cases a year in this country in non-HIV patients. Poor woman hit the wrong jackpot. It was a very fast-moving cancer and required aggressive chemotherapy. Per Elle's article, the best shot was a regimen referred to as CODOX-M/IVAC. I shuddered; it sounded quite intense.

I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. Elle's article had actually helped me diagnose my patient. I really wanted to see her, let her know that I read the article and what I thought of it. I wanted to tell her that it had helped me with my patient. I also wanted to kiss her.

Just then 'You Can't Always Get What You Want' came on the stereo. I had to smile at the irony. I leaned back and closed my eyes while waiting for the ducklings to finish running the test.

It was 4:30 before they barged into my office. Foreman reported that the breakpoints were exactly where I said they would be.

I said: "That confirms it. She has Burkitt's lymphoma. I'll page Wilson; the case is his now. Nothing more we can do. You guys can go home now."

They eagerly grabbed their stuff and left while I paged Wilson. He wandered into my office a few minutes later.

"You rang?"

"Gotta patient for you. Burkitt's."

"Burkitt's, really? HIV positive?"

"Nope." I handed him the file and watched him read it.

"Geez, you did the gene studies and everything. Usually you figure out that it's cancer and let me pin down the exact diagnosis. What's up with that?"

I shrugged: "I wanted to go the whole hog today. It was a decent puzzle, pretty rare cancer. So are you going to use CODOX-M/IVAC?"

His eyes popped. "You know about that? That's a fairly new chemo regimen. I didn't think you kept up with those."

I picked up Elle's article and waved it at him: "I had a bit of help."

He snatched it from my hand and started skimming it. After a few minutes, he said: "This is really good. Thorough, yet concise. So after you diagnosed her, you found out about the regimen in her article?"

"Actually it was the 'starry sky' description that clicked it for me. After I confirmed the diagnosis with the gene study, I read it again for the treatment."

He smirked: "So she helped you diagnose another one? Does she even know this yet?"

I smiled: "Not yet. I'll tell her later."

He smirked: "You've got a smart sexy one here. Don't blow it."

I shot him a withering look. Who was he to say not to blow it when his third marriage was quickly going down the toilet?

Wilson rose from his seat: "I'm going to review the file and tell the patient the bad news. Write the orders to start the chemo tomorrow and then I'll come over to your place."

I merely nodded and Wilson walked out of my office.

I looked at my watch; it was almost 5PM. Elle would have left work already to head over to see her therapist. I decided to head home. Maybe I would get a chance to see her before the guys arrived. I gathered all of my stuff, including her article, stuffed it in my backpack, and headed out.

**_ELLE _**

Work wasn't too bad today, yet I was glad when it was over. I was anxious about seeing Gail and wanted to get it over with. I was really wondering what she would say about the fact that I was now having sex with Greg.

Her reaction was pretty much as I imagined it to be. Gail thought I was moving too fast with House and urged me to take it slow. I argued: "What do you mean, take it slow, I'm already sleeping with him!" I wasn't going to move in or marry him. I wanted things just the way they were right now.

Dinner and sex. Someone to cook for and have dinner with. Someone to hold me while I sleep. Someone to cling to when I'm scared. Someone to comfort me when I have a nightmare. Someone to fuck me into a coma. He was giving me everything I needed right now. I wasn't stupid enough to delude myself into thinking it was something more. I didn't believe for a minute that he would want to take this 'thing' any further. I was well acquainted with his reputation. And I knew I was too damaged for him to love. I cared for him but I was afraid of falling in love with him. Deep down, I wanted it to be more, but I kept that feeling tucked away in a dark little corner. Every now and then I would remember what Wilson had told me; House may not be able to verbally express himself, but his actions would speak for his feelings. His actions almost seemed like a man in love, but I was afraid to hope. Therefore, I kept that feeling buried away.

It was upsetting that the best thing I had going right now was met with Gail's disapproval. I told her how gentle he was with me, and how considerate he was in bed. I told her what happened when he wanted to take me from behind and I freaked. His reaction to that seemed to raise him up a notch in her eyes. And she was glad that I was able to enjoy sex and have orgasms again so soon after being raped. Then we talked about my nightmares for a while and before I knew it, my hour was up.

I had cried throughout most of our session, so I knew I looked like hell when I left her office. I took a glance at my face when I got in the car. Sure enough, my eyes were red and swollen. I hoped that I didn't run into House or any of his friends when I got home. I didn't want anyone to see me like this.

I dodged the bullet. I managed to get into my apartment without running into anyone. I poured myself a finger of scotch and slugged it down. The burn felt good going down my throat. I poured 2 more fingers and took it into the bedroom with me. I felt slightly depressed at the realization that there was nowhere but the floor to set the glass on. I needed to get more furniture. I changed into jeans and a tee and went back into the kitchen.

I took out the leftovers and fixed a plate, setting it in the microwave to heat up. While it was nuking, I heard a knock, but before I could get to the door, I heard the key in the lock.

Greg entered and paused just inside the door. "I wasn't sure if I should knock or just use the key."

"Just use the key."

He nodded and just looked at me for a long minute, his head tilted to the side. Finally he leaned his cane up against the door and held out both arms. I was drawn to him like a magnet. I was in his arms in mere seconds. My hands found his scruffy face and I pulled him to me. My need for him was like the need for water in the desert. I kissed him hungrily and he returned it with equal passion. We kissed deeply for several minutes until we needed to come up for air. He took my face in both of his hands and looked at me. The expression on his face was so kind and gentle that I thought I would burst into tears.

"Rough session?"

I just nodded and ducked my head. I buried my face in his chest so he wouldn't see the tears in my eyes. He nuzzled the top of my head, planting little kisses in my hair.

"I wanted to see you for a minute before the guys get here. I read your article and I thought it was really good."

I smiled against his chest: "REALLY? Oh, you're just saying that to be nice."

He smirked and said: "You obviously don't know me very well."

He pulled back from our embrace, looked me in the eyes and said: "Hi, I'm Greg House and I don't do things just to make others feel good."

He leaned against the door and pulled me with him. "It was a damn good article. Wilson thought so too. Your article actually helped me diagnose a patient today. She has Burkitt's and I remembered your description of the 'starry sky' microscopy as I looked at the slide. Then I impressed Wilson by knowing the latest treatment for it."

He was watching me, waiting for my response. I just blushed, not able to handle his praise very well. I finally managed to mumble: "I'm glad it helped."

He nodded solemnly. He watched me for a few more minutes. I busied myself with pulling his shirt out of his jeans so that I could run my hands up his bare back. He hummed and smiled at the contact, pulling me closer. My head was nestled nicely on his chest. I could feel his desire pressing up against me.

Noise in the hallway brought up back to the present.

Greg sighed and said: "The guys are here. I should go."

In a more serious tone, he asked: "Will it scare you if I climb into bed with you tonight while you're asleep?"

I smiled and said: "I don't think so."

He smiled and said: "OK." He ran his hands up under my shirt and I shivered with delight at his touch. I could see the surprise in his face when he encountered no bra and his hand slipped forward and gently cupped my breast.

I put my hand on his package, rubbing lightly and said: "Wake me when you come to bed. I'll make it worth your while."

He squeezed my breast and said: "My little nympho."

"That's me, your little nympho."

His lips crashed down on mine and we kissed passionately. Finally with a groan, he pulled away. Glancing down at his crotch, he shook his head: "What you do to me." Closing his eyes, he started chanting: "Wilson in a Speedo, Wilson in a Speedo."

When I started giggling, he opened his eyes and said: "That usually works for me." He glanced down and said: "Ah, yes, it is working. OK. I'm off to win everyone's money."

"Go get 'em, cowboy."

He shot me a mischievous grin, grabbed his cane and hobbled out of the door.

I felt decidedly better as I went back to the kitchen and reheated my plate.

I ate in front of the TV, delighting that I now had more channels to flip through. There was still nothing on, but at least there were more to surf. After eating and cleaning up, I fussed about the apartment. I did a bit of cleaning, watering the plants, things like that. I actually felt a bit lonely and I realized that I missed his company. I decided that I really wanted more bedroom furniture, so I checked the phone book and jotted down the locations of used furniture stores. Then I went online and looked at what Ikea had to offer. Ikea had some pieces that looked good and weren't too expensive. If I didn't turn up anything in the local used furniture stores, I would head over there.

It was 10PM and time for bed. I changed into some boxers and a light cami. I took my pill and brushed my teeth. I started feeling anxious about sleeping alone. He told me he was coming over, but that wouldn't be until later. What if he decided not to come, afraid that he would disturb me? I tried to push away my anxiety, but it was not working. I realized that it had been a week since I had slept alone. I turned on my nightlights and put on my sleep-inducing CD. I thought for a moment, and then slugged down 2 fingers of scotch, hoping that would help. Then I regretted it. I probably should have taken an Ativan instead. Oh, well. Too late now, I already had the booze in me.

I had to have faith that he would come over. He would comfort me and protect me. I pulled back the sheet and crawled in. I settled in on 'my' side, fluffing the pillows a few times. Despite the CD, the place felt eerily quiet.

I grabbed the purple dog and hugged him to my chest. He wasn't Greg, but he would have to do for now.

**_HOUSE _**

I ended up winning 300 bucks. Not a bad haul for the night. And one hundred of it was Dry Cleaner Guy's money, so that made up for last week.

They left around 11:30. Wilson stayed as usual to help me clean up.

As he dumped the ashtrays, he asked: "So, Elle's not sleeping over tonight?"

I shook my head.

"She didn't want to walk in with the boys here, huh? Not after what happened two weeks ago."

"It's not that."

"What is it, then?"

"Look, you're the only one who knows about her nightmares. She's afraid of having one while the guys are here. That would really embarrass her. So she doesn't want to fall asleep here while anyone else is in the apartment."

He looked thoughtful. "Oh, I can understand that. So, sleeping alone tonight, huh?"

I smiled: "She had her new bed delivered yesterday. I told you we had to christen it right away. That was the first of our 3 rounds last night."

"Oh. Yeah. Right. So you're going over there to sleep, then?"

I wiggled my eyebrows and gave him my best 'duh' look. "What do you think?"

"I think that is just what I would be doing. I'm outta here. Good night."

"Night."

Wilson left and I started getting ready for bed. After brushing my teeth, I grabbed my Vicodin and cell phone and headed over to her place.

I quietly let myself in. The bedroom door was open and I peeked in on her. She seemed to be sleeping peacefully at the moment. I noticed that the nightlights were on and a soothing CD was playing. I wandered back to the kitchen and saw the bottle of scotch and one used glass. The last time she had a nightmare was the previous Wednesday after her therapy session. I wondered if she was afraid of a repeat performance. I poured myself a shot of scotch and washed down my bedtime Vicodin with it. I was standing there, just enjoying the burn, when I heard the first whimper.

At first, I wasn't sure it was Elle. Then I heard it again and I knew for sure. I limped into the bedroom hoping to head off a full-blown nightmare. I kicked off my sneakers, dropped my jeans and crawled into bed. She was laying on her right side facing the middle of the bed and she was clutching that stuffed dog for dear life. Her face was buried in its fur. As I reached for her, she cried out: "No."

Oh shit, she was deeper into it than I thought. I put my hand on her shoulder and she shook it off, saying: "No. Don't."

"Elle, wake up. It's Greg. Come on, baby, wake up."

Her body was curled tightly into a ball; her face was buried in the dog's fur. She whimpered: "No."

Her hair was sticking to her damp skin and I brushed it away from her face.

She trembled and whispered in French: "_Please don't hurt me."_

I decided to talk to her in French and see if that got through to her: _"Elle, wake up. No one is going to hurt you. It's Greg. I'm right here. I've got you. You're safe. Wake up, mon cher. Arielle! Wake up Arielle."_

Elle gasped and her eyes popped open. She looked terribly frightened. I cursed the fact that there was no bedside light to turn on. I knew she needed it. I was concerned that she couldn't really see me in this dim light and she might become more frightened.

"_Elle, it's me. It's Greg. Don't be afraid. I'm here, baby."_

She whispered timidly: "Greg?"

I wrapped my arms around her and she stiffened. I tried to reassure her: "It's me, sweetheart. Don't be scared."

I felt her arm move from my embrace. Then I felt her hand on my cheek and her body immediately relaxed.

She sighed: "Oh, cowboy. You came to my rescue." She snuggled her head into my chest.

I pulled her closer: "I got you. You're safe and your little dog too."

She giggled at that. "You must think I'm really silly, sleeping with a stuffed dog."

"Actually you looked kinda cute with it."

"Yeah, right. Grown woman hugging stuffed dog, very cute."

I nuzzled my scruff against her cheek. "It's OK."

I held her for a few minutes and felt her body grow progressively more relaxed. I thought she had fallen back asleep when she whispered: "Take off your shirt. I want to feel your skin next to mine."

I pulled off my shirt and watched her pull off her cami. She set the dog on the floor and then cuddled up into my chest.

She sighed at the contact: "Ah, this is so much better, don't you think so?"

"Yes."

We lay like this for a while, and then I felt her lips planting little kisses on my chest. Her hand caressed my belly and then moved lower, dipping into my boxers.

I smiled: "Whatcha doing there?"

"Playing. Told you I'd make it worth your while if you came over here to sleep."

I smiled as I felt my body respond to her touch. As I slid my hand down the back of her boxers, my mouth hovering just inches from hers, I whispered: "Yes, you did."

There was an incessant buzzing noise that just wouldn't stop. It sounded like the hum of a million mosquitoes. For a minute, I thought I was back on this horrible camping trip with my dad when I was age 13. Then I slowly opened my eyes and was relieved to see that I was in Elle's bed. She was still asleep, cuddled tightly against my chest and that damn buzzing was her alarm clock. For a change, it had woken me up and she slept through it.

I couldn't figure out where the clock was to shut it off. It must be on the floor on her side of the bed. This felt so nice that I hated to wake her, but I knew she needed to get up for work and, more importantly, make that buzzing stop.

I started kissing her until she woke up enough to kiss me back.

She hummed: "Ummmm, this is nice. Don't stop."

Her hands started making their way down my happy trail to my morning wood.

"As nice as this is, I am trying to wake you up for work."

She groaned: "No. I don't wanna go to work. I wanna stay here with you."

"Um, I'd like that too. You wanna call in sick? We could stay in bed all day."

"Oh, don't tempt me. I would love to. But I'm still on probation, so I can't call in sick. Plus I have pain patients to see today. I better get up."

She rolled away from me long enough to finally shut up that damn alarm. Then she rolled right back and gave me a big kiss.

Stroking my cheek, she said: "Thanks for the nice wake-up call. Go back to sleep. You still have lots of time before you need to go in."

She stroked my hair, kissed me again, and rolled out of bed. I watched her pad naked out of the room and sighed. My morning wood throbbed at the loss of her warmth. I closed my eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

I must have dozed off because I was startled by the shifting of the bed. Elle had sat down on the edge to put her shoes on.

I said: "Hey."

She gave me a beautiful smile: "Hey. I left the coffee here today, OK? I mean, since you are already over here."

I nodded: "No problem. I'll see you tonight."

"I have my yoga class tonight. I'll see you afterwards, OK?"

I nodded: "Thai take-out tonight?"

"That would be great."

I puckered my lips: "Kiss before you go."

She leaned across the bed and gave me a sweet kiss. As she pulled away, I grabbed the back of her head and pulled her back for another one.

"Ummm, I don't know if that will hold me until after yoga tonight."

She smirked: "Well, you could come see me in my office this afternoon. I have a gap of time between 2:30 and 3:00."

I waggled my eyebrows at her: "Hmmm, I just might."

She smiled and gave me another kiss: "I really have to go. See you later, cowboy."

"Yes, you will."

I plopped back down on the pillow and closed my eyes. I heard the front door close and the apartment fell silent. I rolled over on my side to try to fall back asleep. After a few minutes, I realized that I was wide-awake. I sighed; I may as well get up. Then it dawned on me. I was alone in her apartment. What a perfect time to snoop.

I sat up slowly, rubbing the ache in my thigh. I reached for my Vicodin and swallowed two of them. After slipping on my boxers, I slowly got up and hobbled out to the kitchen for some of her coffee. I poured myself a mug and pondered where to start. She really didn't have a whole lot of stuff.

The bookcase seemed like a good place to start. She had those old books of her mom's. Maybe she had put old letters or something in them. I started pulling them off the shelf one by one, but nothing fell out. There was a copy of the French version of _Le Petit Prince_ that looked very old and dog-eared.

I flipped it open but nothing fell out. I saw some writing on the first page and stopped to read. It was also in French.

_To my darling daughter_

_On her 10__th__ birthday,_

_All my love,_

Maman

Her parents had died when she was 10, so this was the last birthday present she had received from her mother. She had somehow managed to hang onto this book through all of her moves in foster care. I suddenly realized that there probably wasn't much here to snoop through, because she truly did not have very much. Most of the books on her shelves were textbooks from college, novels of recent vintage, and her Tintin and Asterix comics. I could not find a high school yearbook.

I glanced around the living room. There was nothing else to dig through. The entertainment stand contained assorted CD's and DVD's, but no personal effects. Her laptop was on the dining room table, but I decided to save that for last. The closet by the front door contained coats and other winter clothing. The top shelf contained a selection of purses. I took each one down and looked through them. Aside from a few forgotten movie stubs, there was nothing of interest in them.

I moved onto the bedroom feeling somewhat defeated. There was no other furniture than the bed. There were no dresser drawers to paw through. I pulled open the closet and glanced around. There were clothes hanging on the rod and the rest were folded neatly in cardboard boxes. I stuck my arm down inside a few of the boxes to see if I could feel anything other than clothes, but I found nothing. Then I glanced up at the shelf and I finally smiled. Jackpot. There were 3 photo albums up there, just waiting for me.

I took them down and sat on the bed to look through them. I opened the oldest looking one first. Tucked inside the front was a manila envelope. I poured out the contents onto the bed. Inside were Elle's birth certificate, her parents' death certificates and her passport. I grinned, knowing what the 'S' stood for now. It was right there on her birth certificate: Arielle Sarah Kaplan. Born January 19, 1971, Gainesville, FL weighing 7 pounds 2 ounces, 20 inches long. Her parents were Benjamin Kaplan and Racquel Dupuis Kaplan. Her father had been born in New York City and his occupation was listed as history teacher. Her mother had been born in France, no city listed, and her occupation was listed as music teacher. So Elle got her musical talent from her mother. Then I noticed something else that struck me as odd. There was a section titled 'previous deliveries to mother'. It asked 'how many other children are living' and it was answered 'zero'. It also asked 'how many fetal deaths (fetuses born dead at any time after conception'. The answer for that one was 'two'. Elle's mom had had 2 miscarriages before Elle was born. She must have been a much-wanted child after 2 miscarriages. I wondered if there had been any more miscarriages after Elle.

Her parents' death certificates yielded little new information. They had died as a result of a motor vehicle accident on July 8, 1981. Tomorrow was the 25th anniversary of their deaths. I wondered how Elle was going to take that. When she mentioned it previously, she was quite upset. I thought it might be a good idea to find a distraction for tomorrow night.

Her passport had been used only twice. She went to Mexico 2 years ago and to France 5 years ago. I wondered where she had gone and why.

It was time to check out the photo albums. I glanced at my watch; it was only 9AM. I still had some time before I needed to head into work. I stuffed all of the documents back into the envelope and flipped the pages on the oldest photo album.

There were several pictures of baby Elle being held by different people. I tried to guess which woman was her mother and which was her aunt. They looked very much alike. There were also shots with her father and her uncle, although I wasn't sure who was who. I would have to figure that out later. Right now I only had time to flip through the pages. I watch Elle grow up in these photos. There were a lot of pictures at the beach. They did seem to spend a lot of time there. And there were the obligatory birthday and school photos. I looked carefully at the photos at her 10th birthday party. She was standing with 2 adults and I assumed they were her parents. The woman looked very tired and her smile seemed forced. I flipped back a page and saw the photo I quickly breezed through before. Elle was hugging the pregnant belly of the same woman. They were standing in front of a menorah, lighting candles, so it must have been during Hanukkah the month before Elle's birthday. I remembered Elle saying how important it was for her to light the candles. I flipped back and forth between the pages. If that was her mother, she was probably 6 months pregnant in December and not pregnant in January. But Elle never mentioned having a sibling. Had her mother lost this one too?

There were only a few photos after Elle's birthday party. Her father or uncle had a birthday and there were a few shots of that. Then a couple more beach photos and that was it. There was nothing else in that album.

I went on to the next one. There was Elle in cap and gown. At first, I assumed it was her high school graduation. Then I realized that the boy standing next to her was a younger Tony. This was their college graduation.

There was a photo of his entire family standing next to them and then several shots of various relatives standing next to them. All of the photos had Tony's family in them. I wondered how she felt having no one there for her.

It was getting late and I needed to hurry. I flipped through the rest of that album and the last one. There were photos of Elle with friends, with the band, with her dog, and with, I assume, other boyfriends. I would have to examine those photos more closely later. I wanted to get a good look at David. I shut the albums and stowed them back on the closet shelf exactly where they had been.

As I limped back to my apartment and got in the shower, it occurred to me that Elle had no photos after age 10 until college. There was no high school yearbook. It is as if that entire part of her life was missing. There was no photographic evidence to document what she had gone through after her parents' death. I wondered if that was deliberate on her part, or just that no one cared enough to take a foster kid's picture.

**_Elle _**

I started seeing my pain patients at 1PM. I was now scheduling the return patients every half hour and reserving an hour's time-slot for the new patients. Thus I had a gap between 2:30 and 3:00. I smiled as I remembered telling Greg about my available slot this morning. I wondered if he would really show up.

As Mr. Rentz left my office at 2:25, I shut the door for a breather, but it reopened again so quickly that I was startled. Greg hurried in and shut the door quickly behind him, flipping the lock.

That really sexy smile was plastered on his face, the one that made me weak in the knees.

In a low voice, he said: "I heard you had an opening at 2:30."

He took a step closer to me.

I swallowed hard. He was turning me on and he hadn't even touched me yet. I tried to fake professionalism by saying: "Why, yes I do. Would you care to sit down and talk about your problem?"

He took another step closer and took my hand in his. "Oh, I don't want to talk about my problem."

He placed my hand over his bulging package and said: "I think you should examine it. I think it needs immediate attention.

I nodded: "It could be serious. It's very swollen. I should take a look at it."

He bent down and brushed my hair back from my face. His breath tickled as he whispered in my ear: "Hurry, doctor. I'm not sure how much longer I can hold out."

He pulled me to him and ground his hips against me. His need was urgent and mine was growing quickly. Our lips met and we kissed passionately. My hands got busy with his belt buckle and I quickly undid the belt and unzipped his jeans. As I slipped my hand inside his boxers, he groaned into my mouth.

I pulled away just long enough to say: "We have to be quiet. This office isn't soundproof."

He mumbled: "OK."

His lips were immediately glued to mine again and I felt his hands fumbling with my zipper. I toed my shoes off and he pushed my pants to the floor. I stepped out of them and kicked them aside. He pulled my top off over my head. I was standing in my office in a sheer pink bra and matching panties. I was so turned on that my panties were soaked.

He pushed me away to arms-length and looked me up and down.

"Nice," he hissed through his teeth.

I backed him up to the chair and then I pushed his jeans and boxers down to the floor. Then I pushed him on the chest and made him sit down.

"We don't have a lot of time. My next patient will be here at 3."

He grinned: "Horny, my little nympho?"

I took his hand and slipped it inside my panties. I saw the look of delighted surprise as he felt how wet I was.

"Oh yeah, you are. Get these off and climb aboard."

I pushed my panties to the floor and kicked them away. He was fully erect. I straddled his lap and then I took him in my hand and guided him to my entrance. I eased slowly down until he was completely inside of me.

He hissed softly: "You are so amazing."

"And you are so goddamned sexy."

I surprised myself by saying that, but he just chuckled and kissed me again. His hands were on my hips urging me on. He suckled at my breast through the flimsy material of my bra, the only article of clothing I had neglected to remove.

I couldn't think; I could only feel. His hands, his mouth, his cock. It felt so good. Our need was urgent and I could tell he was close. His hips were thrusting up against mine. His hand slipped between our bodies and he pressed his thumb against my clit. I exploded almost as soon as he touched me. I pressed my face into his neck to smother my cries as I continued to ride him. His orgasm hit right after mine. He smashed his face into my shoulder to stifle his moans. I thrust against him a couple more times to ride out his orgasm until he stilled my hips with his hands.

He wrapped his arms around me and held me tightly, his head pressed between my breasts. I rested my chin on top of his head and gently stroked his hair.

It took a few minutes for our breathing to return to normal.

Greg broke the silence first. "I feel much better Doctor. I think you cured me."

"Hmmmm. I better check on you later. You could have a relapse."

"That's true. I might. Do you make house calls?"

"For special patients, I do."

"Am I one of your special patients?"

I giggled: "You are my only special patient."

He hugged me tightly and nibbled on my hickey. "Mine," he growled possessively.

"Yes," I whispered.

"Tell me."

"_Je suis a vous."_

He hummed his delight and kissed me again, his tongue tangling with mine.

Reluctantly I climbed off of his lap. I had 5 minutes to get dressed and ready for my patient. I urged Greg on and we hurriedly dressed.

"You look like the cat that ate the canary. You walk outside with that look on your face and everyone will know what we have been doing in here."

He immediately frowned in an exaggerated manner and said: "Does this look more like my usual face?"

"Your usual work face. Not your usual after sex face."

I giggled. "Will that hold you over until I get back from yoga?"

He smirked: "Perhaps. But you better hurry home or I'll start without you."

I laughed and he pulled me to him for one last kiss. Then he pulled away and smoothed down my hair with his hands.

"You look fine. A little flushed, perhaps, like you just got fucked good."

I smiled at him: "That's cuz I just did."

He cupped my face in both of his hands and gave me a small gentle kiss on the lips. Then he grabbed his cane and turned towards the door.

As he walked out of my office, he said: "See you tonight."

He was gone before I could reply, so I said it to the empty office: "Oh, yes you will."


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

_House _

I headed to the elevator, trying to keep the smirk off of my face. That little interlude had been just what I needed. The day had been fairly boring up until now. We had diagnosed our patient, no new patient had turned up and the ducklings had spent the day in the clinic working off their hours.

I had had no one to play with so it was extremely fortunate that Elle had an opening this afternoon.

The elevator arrived and I got in. I headed to Coma Guy's room to watch General Hospital and brag that I just got laid.

After watching today's episode and high-fiving Coma Guy over my sexual escapade, I headed back to my office. Cameron was in the conference room working on some charts. I avoided her by quickly ducking into my office and heading out to the balcony. There was a certain spot on the balcony where I couldn't be see from inside the conference room or my office and I parked myself right there. It was 4PM and all in all it had been a pretty good day. I was reminiscing about the interlude in Elle's office when Wilson's office door opened and the Boy Wonder himself walked out to the balcony.

He hopped over the wall and came to stand next to me. He shot me a questioning look and I just smirked.

Wilson says: "What's up? You look like the cat that ate the canary."

I chuckled: "Funny. That just what Elle said right after we screwed in her office this afternoon."

He sputtered: "What??? You had sex in her office. What is it with you? You can't keep your hands off of her, can you?"

I smirked: "You've seen her. Can you blame me?"

He looked down at his feet. After a pregnant pause, he said: "No. I can't blame you. I'd be all over her like white on rice. Must be nice after the long dry spell you've had."

"Are you comparing her to an oasis in the desert? Cuz she is way better than that."

He smirked: "You're hooked. She's your newest addiction. Better than Vicodin, huh?"

"She's warmer, wetter, softer and there's no bitter aftertaste. But afterwards, I need my Vicodin for the pain, cuz she gives me a helluva good workout! A lot of strain on my leg, but it is SO worth it. And speaking of Vicodin, I need another prescription."

"Geez, House, already? I just gave you a script last week."

"Yeah, for a lousy 50 pills. That lasts me about a week. Why don't you write it for 100 this time, and I won't have to bother you so often?"

He mumbled: "Alright, fine. I'll write it for 100. When are you going to talk to Elle about pain management so we can get you on something else?"

"I'm in too good a mood to have this conversation with you right now. Just write me the script and I'll give you back your oncology text with the great pictures."

He sputtered: "You have my Oxford text? Damn it, House, I was looking for that earlier. Thought I must have taken it home. Can't you return things if you borrow them?"

"You expect too much from me, Jimmy. I'll go get the textbook, you get the script and we'll meet back here in 5.

Without waiting for a response, I turned and headed into my office. I glanced back to see him climbing over the wall and I stifled a smile.

After swapping the textbook for my prescription, I packed up and headed home.

Around 7:30, I phoned for our Thai food to be delivered. I was sitting on the couch, channel surfing, when Elle walked in about 5 minutes later. She was wearing her usual yoga outfit, but I never tired of seeing her in that clingy outfit that accentuated every curve in her body. I looked over my left shoulder and watched her walk the few steps to the back of the couch. She hugged me from behind and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Then she nibbled on my earlobe and whispered: "Did you start without me?"

I closed my eyes and leaned back into her embrace. Softly I said: "No. I waited for you." I felt her smile against my cheek and then she kissed me again.

I quickly turned and grabbed her and pulled her over the back of the couch. She squealed as she landed with her butt on the seat and her legs up over the back of the couch. I reached around and hooked my arm under her knees and pulled her onto my good leg. She immediately wrapped her arms around my neck and crashed her mouth onto mine. We kissed and caressed each other until the buzzer alerted us that the food was here. I groaned; I had a huge hard-on and walking was not in the cards at the moment.

I handed my wallet to Elle and said: "Can you get that?"

She gave me a knowing smile, and climbed off of my lap after rubbing her hand over my 'problem'.

"Tease," I hissed at her as she made her way to the door. Elle paid the guy and brought the food over to the coffee table. She deliberately bent over right in front of me and wiggled her ass just a bit as she set the bag down. I grabbed her hips and pulled her down on my lap. I held her tightly and ground up against her ass to let her know just how turned on I was. She squealed, but I held on tightly, one hand cupping her breast and the other rubbing between her legs. She leaned back against me and turned her head to kiss me. Her hand reached back to play with my hair. We kissed for a few minutes while our hands explored.

Suddenly she pulled my hands away, deftly spun around and quickly straddled me. Her hands cupped my face and she smiled as she looked into my eyes. "Shall we save the food for later?"

I smirked: "Oh, yeah. Much later." Our mouths crashed together again as my hands sought her warm skin. I slipped my hands under her tank top and stroked her back.

We pulled each other's clothes off as quickly as possible. Our lips parted only long enough to pull our shirts over our heads. Elle stood up long enough for me to push her yoga pants and panties down over her hips. I stroked her thighs as I tugged them to her feet where she quickly kicked them away. I held her at arms' length for a moment to admire her nakedness. Her skin was flushed with excitement and her long hair was tousled in a rather sexy manner. She had a sly little smile on her face as she watched me checking out all of her assets.

"You are so beautiful."

"And it's your turn to get naked, cowboy."

Her hands went to my belt and unbuckled it. Next she unzipped my jeans and I lifted my hips so that she could pull them off. She knelt in front of me and pulled off my shoes and socks and then worked my jeans and boxers off.

Mt. Gregory was at full attention. She looked at him, then up at me and smiled.

I pulled her up and positioned her on my lap again. She rode Mt. Gregory until we were both sweaty and satisfied. We sat on the couch for a while, cuddling and kissing. We finally decided that we were starving and dug into the now cold Thai dinner. After our repast, we snuggled on the couch watching some TV for a while. At 10PM, Elle put on enough clothes to run across the hall and do her bedtime routine. I cleaned up the dinner mess while she was gone. When she returned, I immediately stripped her out of her clothes again. After all, if I'm going to walk around the place naked, she is going to join me. Although it had only been 2 hours since we last coupled, the sight and feel of her naked body pressed against mine excited me again.

We climbed into bed and, after another round of passionate sex; we fell into a deep sleep wrapped in each other's arms.

_House (Friday)_

I arrived at work around 10AM. I dropped my backpack on my chair and headed into the conference room for some coffee. Cameron was the only one in the room at the moment and she looked up as I walked in. There was one tall pile of charts in front of her and a smaller stack on her right.

As I entered, she pointed at the larger pile and said: "Those are finished. You just need to sign them."

I poured myself a cup of coffee and reluctantly sat down. I quickly went through the pile of charts signing each one in the designated spot. When I finished, I shoved them back to her.

"Where are the Hardy boys?"

"Down in the clinic. They want to get their monthly hours finished as soon as possible. Since we don't have a case, they thought it seemed liked a good time."

"Good. As soon as they finish theirs, they can start on mine."

She shot me a disgusted look.

"What?"

She shook her head angrily, and said: "Nothing. When I finish this pile, I'll leave them on your desk to sign."

"Fine." I stood up, grabbed my coffee and headed back into my office. I sat in my chair for a moment. There was no new case, I had no desire to go to the clinic and it was too early for General Hospital. Maybe Wilson was in his office and I could annoy him for a while. I headed out to the balcony and sure enough, I could see him alone in his office. I hopped the wall and barged in.

I bellowed: "Good morning, Jimmy. Get lucky last night?"

He gave me a sour look: "No, but I can tell you did. Wait! Don't tell me."

He closed his eyes and held a piece of paper to his forehead and said: "Hmm, the Amazing Kreskin says you had 3 rounds again last night."

"Uh, if you count the time in her office, and I do, then YES! Kreskin, you are truly amazing."

He chuckled: "You are getting some serious action, my friend."

I plopped down on his couch and stretched my leg out. Rubbing my thigh, I said: "Don't I know it?

"A little too much action? Your leg's hurting more?"

"It's hurting a bit more, but it's worth it. She is so hot. And she gets on top a lot so that helps, in more ways than one." I waggled my eyebrows at him.

He smirked: "Good view that way. And to think you sat right here just a couple of weeks ago and pitied her as a poor damaged rape victim"

I tapped my cane on the floor and said: "I know and I was wrong."

He sputtered: "Oh My Gawd. Did you feel that? I think the earth just tilted on its axis. Did you just admit you were wrong?"

I shrugged: "I was wrong about that."

He turned serious: "She's not damaged? What about the nightmares?"

"Oh, I didn't say it hadn't affected her. Of course, it has. She's been through a lot and not just the rape. And yet."

I paused, unable to further verbalize my thoughts.

Wilson gave me a few minutes and then prompted me: "And yet?"

I took another moment and then, staring off into space, I replied thoughtfully: "And yet, she's not bitter. She's not cynical. She's happy and playful. She's passionate. She's so _alive_."

He stared at me, open-mouthed, for a moment before he said: "Oh, man. You've got it bad. I think you're falling,,,"

Before he could finish that thought, his phone rang.

I snarked: "Saved by the bell."

He smirked as he picked up the receiver and said: "Dr Wilson."

I tuned out his end of the conversation as I pondered what he didn't quite finish saying. I did have it bad for her. Before I could figure out all the implications of what that meant, I was brought back to the present by Wilson's loud exclamation: "What?!"

I turned my attention back to him. His forehead was furrowed and he was frowning as he listened to the rest of the conversation. He had picked up his pen and was annoyingly clicking it over and over again.

Finally he said: "OK. I'll be right there."

Wilson hung up the phone. "I think you'll want to come with me for this."

"Why?"

"You know Manny Rivera?"

Dr Manny Rivera is a hot-tempered Cuban who fled Castro's regime and ended up in the balmy climes of New Jersey. Why he didn't park his ass in warm, sunny Miami will always be a mystery. He stood 5'4" with his boots on and he definitely was a victim of 'short man syndrome'. He swaggered when he walked and did his best to intimidate everyone he possibly could.

I spat out: "That little Napoleon. He's a bigger jerk than I am. What about him?"

"That was the charge nurse on the 6th floor. It seems one of the pharmacists is having a big argument with him over some chemo that he prescribed. The pharmacist is refusing to make it, stating that the dose is inappropriate for this particular patient. Now, who do you think is arguing with Dr Rivera: meek and mild Susan or your passionate babe?"

There was no doubt in my mind that it was Elle. I got up and followed Wilson to the elevator.

_ELLE_

We got a new patient with ovarian cancer this morning. Her doctor was starting her off on one of the usual chemo regimens: Taxol and cisplatin.

I started working her up, checking her past medical history and her lab values. The more I read, the more concerned I became.

This patient's renal function was not good. Her creatinine clearance was only 45 ml/min. Cisplatin was not recommended in patients with creatinine clearance less than 60 ml/min. If it was absolutely necessary to use it, then the dose needed to be reduced but her doctor had prescribed the full dose.

The patient already had peripheral neuropathy and partial hearing loss from previous aminoglycoside therapy. Cisplatin was known to cause or worsen those two conditions.

All in all, cisplatin was not the drug of choice to be treating her ovarian cancer. I showed it to Susan and she agreed. Taxol combined with carboplatin would be the better option for her. Hearing loss and peripheral neuropathy were rarely associated with carboplatin, so from that prospective, it would be much safer for the patient than cisplatin. The difference in the survival rate was negligible for patients whether the Taxol was combined with carboplatin or cisplatin. Clearly it made sense to go with the treatment that would cause the fewer side effects for this patient.

I said: "I'm going to call her doctor and speak to him about changing the regimen."

Susan checked the file again and got a very worried look on her face. "Oh, no, it's Dr Rivera's patient. He won't like it if we call him. He is very difficult to approach. He doesn't like to be challenged by us 'peons' and he'll yell at us."

The techs also seemed to be intimidated by him. Miriam said he had the Cuban macho attitude in spades and she would know. She comes from a whole family of them.

I didn't care. I've been yelled at by doctors before. I couldn't just let this go. It was potentially harmful to the patient. This drug could wreck her kidneys, and worsen her hearing loss and peripheral neuropathy. I consulted our directory and paged him.

It was about 10 minutes before he returned my page. I answered the phone and introduced myself to him. Then I explained the purpose of my phone call. I barely touched on the subject when he brushed aside all of my objections and rudely told me to just do it the way that he ordered it. And then he hung up on me!

I stared at the phone in shock. "Susan, he told me to just do it his way and then he hung up on me. I can't believe it."

She shrugged: "That's Dr. Rivera. He's not nice at all. I don't understand why he became a doctor, much less an oncologist. He doesn't seem to have any compassion for anyone."

Just then, Bonnie walked in from delivering some chemo to the outpatient infusion room. She looked at me wide-eyed and asked: "Did you just get off the phone with Dr. Rivera?"

I said: "Yeah."

"I saw him at the nurses' station. Boy, was he agitated. He was throwing charts and yelling about an interfering know-it-all pharmacist. I figured that must have been you. He has quite the temper."

What a jerk! Making a scene like that and not caring enough about the patient to listen to me. I was really steaming. I knew if it were Dr Wilson or one of the other oncologists they would at least give me the courtesy of listening to my opinion. Dr Rivera wouldn't even do that.

I looked at Bonnie again. "He's at the nursing station, huh?"

She nodded affirmatively.

I grabbed the file and started for the door. "I'm going to try to talk to him face to face. Maybe that will help."

As I walked out of the door, I could hear the girls behind me: "No, Elle. Don't do it."

I knew he would probably yell at me again, but I was really hoping that I could make him see it my way. The patient's health, and possibly her life, was at stake.

I had never met Dr Rivera before, but he was easy to spot. I knew he was a short Hispanic man and there was only one person meeting that description at the nurses' station at the moment. He was wearing an expensive Armani suit, but the polished look was thrown off kilter by the high-heeled cowboy boots that he was wearing. He had oily black hair combed back from his forehead and his face was pockmarked with old acne scars.

"Dr Rivera, I'm Elle Kaplan. I'm the pharmacist that you were just speaking to about,,,,,"

He quickly interrupted me. "I don't care who you are. I'm her doctor and I write the orders. Your job is to fill my orders. Do you understand?"

"Not if I feel the orders you wrote could cause harm to the patient. I could be held liable for harm done to the patient just as much as you would."

"There will be no harm done to the patient, unless, of course, she DIES because you won't make her chemo. Now, get out of my face before I call your boss and make trouble for you."

I couldn't believe this guy could be so arrogant and rude. He acted as if he really didn't care about the patient. He just wanted to win the argument with me. It was all about his ego. Gawd forbid one of the 'peons' would be right instead of him. He was one of those M.D.'s: 'Me Doctor', and you're not.

I argued with him for a few more minutes until I realized that it was fruitless. He obviously has a huge ego and was not going to change his mind especially in front of the large crowd that we seemed to have attracted. I decided to change my tactic. I would go back to the pharmacy and call Dr. Wilson. After all, he is the department head. If I presented the facts to Dr Wilson and he agreed with me, perhaps I could persuade him to talk to Dr Rivera for me.

Without a word to Dr Rivera, I turned away to head back to the pharmacy.

He sneered: "Giving up?"

I turned back: "No. I'm going to seek another opinion from your department head. If he agrees with you, then I will do it. If he agrees with me." I let that sentence hang in the air.

I thought I could just about see the steam coming out of his ears, he looked so angry.

I turned to walk back to the pharmacy. I had only got 2 steps when I heard him hiss loudly: "PUTA."

I don't look Hispanic and thus most people just assume that I don't speak Spanish. But I do, and I knew exactly what he said to me. No one talks to me that way. No one. I wheeled around, slammed the file down on the nurses' desk and got right in his face.

_House _

Jimmy and I got to the 6th floor just in time for the fireworks. As we approached the nursing station, we could see the two of them arguing with each other. Then Elle turned and started to walk away and that's when Dr. Rivera called her a _bitch_ in Spanish.

My eyes narrowed in anger. No one talks to my girl like that. I started to take a step forward, but Wilson grabbed my arm. "Wait," he whispered.

I looked at Elle. Obviously she knew what that word meant cuz she had a really angry look on her face. It flashed through my mind that I hoped never to see that look directed at me; it was fierce. She took a deep breath and wheeled around.

"_How dare you? How can you be so unprofessional? Calling me such a name in front of our colleagues?"_

My mouth dropped open. Wilson nudged me: "Did you know that Elle spoke Spanish?"

I just shook my head. Elle was full of surprises. I watched, fascinated, as she continued to scold him in Spanish. She never raised her voice, but you could hear the anger in her tone.

A crowd had gathered to watch the fight. Her pharmacy colleagues were huddled together in one corner and I could see the Hispanic tech whispering to the others and I presumed that she was translating for them.

I nudged Wilson: "Too bad we don't have popcorn for this, huh?"

He shot me a disgusted look.

I was impressed. She was holding her own with our little Napoleon. He would attempt to get a word in, and she would cut him off, wagging a finger in his face. I could see his eyes darting back and forth. He was aware of the crowd and I'm sure he didn't want to lose face in front of all of these people.

He pulled his shoulders back and stretched himself up to his full height, which wasn't much. He started yelling at her: "_It's this type of arrogant attitude that got you in trouble on your last job. You think you can get away with talking to me like this. Well, think again. I will have your job." _

And with that last statement, he pushed her on the shoulder. Elle stumbled backwards, lost her balance and fell.

I heard Wilson mutter: "That's it."

He strode forward, calling out: "Dr. Rivera! We need a word."

I didn't know what to do. I wanted to come to her defense, but that would be so out of character for me, that people would become suspicious. I wanted to scoop her up off of the floor and comfort her, but that would be dragging what we have out in public and I wasn't ready for that yet. I was relieved to see her coworkers run to her aid and help her up.

Suddenly I hear that high-pitched voice, the one that makes me cringe the same way that nails on a chalkboard do: "All right, people. The show is over. Get back to work. Now!"

I glanced to my left: there was Cuddy and Tom Kirby, Elle's boss. I glanced back at Elle; she looked quite nervous now. Her face was noticeably paler. I figured after a brief intermission, Act Two was about to start.

_Elle _

I really lost my temper with Dr Rivera. I never yelled, but I did give him a piece of my mind. He reacted by threatening me with the loss of my job and then he pushed me down. I sat on the floor, stunned, until the girls came to help me up. We had attracted quite a crowd and someone must have made some phone calls because suddenly Dr Wilson was there. Wilson and Rivera started arguing and then Cuddy and Kirby showed up. My heart sank. My boss was here and he didn't look happy. Cuddy glanced at me and then joined in the argument with Wilson and Rivera.

I put my hands over my face and tried to focus on my breathing to calm down. I drew so deeply into myself that I was startled by a touch on my shoulder.

It was Cuddy, clearly annoyed with me. I wondered how long she had been trying to penetrate my fog.

She hissed at me: "We need to go somewhere private to discuss this matter. Come along."

I nodded and turned to follow the doctors to the elevator. Then I saw Greg leaning up against the far wall. I felt my face flush; I wondered how much he had seen. Now that my little tantrum was over, I felt embarrassed by it. I glanced back at Greg to try to gauge his reaction to my outburst. To my surprise, he gave me a quick wink and the corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile. That made me feel a little better and I gave him a small smile in return. He fell into step beside me as we headed for the elevator.

As the elevator door opened and we started to step in, Cuddy noticed Greg's presence.

"House, what are you doing? There is no need for you to be here. Out!"

He smirked at Cuddy and said: "Do you speak Spanish?"

Cuddy shot him an exasperated look: "No. What does that have to do with this?"

"The argument was in Spanish. I thought you would like an impartial translator. Otherwise, they will each tell their side of the story and how will you know who is telling the truth?"

I could see the challenging look in his eyes. He was daring her to make something of that 'impartial' comment.

Amazingly, Cuddy caved. "Alright, fine. You can stay."

We all trooped into the elevator. I stood as far away from Rivera as I could. Greg was standing next to me but not so close that anyone would notice. The elevator dinged its arrival at the first floor. When the door opened, I felt Greg's hand at the small of my back. The angle of his body prevented anyone else from seeing the contact.

He murmured: "Ladies first," and then gave me a gentle nudge. The quick touch was comforting and I followed Cuddy out of the elevator and into her office.

_HOUSE _

Elle looked really nervous. I'm sure that remark from Rivera about her last job upset her. Cuddy and Kirby both seemed pissed at her. She was probably wondering if her argument with Rivera could cause her to lose her job. I managed to convince Cuddy to let me join the party and I rode down in the elevator with all of them. The tension was thick and no one spoke. We reached the first floor and the elevator doors opened. I angled my body to block their view of Elle and touched her back in what I hoped was a comforting manner. She leaned back into my touch for a brief second and then followed Cuddy out of the elevator.

We all trouped into Cuddy's office. Without waiting for an invitation, Dr Rivera parked himself in one of the chairs in front of Cuddy's desk. That did not go unnoticed by Cuddy who gave him a sharp look as she took her place behind the desk. Elle drifted over to the far side of the room, as far away from Dr. Rivera as she could go.

Cuddy looked at Elle and said: "Dr Kaplan, have a seat."

That drew a snort from Dr. Rivera who muttered under his breath in Spanish. I couldn't catch all of it but I heard him say: "_she's a fucking pharmacist, not a doctor."_

Thankfully Wilson interjected before I could throttle him: "Her title is 'Doctor' whether you approve of it or not. And I think Dr Cuddy would appreciate it if we all spoke in English for this meeting."

Cuddy replied: "Thank you, Dr. Wilson. I would appreciate that."

Cuddy looked at Elle and then pointedly back at the chair, indicating to Elle that she should sit down. I could tell that Elle was reluctant to sit so close to Dr. Rivera and then Wilson solved the problem. He pulled the chair around to the side of Cuddy's desk, closer to where Elle was standing and said: "Please have a seat."

Elle gave him a small smile and said: "Thank you Dr. Wilson." She sat and Wilson stood in the space between the two sparring parties.

I applauded him in my mind. Wilson was pretty good at reading people, not as good as me, but still fairly good. I was sure that he could tell Elle was scared, so he was going to do his best to put her at ease. I maneuvered over so that I was in her eyesight. I hoped that I could provide some moral support in some small way without being obvious. Kirby parked his butt on Cuddy's couch. Perhaps he felt it was a smart move politically to keep his distance from his trouble-making employee. Whatever his reason, he certainly wasn't going to lend any moral support. Elle was out on a limb by herself. I wondered if this was how it felt when it all went down at PMMC.

Cuddy addressed Rivera: "Dr Rivera, tell us what happened."

I knew Cuddy would let Rivera tell his side first. It would have pissed him off even more to go second, the arrogant bastard.

He described ordering chemo for his patient as usual and then receiving a page. He described Elle as rude and claimed that she demanded that he change the chemo regimen to her preference. He denied that she said anything about the patient's preexisting conditions. He acted as if she wanted to change the regimen on a whim.

Elle's eyes got really big and she grew pale as she listened to him speak. She glanced at me with such a pleading look in her eyes. I was sure that he was lying. I knew that Elle would be deferential to a physician unless provoked, like that time with Cameron. She took patient care very seriously and if she wanted to change the chemo, I was positive that she had a very good reason for it.

He finally finished his little web of lies and Cuddy thanked him. Then she turned to Elle and said: "Please tell us what happened."

Elle glanced around the room at everyone. I tried to look encouraging, flicked the corner of my mouth up in a half smile. She looked at me for a long second and then her eyes settled on Wilson. As she spoke, her eye contact remained on him. How smart. As department head, he really was the best person to help her out of this jam.

Elle went into detail explaining her reasoning why she felt the regimen should be changed. She cited the patient's preexisting neuropathy and hearing loss as the primary reasons for changing from cisplatin to carboplatin. She also thought that the dose of either drug should be lowered due to the patient's mediocre renal function. Then she described her interaction with Dr Rivera and the lovely name he called her.

Cuddy slammed her hand down on the desk, startling all of us. Her eyes throwing daggers at Rivera, she asked: "Did you really call her a _bitch?"_

He shrugged and spoke casually: "I called her a _'puta',_ that is not the exact meaning of the word. It means more like a rude woman."

I snarled: "Oh, really? That's the meaning I learned for that word, what about you, Wilson?"

Wilson nodded: "Yep, that's the way I learned it."

I snarked: "Been in this country so long that you forgot your mother tongue? Shall we poll a few other Cubans and ask them what 'puta' means?"

I turned to Cuddy and said: "Call Miriam up in the 6th floor pharmacy and ask her what it means."

"I don't have to, House. I may not speak Spanish, but even I know what that word means. Don't try to snow me, Rivera."

He merely shrugged and looked bored.

Cuddy was starting to fume. Her eyes narrowed and her lips got thin and tight. "Where's the file?"

Wilson held it up: "I have it."

"Have you looked at it yet?'

"I haven't had time."

"Please look at it now. We'll wait while you read."

The room was silent while Wilson read through the chart.

"Well, she does have preexisting hearing loss and neuropathy. Her renal function is borderline."

Rivera interjected: "Her renal function is not that bad."

Wilson looked at me: "Dr House, you're a nephrologist. Would you consider a creatinine clearance of 45 to be 'not that bad' for a 47 year old woman?"

I replied: "That's borderline, 'going-to-need-dialysis-soon' if the kidneys are put under any additional stress. What's the cut-off mark for lowering the cisplatin dose?"

Wilson and Elle replied in unison: "Sixty."

I raised my eyebrows. "There's your answer. She's well below that."

Wilson took the floor again: "Dr Rivera, I fail to understand why you didn't listen to Dr Kaplan's suggestion. I agree with her about switching the cisplatin to carboplatin, and with either drug, the dose should be reduced from the usual due to her renal function."

Rivera shrugged again: "Why should I listen to her? She is stirring up trouble just like at her last job. This is why she was fired, because of her attitude. She thinks she is better than everyone else. She thinks she is smarter than everyone else. We should all listen to the great pharmacist Kaplan. Pffft."

I clutched my cane so tightly that my knuckles turned white. I wanted to punch that smug expression off of his face.

Cuddy sharply retorted: "Regardless of what you think of her attitude, she is right in this case. I would suggest that you follow her recommendations and change this patient's chemo. There are too many people who are aware of this issue now. If the patient's preexisting conditions get worse from the chemo, there are witnesses to speak up and say you were told to change it and you didn't. So change it." She plastered that fake smile on her face, grabbed the file from Wilson and handed it to Rivera.

He scowled as he took the file from her. He got to his feet and spat out: "Fine. I will listen to you, Dr Cuddy, since you are the Dean, and to Wilson, since he is my department head. But don't ever expect me to listen to her." He jerked his head in Elle's direction as if we didn't all know whom he was talking about.

"Now if you will excuse me, I have patients to take care of." With that last statement, he turned on his heel and strode out of the room.

Cuddy sighed and sat down. No one spoke for a moment. Elle was staring at something interesting on the floor.

Finally Cuddy spoke up: "Elle, I know you were looking out for the patient. You went out on a limb to prevent her from being hurt. That is very admirable. However, I have a suggestion for the future. If you have any issues with Dr Rivera's orders, page Dr. Wilson first and go over it with him."

Elle looked up at Cuddy and nodded: "I will. Thank you, Dr. Cuddy."

Cuddy's eyes bored into Elle's as she spoke again: "He might make trouble for you. Be careful."

I could see Elle's lip tremble from across the room. Her face was pale and for a moment, she looked like she was going to cry.

Wilson went over and laid a hand on her shoulder. "You did the right thing. Page me anytime you need a consult."

Elle's trembling grew worse; it was affecting her whole jaw now. She put her hand to her mouth to try to hide it and mumbled: "Thank you Dr. Wilson. I appreciate that and I'll page you if I need to."

Wilson gave her shoulder a squeeze.

Kirby finally pulled himself off of the couch and approached the desk: "We should probably get back to work, Elle. I'm sure Dr Cuddy has a lot of other things to do."

Elle immediately stood up: "Of course. Dr. Cuddy, I'm sorry about all the ruckus. Things just kinda got out of hand."

Cuddy actually smiled at Elle: "Your behavior was inappropriate, but so was his. It was actually nice to see someone stand up to him for a change. But next time."

Elle nodded: "Next time, I'll page Dr Wilson."

Cuddy nodded: "Good."

Kirby and Elle walked towards the door. Right before Elle walked out, she shot me a pleading look over her shoulder. I didn't understand what that look was about. With my eyes, I tried to convey my support to her as much as I could. She was gone before I could say or do anything more. I knew she needed comforting and I ached to give that to her. But I couldn't do that in front of her boss. I hoped to hell that he wasn't going to reprimand her about what happened when they left the office.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Cuddy remarked: "Feisty one you got there, House."

I finally exploded: "Well, she was right! He should have listened to her. She suggested the better therapy for the patient."

"Being right isn't everything. Look what happened to her at PMMC. Being right caused her a lot of grief."

Damn it to hell, but Cuddy was right. Elle went out on a limb to protect the patients and it turned her life upside down.

I tapped my cane on the floor. "I know."

Wilson said: "I'm sure she will be more careful with him in the future."

Remembering the look in her eyes as she walked out the door, I wondered if there would be a future. Before I realized it, the words left my mouth: "Do you think Kirby's going to fire her?"

Their mouths dropped open. I briefly wondered if I should check their pulse, as they seemed to be in a state of shock.

Cuddy recovered first: "Wow! You're worried about another human being. This is serious."

I scowled: "I just want to know what my chances are for getting laid tonight. I figure if he fires her, she might not be in the mood."

Wilson smirked: "Don't let that comment fool you, Cuddy. He's got it bad."

Cuddy grinned: "Yeah, I can tell. He's got that satisfied, well-fucked look. I haven't seen that look on HIS face in a very long time. Come on, House. It's not like I needed you to come and 'translate' for me. After all, Wilson speaks Spanish. That was a flimsy excuse on your part. I expected something more creative from you."

I shrugged: "I was in a hurry. First thing that came to mind. But you let me get away with it."

"I let you come along because I though Elle might need you here for moral support. It was looking pretty ugly and I didn't want her to feel surrounded by hostiles. Rivera was out for her blood. And Kirby was not happy with her behavior. You know how solicitous he is with the doctors. I'm sure that he is going to reprimand her, but he won't fire her yet. He'll give her another chance. But she is going to have to watch her temper. She can't go mouthing off to the doctors like that, even if they deserve it."

She shook her head: "Rivera is such an ass. He deserved more than what she gave him. I secretly applaud what she did. But you know I needed to play boss in front of everyone."

"She's going to get reprimanded and what's going to happen to him? He's going to get away with mouthing off to her."

She shrugged: "I'll make him pull some extra clinic duty. He'll get a letter in his file. I doubt it will do any good. It's like when you mouth off to someone on the staff and I put another letter in your file. Do all those letters change your behavior?"

She had me there. I started to say something about the fact that Rivera had actually assaulted her by pushing her down, but then I remembered the times I had gotten physical with a staff member. As much as I hated to admit it, I couldn't expect her to do anything more to him than she had done to me.

Wilson had his patented caring look on his face. "There is nothing else we can do. She's been warned. I think she will pick her battles more carefully from now on. And she's smart enough to page me if she needs me. I don't want to lose her. She is good at what she does."

I waggled my eyebrows and said: "She certainly is."

Wilson sighed and shook his head at my innuendo: "Your dick is all you can think about lately. Come on; let's get some lunch so you'll have some energy for later. I'm sensing that Elle is going to need some serious comfort sex."

I smiled at the thought: "And I'm just the man for that job."

_ELLE _

Kirby and I walked silently to the elevator. He didn't say anything until we reached his office and he had closed the door behind us.

He took a deep breath and blew it out loudly. "Elle, this can't happen again. You can't get into fights with the doctors."

"I know. I'm really sorry. I just wanted him to listen to me for 5 minutes and not just totally blow me off."

"He's the doctor. If he wants to do that, he will. You did your job. You paged him and talked to him about it. If he doesn't want to agree with you, it is his prerogative. Just document that you called him and move on."

His attitude was frustrating me. "But the potential for harm to the patient was great. I was really concerned."

"And we all appreciate your compassion. It makes you a good pharmacist. But you have to learn when to give up. You need to curb your attitude. I can't afford to defend you every time you get into a fight with a doctor. I don't want our department becoming the laughing stock of the hospital."

"No, sir."

"Consider this a warning. You are still on probation. If you can't work with the doctors, I'll transfer you to the IV room in the basement. And there will be no more seeing the pain patients."

I gulped. I didn't want to give up the pain patients. That was my favorite part of my job.

I said quickly: "It won't happen again. Most of the doctors have been really good about listening to suggestions. He was the only one I have had a problem with. If I have any other issues, I'll page Dr. Wilson first before things get out of hand."

"The next time you have a problem with a doctor, page me first. Don't bother Dr. Wilson."

In an unsure voice, I said: "Well, he said it was OK for me to page him."

"Yes and I'm sure it is. But I would prefer that you page me first. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Fine. Now get back to work. Susan's been coping up there by herself. I'm sure she would like a lunch break by now."

I nodded: "Yes, sir. I'll head right on up."

I left his office feeling totally dismayed. I bypassed the elevator and took the stairs. I needed a few minutes alone.

I slowly trudged up the stairs. What will I do the next time I think a doctor is wrong? How could I live with myself if I didn't stand up for what I felt was right? This reminded me of PMMC. Once again, I did what I felt was the right thing and I ended up being punished for it. I had been warned and Kirby was threatening me with my job.

I wanted to sit down on the stairs and have a good cry. I knew that I couldn't do that. There was no way I was going to cry at work. I wasn't going to look weak in front of my co-workers. I'll cry later. I'll cry over this and mourn my family. I'll have enough tears to fill the bathtub.

I wondered what Greg thought about all of this. I hoped he didn't think I was nuts for doing this. I really wanted to see him later. I needed one of his big hugs. I felt so safe in his arms, like nothing bad could happen. I hoped he'd be around later. Maybe he could help me figure out what to do about Kirby. Maybe Wilson would have an idea too. If I had another problem, I would rather talk to Wilson. I felt more assured that Wilson would support me if he agreed with me. I wasn't so sure about Kirby. Whether Kirby agreed with me or not, I felt like he would agree with the doctor just to play the politics game

I reached the 6th floor and took a deep breath before I opened the stairwell door. I steeled myself for what was to come. Thankfully no one was around when I slipped through the door. I quickly walked into the pharmacy without seeing anyone else.

The girls were happy to see me and wanted all the details. I quickly gave them the short version and sent them to lunch. I even sent both of the techs with Susan. I wanted to be alone for a bit. I didn't want to go to the cafeteria for lunch. I asked Susan to bring me a sandwich and I would just go eat it in the locker room away from everyone. I sat down and started working on the pending orders. I hoped that I would be mostly caught up by the time the girls returned. Then I'd go eat in the locker room and come back to finish up this lousy day. I couldn't wait for it to be over.

_HOUSE _

Wilson and I were about halfway through with lunch when I saw Elle's co-workers walk in. All 3 of them were here which surprised me. Usually they paired up for lunch. That meant Elle was alone in the pharmacy.

Wilson noticed them too. "I wonder what happened. They don't usually leave just one person in the pharmacy."

"Susan has an extra sandwich on her tray. I bet she's taking it back for Elle. She probably doesn't want to come down here. Afraid everyone will stare at her and talk about her. Geez, what is it about her? If she thinks she's right, she is going to fight you tooth and nail about it."

He snorted and slapped the table: "Oh MY GAWD, and who does that sound like?"

I shrugged.

"YOU, you moron. That's what you do. If you think you're right, you will do anything to prove it. You fight with Cuddy; you go behind her back to get whatever test you need. You have your fellows break into homes and commit illegal acts. You neglect to get consent forms signed. You induced a migraine in a coma patient to prove a point with your old nemesis. You will take on the whole board. You took on Vogler! You fight to the end for what you believe in and so does Elle. She sounds just like you."

"You're an idiot. She doesn't sound like me at all."

"Yes she does, you jerk. The only difference is that she does it for the patient's welfare, and you do it to solve a puzzle."

I didn't want him to be right. But there was a grain of truth coming out of his lips. Before I could come up with a retort, he said in a much softer voice:

"They threatened her. Then they raped her and killed her dog. And she still didn't back down. She's a fighter. And I'm not sure that bodes well for her to be working here with a wimpy ass boss like Kirby who won't back her up in a fight. I think I'm going to go see her and find out what he said while the coast is clear."

He stood up and grabbed his tray: "Are you coming?"

Part of me wanted to go with him. I really wanted to know how she was doing. I ached to hold her. But I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to be seen up there again so soon afterwards. I didn't want the gossip to start and I had already been seen up there once today. Jimmy had legitimate reasons for being up there. I didn't.

"You go. Let me know what she says."

"Don't want to get involved in her fights, huh? She'd jump on your detractors in a heartbeat. Maybe you really aren't alike after all."

He turned and walked off to bus his tray.

Crap, if Jimmy was trying to make me feel like a shit for not going, he had succeeded. Leaving my tray on the table, I got up and hobbled after him. I caught up to him at the elevator.

He had a smug little smile on his face as we boarded the elevator. "I knew it. You got it bad."

I snarked: "Oh, shut up, you jerk."

We rode the rest of the way up to 6 in silence.

_WILSON _

It was lunchtime and a lot of the staff was off the floor for lunch. House and I walked casually to the pharmacy

I pressed the buzzer and Elle answered the door after just a minute. She seemed surprised to see us and softly said: "Hi."

I spoke quickly: "I wanted to talk with you about the chemo for that patient with Burkitt's. Do you have the file in here?"

Elle nodded: "Yes. Come on in." She stood aside and let us in. Elle closed the door behind us and then walked over to the desk. "It's in this pile here, Dr Wilson. I'll have it in just a minute."

"I don't need it Elle. That was a ruse to get in here."

She looked up wide-eyed. I could see a flicker of fear before she quickly smothered it. "Wha, What did you need, then?"

"We wanted to find out what happened with your meeting with Kirby. We saw the girls in the cafeteria and knew you would be alone for a few more minutes."

Her eyes went to the floor and she paled slightly. I glanced at House out of the corner of my eye and saw something I never thought I would see again in his eyes: compassion.

He crossed the room with 2 large steps and pulled her into his arms. She let out one strangled sob as her arms wrapped around his back for a brief moment. Then surprisingly she tried to pull away from him. He held on, looking puzzled by her reaction.

In a strangled voice, she said: "No. No, Greg, I can't do this now. I'll start to cry and I can't cry at work."

He immediately dropped his arms. Elle looked pleadingly up at him, biting her lip. She squeezed both of his arms briefly and then stepped back from House. She turned back to the desk and started rifling through the files.

Elle glanced up at me and said: "In case the girls come back, I'm looking for that file you need. Kirby told me that I needed to curb my attitude or I would end up working in the basement. And if that happens, I would lose my pain patients. He told me that this incident cannot happen again and reminded me that I was still on probation. He said if I had any more problems, I should page him first and not bother you."

House spoke up: "So he threatened you with your job so that you'll keep your mouth shut and not make waves?"

She looked at him sadly and nodded.

He took a step closer to her and asked: "What are you going to do?"

She shrugged and looked away. "I will keep on, keeping on. I'll do the best I can. He's the first doctor that I've had a problem with. When I've contacted other doctors about similar issues, they have been very congenial and open to my suggestions. So maybe it won't be a problem, at least for a while." She looked back up at him and said: "I can hope. It's free."

The look that passed between them was amazing. I could sense a real connection between them. House took another step towards her and then we all heard the little beep that signaled the door was about to open.

House quickly stepped back and was standing next to me when the girls walked in.

Their conversation stopped quickly when they saw us. They all looked surprised to see us in there. Miriam recovered first and said: "Hi, Dr. Wilson."

I shot her my best smile: "Hi Miriam. Bonnie, Susan. Glad it's Friday?"

Miriam chuckled: "Oh, yeah, it's been a long week with a little too much excitement. I'm looking forward to a quiet weekend."

Elle walked over to me with a file: "Here's the file, Dr Wilson. We started her on the CODOX-M/IVAC chemo regimen, the day after her diagnosis. She had a lot of nausea at first. The Zofran wasn't working for her, so we switched her to Kytril and that's working much better. The nurses say that she is doing fairly well. She's is room 611 now."

"Great. Thanks for finding the file for me. C'mon House, let's go see how she's doing. Bye, ladies. Have a nice weekend."

House and I walked out to a chorus of "byes".

I glanced at House; he was clenching his jaw. "Are you alright?"

He shook his head. "Her boss is an ass. Stick her in the basement. Geez, that would be a great use of her talents."

I sighed: "Try not to do anything rash. It will only put her in the basement that much faster."

He smirked at me: "But I want to be involved in her fight. I want to kick her detractors' asses."

I smirked right back: "You got it bad, my friend."

He nodded thoughtfully and muttered: "Yeah, I do." With that he turned and headed for the elevator.

I watched him go, shell-shocked, that my cantankerous friend had just admitted he had feelings for this woman.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Warning: Graphic violence at the end of the chapter. There will be another warning right before you get to it. Please don't read if this will upset you.**

**Chapter 23**

**_ELLE _**

The day was finally over. I was thankful that it was Friday. Maybe all the furor would die down over the weekend and everyone would forget about my altercation with Rivera. A couple of nurses had come up to me and thanked me for standing up to Rivera. It seems he was universally thought of as a jerk. I was embarrassed when that happened and tried to avoid people for the rest of the day.

As soon as I walked out of the doors, I flipped open my cell phone to call Avi. He had said that he and Ricky would be able to come to services with me tonight and I hoped they were still available. I really didn't want to go alone. I hardly ever went to services at the local synagogue. I only went for the High Holidays and for their yahrzeit. I had spoken to the Rabbi a few times, and he was a nice man. But I didn't know anyone else there very well. I could go and say Kaddish without Avi and Ricky, but I wanted them there. I really didn't want to be alone tonight. That number, 25, loomed large in my head. I found myself to be quite depressed over the fact that it had been 25 years since I lost my family. The events of the day also contributed to my lousy mood.

The phone rang 3 times before he answered.

"Hey, Elle. How are you doing?"

"Really crappy, Avi. Had a sucky day at work. I'll tell you about it later. Services start at 6:00. Can you pick me up at 5:45?"

"Shit, sweetie. We had to go to Philly for a meeting and we are just leaving now. The meeting ran longer than I thought it would."

"Well, if you came right over when you get back to town, that would be enough time."

"Yeah, I know, but I don't think we'll make it. The traffic is crawling along. I heard that there is a huge wreck up ahead and that's causing the slow-down."

I stopped in the middle of the parking garage and squeezed my eyes tightly shut, trying to stop the tears. "Oh, Avi are you sure? I really want you guys to go with me. I don't want to be alone tonight."

"Elle, sweetie, I wish I could fly there. You know that. But we're stuck. Ask someone else to go with you. I know Adam and Gen can't, but call Danny or Lenny."

"No, I don't want to bother them. It'll be OK. I'll go by myself."

"Oh, sweetie, I hate for you to be alone. There has to be someone else you can ask. I know! Ask House to go with you."

"No, I don't want to bother House with this. Besides, he's not Jewish. It would bore the crap out of him listening to all that Hebrew."

"Hell, sweetie, I'm Jewish and it bores me too. It's only for a half hour; I bet he won't mind."

"It's OK. I'll be alright. I can do this. I'll talk to you later."

I quickly closed the phone before he could say anything more. I really wanted their company tonight, but the fates were against me today.

Before I could move, I heard a low voice in my ear: "What don't you want to ask me cuz I'm not Jewish and I'll be bored?"

He had come up behind me in the garage and I hadn't heard his approach.

My hand fluttered over my heart as I said: "Oh my Gawd, you startled me. How did you sneak up behind me so quietly?"

"I'm in stealth mode today. I have to practice it to avoid Cuddy."

He stepped in front of me and tilted my chin up to look at him. His finger felt nicely warm under my chin. He looked at me with such a tender expression. I felt the tears brimming in my eyes. I tried to duck my head so he wouldn't see them, but his finger kept my chin firmly in place. So I closed my eyes instead.

He gently stroked my cheek with his thumb and said softly: "Ask me."

"I don't want to bother you."

"Humph. I thought you had lost that sentence from your repertoire, but I guess not. Ask me anyway. I might not say no."

"It's OK. I just have to go and said Kaddish for my parents tonight. Avi and Ricky were going to come with me, but they are stuck on the highway behind a big accident and they aren't going to make it. Avi told me to ask you to come with me, but I don't want to bother you. It's in Hebrew, you'll be bored and it's only like 30 minutes. I can do this alone. I've done it before."

He frowned: "What would I have to do? I haven't done this before."

"Nothing. You don't have to do anything. I just gotta go and say this prayer. It's not a big deal, but I feel like I have to. I'll be fine. I just," My voice faltered. What I really wanted was to be with him afterwards.

In a small voice, I asked: "Can I come over when I get back? I want to stay with you tonight."

He looked puzzled: "Of course. Why are you even asking? You know I want you in my bed."

I shrugged: "It's Friday night. You might have made some other plans, and I didn't want to assume anything."

He sighed and pulled me into his arms: "Silly girl. You know where I want to be on a Friday night? Watching TV on my sofa with you and a pizza and some beer."

My face was mashed into his shoulders and I smiled against his shirt as he said that. "Really?"

"Really." I felt him kiss the top of my head and my body sagged against his. We stayed like that for a few minutes and then I pulled away. It felt so safe and comforting to be held by him. I never wanted to move, but I had to get going.

I took his left hand in my right and squeezed it. "I'll see you when I get back, OK?"

"Are you sure that you don't want me to go?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I feel better knowing I'll see you afterwards."

He shrugged: "We'll order pizza when you get back, OK?"

I nodded and tiptoed up for a quick kiss. Then I turned away and walked to my car. When I reached it and turned to open the door, I saw that he was still standing there in the middle of the garage. He was just tapping his cane and watching me. I wondered what he was thinking.

I made a quick pit stop at the liquor store on my way home. I hadn't had any Jack Daniels in a while, and I was in the mood for it tonight. I bought a bottle of Jack and a new bottle of scotch while I was there.

When I got home, I took the liquor into the kitchen. I got out the Sabbath candles and the four yahrzeit candles and set them on the dining room table. Finally I placed a framed photo of the 4 of them on the table. When I got home from services, everything would be all set up and I could just light the candles. I went into the bedroom and changed into a navy blue dress and small heels. I brushed my hair. Then I pulled the front sections of my hair back and secured them with a clip. I threw on a little mascara and I was ready to go. I had my emotions in check and felt like I could get through the services without crying. But I threw some tissues in my purse just in case.

**_HOUSE _**

I watched her as she walked to her car. I couldn't understand why she asked if she could come over later. Did today's events make her feel even more insecure? I often wondered if Elle felt like she was living in an earthquake zone; that the earth could shift under her feet at no notice whatsoever.

I knew she was upset about the anniversary of her parents' death, but I didn't know about this prayer thing she needed to do. Elle didn't seem like the religious type. After all, she ate bacon and pepperoni pizza. But this yahrzeit thing seemed important to her, important enough that she had made plans for Avi and Ricky to go with her. I needed to know more about it. I figured I could google it when I got home or I could just call my resource for everything Jewish. I hit the speed dial as I limped my way over to my bike.

When Wilson answered, I jumped right in: "Hey. What's yahrzeit all about?"

Naturally Wilson answers a question with a question: "Whose yahrzeit is it?"

"If I knew what yahrzeit meant, I could tell you that."

"It's the anniversary of someone's death. Jews go to services and say Kaddish, which is the prayer for the dead. You light a candle in their memory and leave it burning for 24 hours. You might make a charitable contribution in their memory. Is this helping?"

"Yeah."

"So, whose yahrzeit is it?"

"Elle's family. Her parents and aunt and uncle were killed on this date, 25 years ago."

"Oh, wow. What a day for all this crap to come down at work. She must be feeling rough. Is she with you now? Ah, no. She must not be or you wouldn't be asking me to explain yahrzeit."

"I'm in the garage. I just walked her to her car. She is going to services and then I'll see her later. Her friends were going to go with her, but they ran into some problems so they had to bail."

"Are you going with her?"

"Naw. She said I'd be bored."

"Geez, House, can't you think of someone else for a change? She's had a bad day at work, and now this. She is probably feeling very sad and emotional right now."

"She said she didn't need me to go. She's coming over later. I'll make her feel better. Hey, can you have sex when it's someone's yahrzeit?"

I heard him mutter: "jerk" and then the phone clicked. He had hung up on me. As I put on my helmet, I wondered if I was going to get lucky tonight or not.

_**ELLE** _

The services were thankfully short. As soon as it was over, I quickly left. I just wanted to get home to my safe little cocoon, and forget about today. When I got home, I lit the yahrzeit candles and then I lit Sabbath candles, saying the appropriate prayers for each one. I looked at their photo and then the tears started to fall. I still missed them. They had been part of my life for such a short time. I thought about how different my life could have been if only one of them had lived to take care of me, instead of having to go into foster care. The tears started to fall faster. I set the photo back on the table and went into the bedroom to change. I stripped off my dress and hung it back up. My lip started trembling and I could feel that I was on the verge of a good crying jag. I didn't want to go see Greg blubbering like this. I stripped off my clothes and padded into the bathroom. I put the plug into the drain and turned on the hot water to fill the tub. Then I padded into the kitchen. I took down a plastic tumbler and dropped in a couple of ice cubes. Then I cracked open the bottle of Jack and poured it into the tumbler. I wandered back into the dining room for a minute and just stared at the candles flickering in the darkening apartment.

I lifted the cup in a toast: "Here's to you all. I miss you. I guess it's better that you're not here to see how I turned out. I would hate for you to be disappointed in me." I took a big swallow of Jack and refilled the cup. Setting the bottle on the table next to their photo, I headed into the bathroom to take a soak and have a good cry.

**_HOUSE _**

I took a long hot shower when I got home. My leg had been bothering me more than usual today and the hot water seemed to help. I threw on some jeans and a t-shirt and settled on the couch to watch TV and drink beer until Elle got home. A rerun of the first Die Hard movie was on and I watched that until I heard someone knocking on Elle's door. I glanced at the time; it was 8:00. She should have been home an hour ago. I grabbed my cane and headed to the door.

It was Avi and Ricky knocking on her door. Their heads spun around as I came out into the hall.

Avi immediately asked if Elle was with me.

I shook my head: "She said she was going to services and then she would come over but she hasn't come home yet."

Ricky said: "Her car's here, so we figured she must be home. The synagogue is too far to walk from here. But she's not answering the door."

They both looked concerned. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my keys. I dangled them in front of my face and said: "Well, I have the solution."

They stepped aside and I unlocked the door. We all walked in and looked around. The curtains were all drawn and there were no lights on. So the apartment was rather dark except for all the candles on the dining room table. That was unusual, as Elle didn't like the dark. She always had the lights on.

I asked: "What's with all the candles?"

Avi explained: "The tall ones are Sabbath candles. You light them on Friday nights. The 4 small ones are yahrzeit candles. You light one for the person who died. She has 4 of them for obvious reasons. They burn for 24 hours."

He looked around. "I don't like this, the place being this dark. She gets very morose on their yahrzeit. She said work was sucky today. What happened?"

Before I could explain, Ricky gasped and picked up a bottle that was sitting on the table. "Avi, look!"

Avi looked at the bottle in Ricky's hand and sighed: "Oh, shit."

Puzzled, I asked: "What? It's just a bottle of Jack Daniels. What's the big deal?"

Ricky explained: "Elle only drinks Jack when she wants to get seriously drunk. Look how much is missing already."

There was a fourth of the bottle gone. That was a lot if she just bought that bottle today, and I didn't remember seeing any Jack around her place before. I thought she only drank scotch.

Now I started to get concerned. "Where the hell is she? We're standing out here talking. If she were home, she would have heard us by now."

I headed to the bedroom. What if someone had broken in and attacked her? She might be injured. I flicked on the light and was greeted by an empty room.

Behind me, I heard Avi say: "Bathroom."

I turned around to see the light shining under the bathroom door and I could hear some music. I felt relieved. She's probably just soaking in the tub and listening to some tunes.

We all paused outside the door. Avi raised his hand to knock and then his jaw dropped. "Oh, fuck. She's listening to Janis Ian."

He didn't bother knocking. Calling Elle's name, he turned the knob and burst into the bathroom.

I wasn't sure what the significance of Elle listening to Janis Ian was, but Avi was quite agitated about it. It must have been quite the sight, the 3 of us bursting into the bathroom. Elle was lying in the bathtub, with her hair clipped up, and a washcloth over her eyes. Her left arm was hanging out of the tub and in her hand was an almost empty tumbler. There was one ice cube and a small amount of liquid left in it. The boom box was on the floor next to the tub. Janis Ian was singing 'At Seventeen' and Elle was singing along in a quiet voice.

Avi went over to the boom box and turned it off.

Elle muttered: "What the hell?" and pulled the washcloth off of her face. She turned to face us and seemed surprised. I thought her reaction time was a bit slower than it should be. Her eyes were red and puffy and I wondered how much of that was from drinking and how much was from crying.

She glanced at each of us and her eyes finally settled on mine. She gave me a small smile and said: "Hi, What's going on? I just thought I would take a little soak and relax a bit before I came over."

I eased into the room around Avi and sat down on the toilet. "The guys came looking for you. When you didn't answer the door, I let them in."

Avi interjected: "You're drinking Jack and listening to Janis Ian."

She shrugged: "So? It's a free country. I can do what I want in my own place." She leaned forward and turned on the hot faucet, letting in some more water. Her upper body came out of the water at that point and we all got a good look at her wet breasts. It was a very nice sight.

Avi exclaimed: "Elle, what are you doing? You're naked!"

Elle snorted: "I don't know about you, but that's how I take a bath."

"But House is right here. He can see your boobs."

She shrugged: "Yeah, so can you."

"Yeah, well I'm gay, so it's not a big deal. And I've seen you naked before."

Nonchalantly she said: "So has he."

Avi sputtered: "What? House has seen you naked? When did this happen?"

She turned off the water and leaned back in the tub again. "Sunday, when we started screwing each other's brains out." She looked at me and gave me a nice smile. She looked delicious despite the droopy red eyes. I smiled back. If the boys weren't here, I would be stripping and climbing into the tub with her.

Elle swallowed the last of the cup's contents and held the cup out to Ricky. "Can you get me some more, Ricky? It's on the table. And drop in 2 ice cubes, wouldcha please?"

Ricky took the cup from her and said gently: "Don't you think you've had enough, sweetie? You're all flushed."

"That's just the heat from the bath. The water's really hot. Come on. Get me some more, please. Don't make me get out of the tub naked in front of all of you to get my own."

Ricky smiled at her: "Now sweetie, you don't want to do that."

Elle was flushed and she was slurring her words just a bit. She usually held her liquor well, but tonight she just might be on the road to getting drunk. She probably had not eaten and judging from the bottle, she'd had quite a bit to drink already. I leaned forward and grabbed her wrist.

She smiled at the contact. I kept my fingers over her pulse. After a minute, I said: "Sweetheart, you need to get out of the tub. Your blood pressure is low from the liquor and the hot water. I don't want you to pass out."

She frowned: "I'm not gonna pass out. I just want another drink and stay in the tub for a little while longer." Then she smiled dreamily at me and said: "You could join me."

I smiled back. "I'd like that, but not tonight."

She pouted: "Party pooper." I wanted to suck that pouty lip between mine, but I had to get her out of the tub first.

I grabbed the towel draped on the towel bar and spread it over my lap. I motioned to Avi and he got the message. He bent over and scooped her up.

She started flailing around: "Avi, what are you doing?"

Avi managed to hang onto her despite her struggling and turned to deposit her on my lap.

I guided him so that she ended up on my good leg and I wrapped the towel around her. She started shivering immediately. Avi found some more towels under the vanity. He draped one over her shoulders and used another to dry her legs. Ricky went off to the bedroom to find her bathrobe. I toweled off her arms and rubbed her back. Then I rubbed her breasts with the towel and she giggled.

I gave her a little kiss and said: "Just drying you off."

Ricky walked back in with her robe just as Elle said: "You guys are so good to me."

Avi responded as he continued to dry her feet: "Of course we are, you're our little sister."

Pensively she said: "I wish I really was your sister. I want you and Ricky and Adam to really be my big brothers. You're so nice to me, not like those other guys. They were supposed to be my brothers and they just did bad things to me. They weren't really my brothers. I wish you were. It would be so nice to have brothers." She buried her face in my shoulder, her hand resting on my cheek.

She sounded really melancholy. The three of us looked at each other with puzzled expressions. Avi shrugged at me and shook his head indicating that he had no idea what Elle was talking about.

I asked gently: "Who were these boys?"

"They were, you know, my foster brothers."

I held her a bit tighter: "What kind of bad things did they do?"

She tried to bury her face deeper into my shoulder. The answer came out in a choked whisper: "I can't tell you. It's really bad and you won't like me anymore if you know."

Avi and Ricky looked stricken. This was some horror from her childhood that none of us knew about. The combination of the anniversary and the booze loosened her tongue just a little, but she wasn't drunk enough to tell us the whole story.

I hugged her and kissed her cheek. "That's not true. It won't change how I feel about you."

Elle vehemently shook her head: "**Yes it will**. You won't like me anymore. You'll think I'm trash. You'll put me out with the garbage."

Then her face crumbled and she started to cry. She wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face in my shoulder as she sobbed. All I could do was hold her and stroke her back. I couldn't think of a thing to say.

Ricky grabbed the cup and said: "I'm getting her some more Jack. What the hell? She may as well get shit-faced tonight." He walked out of the bathroom.

Avi looked ill. I knew he cared deeply for her, as if she really were his sister.

He whispered: "I don't know what she's talking about. She's never told me anything about some brothers. It must be pretty bad."

All I could do was nod in agreement. Ricky came back with the booze and set it on the vanity. When her sobs subsided a bit, I offered the cup to her. She took it from me and took a big gulp. She was trembling and she needed both hands to hold the cup.

"I'm sorry. I'm being a big baby tonight. It's nice of you to take care of me like this. But I don't want to screw up your whole Friday night. I'm sure you have better things to do than stand in my bathroom and watch me cry."

Avi said: "Nope. Don't have anything better to do."

She smirked: "Then your life is even more pathetic than mine." She took another gulp of Jack and set the cup on the vanity. Then she reached over and put her arms around Avi. He gave her a big hug.

She released him and looked at Ricky and said: "You too." She held up her arms for a hug and he obliged.

She was moving so much now that the towels were falling off of her body. Avi grabbed her robe and when she backed away from Ricky's embrace, he wrapped it around her.

Softly he said: "Come on, let's get you dressed so that you don't get cold, OK?"

She nodded and let him help her. The robe was long on her; it reached down almost to her ankles. I stood up stiffly and dropped the damp towels in a pile on the floor. I glanced at the guys with a 'now what?' look. They both shook their heads uncertain what to do next.

Elle solved that problem for us. She picked up the cup and took another sip. Then she looked at me and said: "Still want pizza?"

I nodded slowly, never taking my eyes from hers: "Sure. Pizza would be good."

"OK. You guys want to stay?"

Avi answered softly: "Do you want us to stay, sweetie? Or do you want to be alone with your lover boy?"

She smiled at him, a big genuine Elle smile. "I'm OK now that I've had a good cry. Really. Don't feel like you have to stay. It's Friday night. Go have some fun. We have to work tomorrow night, you know."

Ricky hesitantly said: "Are you sure?"

She gave him another hug and said: "I'm sure. Greg and I are going to get some pizza and watch TV. Then we're going to bed." She turned to me, winked and said: "Right, stud muffin?"

I waggled my eyebrows at her: "Maybe we'll skip the pizza and go right to bed. What do you say, my little nympho?"

Avi put his hands over his ears: "Oh, I don't need to hear this. Come on, Ricky, she's fine. Let's get to Simon's party before the food is gone."

We walked them to the door and Elle hugged and kissed both of them.

"Good night. See you tomorrow. Have fun at Simon's."

They said their good-byes and Elle closed the door behind them. She stood with her back pressed up against the door and looked at me. After a few minutes of silence, she said: "Thank you."

I shook my head and said: "_De nada."_

"It wasn't 'nothing'. You were really nice to me."

"And a week ago, you were washing shit off of my legs. We are not anywhere close to being even."

She moved over to me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "I'm not keeping score."

I smiled and as I leaned down to kiss her, I said: "Neither am I."

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Elle insisted on bringing all the yahrzeit candles over to my place. "They have to burn for 24 hours. I can't leave them unattended."

She brought them over in 2 trips, arranging them on my kitchen counter with the photo propped up behind them. Fortunately the Sabbath candles had already burned out, so we didn't have to bring them along.

As she crossed the hall for the second time, her robe started to fall open. I grabbed the sides and pulled them together, retying the sash for her.

She smiled shyly: "Thank you."

"Is this all you are going to wear tonight?"

"Something else you would like me to wear?"

I gently nibbled her neck and she let out a mew of pleasure. "Works for me, but if you have a naughty nurse outfit in the closet, I wouldn't mind that either."

She giggled: "No, I don't have one. Right now. Perhaps that could be rectified in the future."

We curled up on the couch and I flipped channels until I found 'Die Hard 2'. We settled in to watch it while waiting for the pizza to arrive. Elle had brought the bottle of Jack over and was sipping on it while I was nursing a beer.

I was starving by the time the pizza arrived. I wolfed down 3 pieces right away. As I started my 4th slice, I slowed down enough to notice that Elle was still working on her first slice. That was strange. She wasn't a big eater, but she loved pizza and usually put away more than one slice.

I nudged her: "Hey. You're not eating."

She smirked: "Stating the obvious, cowboy."

"You didn't let me finish. Why aren't you eating? What's wrong?"

She shook her head sadly: "I guess I'm not that hungry tonight. More for you, though." She put on a brave smile, but I wasn't fooled.

I put down my slice, wrapped my arms around her and pulled her to me. Sometimes she snuggles in so close to me, I think that she is trying to burrow under my skin. This was one of those times. She rubbed her face back and forth against my chest while her hand cupped my face.

We stayed like that for a few minutes and then I reached up to brush the hair away from her face. My fingertips touched wetness. Tears were sliding down her face. I tried to capture them with my thumb, but they were falling too fast. She wasn't sobbing or making any sound at all, but the tears just kept flowing.

I put my hand over hers and slid it from my cheek around to my lips. I planted a slow lingering kiss on her palm and slid her hand back to my cheek. A small sob escaped and she pressed her face deeper into my chest.

I gently shifted her around so that she was sitting on my good leg. Her eyes were downcast and I tilted her chin up so she was forced to look at me. I looked into her beautiful, wet eyes as I gently caressed her cheek.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

The tears fell faster. Her mouth opened slightly as if she was going to say something, but then her jaw started to tremble and she closed it again. Her eyes were scanning mine, as if she were looking for something in them. I tried to look as encouraging as I possibly could.

Finally she whispered: "Do you think it's OK to be mad at one's parents for dying?"

I was taken aback by her question.

Before I could formulate an answer, she hurried on: "I'm angry at them. I miss them and I love them, but I'm angry at them. I know it's not rational. If they hadn't died, all these bad things wouldn't have happened to me. But that's stupid, isn't it? They didn't ask to die. I'm sure they didn't want to die. But they did and they left me all alone. And it was so awful."

I hugged her tighter: "Of course, they didn't want to die. They would have never left you voluntarily. They loved you."

Her face crumbled: "Why did I have to be at camp? We always went to Daytona together. Why couldn't I have died with them?"

Her agony was so profound. My chest constricted with her pain. I couldn't get past the thought that she wished that she had died with them rather than go on living alone. No wonder the boys worried that she was suicidal.

This wasn't something I could deal with; I was no good at comforting anyone. Wilson was good at this. He'd come up with the right thing to say. I tried to think what he would do.

I held Elle tighter and stroked her hair. I gave her some gentle little kisses on her face and said: "This is so hard for you, today, this date, the number of years. There is nothing I can say or do to make the pain go away."

After a few minutes, her weeping subsided. "Yes, there is."

She shifted off of my lap and stood up. She took my hands and guided them to the sash on her robe. Together we untied it and her robe slowly floated open. I slid my hands under the robe and placed them on her hips. She shivered a bit, and then bent down until her lips were mere inches from mine.

She whispered: "Take me away. Make me forget."

Her lips brushed mine and then we deepened the kiss. My tongue slipped into her mouth; she tasted like bourbon and pepperoni. My hand slid up to her breast and she pressed into the contact.

'Comfort sex' was what Wilson had said. This was one thing I could do.

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"Bedroom," I growled softly. Elle stood up and extended her hand to me. I took it and hoisted myself off of the couch. Hand in hand we walked to the bedroom. Once we were there, I had her stand by the side of the bed while I turned on the bedside lamp. I wanted only the soft glow of that lamp to illuminate our lovemaking tonight.

I pushed the robe off of her shoulders and it puddled at her feet. She stood naked in front of me, like a vision of Lady Godiva with her long hair. I played with her hair for a moment, arranging it to my liking. I draped her hair over her breasts and stroked and squeezed the girls with it. She moaned and leaned into my touch.

I brushed my lips against hers and then ran my tongue over them. She moaned and cupped my face with her hands attempting to pull me closer.

"No, no, hands down." I gently took her hands and guided them back down to her sides. As I held them pressed against her thighs, I pressed my lips to hers, gently at first, then harder. She moaned against my mouth and I deepened the kiss, my tongue pushing its way into her mouth. Our tongues tangoed while I ran my hands over her body. She moaned and twitched, but kept her hands at her side.

"Such a good girl," I murmured.

I brushed her hair away from her neck and started kissing my way along her jaw, over to her ear, stopping to nibble on her delicious lobe.

I kissed my way down to her neck and started to refresh her fading hickey.

"Who's my sexy nympho?"

"I am", she said breathlessly.

"Say it," I commanded.

Shyly she said: "I'm your sexy nympho."

I sucked her neck harder and she gasped.

"Say it again! Say it like you mean it this time". I nipped hard on her neck.

She cried out and said: "I'm your sexy nympho."

I lapped soothingly at the bite mark: "That's right. Good girl."

I scooped her up and laid her in the middle of the bed. I knelt over her and arranged her hair flowing over the pillows. I stood back to admire her and smiled: "You are so beautiful."

My erection was throbbing in the tight confines of my jeans and I couldn't wait to pull them off. Once I had stripped, I climbed into bed and pulled her into my arms. I loved the feel of our naked bodies pressed against each other. Elle started to raise her arms and then dropped them to her side. I wasn't playing that game anymore. I gently guided her arms towards me and she got the hint. She eagerly wrapped her arms around me and pressed her body against mine. She put her leg across my hips and pressed her foot up against my ass, bringing me still closer to her. We kissed deeply while our hands explored each other. I felt her hand slip between our bodies and grasp my dick. She stroked him a few times and then guided Mt Gregory between her spread legs. She rubbed the head against her deliciously wet entrance. I poked my way in just a little bit. Our angle wasn't right for full penetration, but it was good for a tease. Elle shivered and thrust against me. She was very ready for me. I was more than ready myself, but I wanted to make this last a while longer.

I gently rolled her onto her back. I positioned myself above her on all fours, my cock pressing lightly into her belly. I moaned softly as I felt her hand grasp my cock and slowly start to stroke him. I would lose it quickly if she kept that up.

I gently removed her hand from Mt. Gregory, tsking at her: "Naughty little nympho. Trying to make me come too quickly." I kissed her palm and then placed her hand, palm up, on the pillow next to her head. Then I did the same with her other hand.

"Be a good little girl and don't move your hands. Keep them right there on the pillow and I'll give you a nice present."

Her face was flushed with excitement, her breathing rapid and swallow. She whispered: "I'll try."

I grinned at her; this was going to be fun. I couldn't wait to see how long she would last. I planted little kisses on her face and then moved down to her neck. She moaned and tilted her head to the left. I knew there was a certain spot on her neck that was very sensitive. She loved it when I kissed her there. I took the hint and paid some special attention to that area, enjoying the purring noises that she made. I kissed and licked my way across her clavicle and down to her right breast. I circled her areola with my tongue and gently blew on the damp sensitive skin. Her nipple grew erect from the attention and I licked and sucked it eagerly. I glanced up at her; her eyes were closed and she was moaning softly. Her hands twitched, but remained on the pillow. I smiled against her nipple and with one more lick, I kissed my way across her valley to her left breast. I kissed and teased her left breast in a similar fashion. After all, I didn't want to play favorites.

I began kissing my way down her belly when she gasped at a particularly ticklish spot. "Greg. Oh, Greg. I want to touch you so much."

I glanced up at her; her hands were twitching and her eyes were pleading with me.

I grinned evilly and shook my head: "No touching. Don't move or you won't get your present."

She licked her lips and nodded. I waited a moment, then resumed kissing my way down her belly. I nuzzled her soft hair and was pleased at the way her legs spread involuntarily as I grew closer to her core.

My tongue lightly touched her clit eliciting a loud moan from Elle. I eased my tongue between her folds and found her extremely wet. I lapped at her juices listening to her moans of pleasure. I slid my tongue in and out of her while rubbing my nose against her clit. I thought she was going to lose it right there. She bucked her hips against me and moaned loudly. She was now clutching the pillow with both hands and rolling her head from side to side.

I nipped the tender skin of her inner thigh and said: "Relax your hands. No clenching."

Elle was panting now. "I'll try. I want to touch you so bad, Greg. Please let me touch you."

"Shh, in a little while. You'll get your chance. Be good. There's something nice coming up for you."

I nibbled on her inner thigh, waiting for her to relax and unclench the pillow. She closed her eyes and settled back into the position. Then I started again.

I kissed my way up to her core. My tongue circled her clit quickly and then lapped her entire core from top to bottom, occasionally sliding in and out. Every 5th lick or so, I would lap at her clit setting off a new round of moans.

She was so close. My excitement was rising even more as I watched her thrash around from my actions. I rubbed my dick against her leg in anticipation of what was to come. The contact was so good that I could hardly wait, but I wanted to make her come first.

I pulled back for a moment, just long enough for her to open her eyes to see what I was doing. I smiled and then lowered my mouth to her clit, sucking hard while simultaneously thrusting 2 fingers inside of her. Elle screamed and bucked against me. I lapped and sucked hard at her clit while my fingers thrust up against her g-spot. I felt her thighs quiver and her walls spasm and she exploded. There was a sudden gush of wetness and her walls clamped down on my fingers. Elle screamed my name and her hands fisted but did not move from the pillow. I kept thrusting and licking until she whimpered: "No more. Can't take any more." I slowly pulled my fingers out while very gently kissing her clit. I nuzzled her hair and kissed my way up to her belly button. I tongued it and then said softly: "Did you like your present?"

"Yes," she whispered breathlessly. "That was amazing."

I smiled: "Good. Do you need a minute or are you up for more?"

She glanced down at my fully erect cock, and said: "You're certainly up."

She spread her legs a bit wider and said teasingly in a goofy Cockney accent: "Please sir, may I have some more?"

I rubbed my dick against her slick entrance. "More, huh? You're ready for more, my little nympho?"

Her eyes closed in pleasure at the sensations of my cock rubbing against her.

"Yes, please."

"Well, you have been a good girl. I should reward you."

I stretched my body on top of hers and then I entered her fully with one slow thrust. She moaned loudly and thrust her hips up to mine. I crashed my lips on hers and said: "Taste yourself on my lips." She moaned into my mouth and our tongues tangled as I thrust inside of her.

I hooked my arm under her left leg and pulled it up so I could thrust even deeper. Elle was kissing me and moaning and thrusting her hips against mine, and all the while, her hands remained on the pillow. They twitched but she kept them there. I was pleased at her ability to play the game, and I finally whispered: "Elle, touch me."

Those words set her off and before she could wrap her arms around me, she came again. A fresh surge of wetness flooded my dick. Her walls contracted against me and my excitement reached its peak. I thrust 2 or 3 more times and then I exploded inside of her. I moaned her name as I rode out my orgasm and then I collapsed on top of her. I felt her arms snake around my neck and then her fingers stroking my hair. I rolled us over on our sides, my cock still buried inside of her. We embraced tightly, planting kisses over each other's face. Her hands roamed all over me. It seemed that after being forbidden to touch, now she couldn't get enough. Her hands stroked my face and neck and then she ran her fingers through my chest hair. She caressed down my side, which proved to be quite ticklish so I grabbed her hand, and brought it to my mouth. After kissing her palm, I placed her hand on my cheek. She smiled sleepily and snuggled closer, her head resting on my shoulder.

Elle murmured: "Think that was the best present I ever got."

I whispered: "I picked it out just for you."

Our lips met for another gentle kiss and then we drifted off to sleep.

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I awoke with a jerk. My bladder and thigh were sending equally urgent messages. I wasn't sure which one to deal with first. The bathroom was closer, so I got up quietly and headed in there to pee. Once my bladder was happy, I limped into the living room and found the Vicodin still sitting on the coffee table next to my abandoned beer.

I washed down 2 tablets with the stale beer and made a face. The dregs of that beer were nasty, even for me. I went into the kitchen and poured the rest down the sink.

The kitchen clock told me it was 3:30 in the morning. Definitely time to go back to bed, but I needed something to get the taste of that stale beer out of my mouth. I grabbed a glass and went back into the living room. The bottle of Jack Daniels was still sitting on the coffee table and I poured a finger of that and swished it around in my mouth. That helped tremendously, so I poured another one. I sipped it while rubbing my thigh, waiting for the Vicodin to kick in. I didn't want to be too restless when I went back to bed; I didn't want to wake Elle. After surfing the channels and watching infomercials for 20 minutes, I felt ready to go back to bed. I flicked off the TV and the kitchen light and headed back to the bedroom.

As I reached the doorway, I could hear whimpering. My heart sank and I moved faster. We had fallen asleep with the bedside lamp on and I could see Elle curled up in a little ball in the middle of the bed. Her hands were in front of her face in a defensive posture and I heard her say: "You said you wouldn't! You promised! No!"

I climbed into bed as quickly as I could. I shook her shoulder and called her name, trying to wake her, but she was mired deeply in her nightmare.

She cried out: "I did what you wanted. Stop! You promised! NO!" She sobbed a bit, then in a more pleading tone, she said: "Please don't break it. I'll do it, just please don't break it."

This wasn't her usual nightmare. This was something different. How many nightmares did she have in her head?

Remembering that talking to her in French helped bring her out last time, I tried it again. _"Wake up, sweetheart. Greg's here. No one's going to hurt you. Come on baby: wake up. Wake up, Arielle. Greg's here. Everything is OK. Wake up."_

Her eyes opened slowly and she looked around as if in a daze. I continued to speak softly and soothingly to her while I wiped away the tears on her face. Her eyes met mine and I could see the fear in them. Her hand shakily covered her mouth, like the 'speak no evil' monkey.

I smoothed her hair back from her damp forehead and gave her a little kiss. "Are you OK? Want me to get you a drink or something?"

She shook her head, hand still covering her mouth. We lay there for a few minutes. I rubbed her back, hoping to dissipate some of the tension in her body. It didn't seem to be working, she felt coiled tight as a spring.

Finally she whispered in a fearful voice: "Did I say anything?"

I nodded. "Yes."

"What did I say?"

I repeated her words back to her.

"Oh Gawd, you heard all that. Oh, shit."

"What is it, baby?"

Tearfully, she said: "I can't tell you."

She had told me about being raped. What could be worse than that? Then I remembered what she had said earlier in the bathroom.

"It was something about the foster brothers, wasn't it?"

She gasped and said: "How did you know?"

"You alluded to it earlier, and you said then that you couldn't tell me. So I figured that's what it was."

She nodded. "I haven't had this one in a long time."

"You said that you did what they wanted and they promised something. It seems like they reneged on that. What happened?"

She started to pull away from me. With a ragged edge to her voice that bordered on frantic, she said: "I don't want to tell you. You don't need this. You don't need someone waking you up in the middle of the night screaming. You deserve better. You've been really good to me. I tried to be good to you. I hope it was kinda fun and not all bad. The sex was good at least, right? I'll go home now, so you can sleep." Her voice faded away to nothing.

I was so stunned by her words, that she almost got out of bed before I could stop here.

I lunged for her: "Oh no, you don't. Get back over here." I said this much louder than I intended and it frightened her. She cringed and the hands were back in that defensive posture in front of her face again.

Jesus Christ, what was I doing to her? I lowered my volume and spoke as gently as I could: "I'm not going to hurt you. I just don't want you to go. Why would you think that? I want you here. So cut the crap about how I deserve better. What is that shit?"

I held out my arms: "Come here. Please."

She slowly scooted over to me and I pulled her into my embrace. She was trembling so hard that her body was shaking visibly. I kept one arm wrapped around her and with the other I pulled the sheet up and over us.

"Why do you want to go?"

She shook her head: "I don't want to go. I just thought it would be better for you if I did."

"Why?"

She shrugged and wouldn't meet my eyes. I just held her, my cheek resting against the top of her head. I couldn't fathom what she might have done that was so bad.

After a few minutes of holding her, she started playing with my chest hair. That made me smile; it meant she was relaxing again. Her body didn't feel quite as rigid as it had before. I planted a couple of kisses on her forehead and she sighed. She snuggled in closer to me, doing her little burrowing thing. I held her close. This time I would be prepared if she tried to move away when I asked her again what happened. I couldn't help myself. I know she didn't want to tell me, but it was driving me nuts not knowing what this thing was that was SO bad.

I kissed her face a couple of times and then asked softly: "Did you kill somebody?"

She snorted: "No. Of course not."

"Did you mug an old lady? Steal some little kid's candy?"

She started to back away, but I had a firm grip this time. "No. I didn't. Don't ask. Please."

"Elle, it's obvious to me that YOU didn't do anything. Those foster brothers did something to you and you are embarrassed cuz they pulled a fast one on you. You were a kid, how were you to have known? You can't blame yourself."

"I was 16; I should have known better. I should have stopped them. I shouldn't have cared. I should have just left."

She was confusing me with all the 'should haves' and 'shouldn't haves'.

"Shh, you couldn't have known. There's nothing you could have done. They tricked you, didn't they? How many boys were there?"

"Three", she said sadly.

"Three boys against one little you. Those aren't good odds, sweetheart."

She nodded: "I know."

"What did they do to you?"

She spoke in a whisper so low that I could barely hear her. "It was awful. I never told anyone this before. Not Avi, not Tony, not anyone. Not even my therapist. No one knows. If I tell you, will you swear not to tell anyone? Not even Wilson?"

"I swear. I won't tell anyone. Come on sweetheart; tell me. You've carried this secret for too long. Let it out. Maybe it will make the nightmares stop.

She brightened up a bit: "Do you think so?"

I didn't know that answer of course. I just needed to know what happened to her. "Maybe having this nightmare here tonight with me is your subconscious mind letting you know that you should tell me about it."

"Maybe," replied her little voice.

I waited a few minutes for all that to sink in.

"I need a drink."

"Want me to get you some Jack?"

"Yes, please, if you don't mind."

"Don't run away, I'll be right back."

I hurried to the living room, grabbed the bottle and one glass and limped back. Elle was right where I left her, curled up in the middle of the bed with the sheet wrapped around her.

I poured her a shot and handed her the glass. She looked at the liquid for a few seconds and then shot it back.

Handing me back the glass, she said: "You won't judge me and you won't pity me."

I couldn't tell if it was a statement or a question, so I simply said: "I won't."

"OK. Gimme another shot, and I'll tell you. I hope you'll still respect me in the morning."

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I poured her another shot and watched while she arranged the pillows against the headboard. She sat back against them and pulled the sheet up as high as she could. Her shoulders were still uncovered and she looked uncomfortable. I handed her the glass of Jack. She took a sip and then set the glass down on the nightstand.

"Could you hand me a t-shirt, please?"

I grabbed a clean one from the drawer and watched as she pulled it over her head. She pulled the shirt down as far as it would go and then pulled the sheet up over her. She looked small and vulnerable. I lifted the sheet and climbed into bed next to her.

She took another sip of Jack, and then started talking.

"When I had to move into foster care, I wasn't able to take much with me. I could only take what fit into one suitcase, which was one photo album, a couple of very precious books; my clothes and I had my guitar. I never lived with anyone who had a piano so my guitar was all I had to play. It was important to me and it was one of the few connections that I had left with my parents."

She blew out a big puff of air and continued: "So I'm 16, and I think it was my 6th home. This place had too many kids. It was the kind of home where they would take in any kid just to get the extra money. At the time, there were 5 kids under 10, 3 teenage boys and me living there. It was a madhouse. It was the end of summer and the mom had taken the little kids to get their shots before school started. So I was home alone with the 3 boys. Two of them were really brothers, they were 15 & 17, and the other one was 16. I was in my room, reading on the bed and they all came in. At first they were being nice. They wanted me to do something for them. And of course, I asked what. Well, they wanted to see my boobs. I laughed and told them 'no'. And they were like 'Oh come on, show us, we'll show you our dicks'. Like I wanted to see their dicks! I was shy around boys and I hadn't dated yet. I hadn't even kissed a boy yet. So I was starting to get a little freaked out and asked them to get out of my room. And they wouldn't leave. Told me that if I didn't do what they wanted, they would bust my guitar."

She closed her eyes at this point. "That sounds really stupid and pathetic, right? It's like I valued that guitar more than my self-esteem." A tear slid down her face and she hurriedly wiped it away. She turned, picked up the glass and drank the entire contents.

I took the glass from her hand and refilled it for her. "The guitar was important to you. It was a connection to your dead parents."

She nodded and accepted the glass from me. "Yes it was. And I didn't want to lose it. So, first I showed them my boobs. Of course, that wasn't enough and I had to take off my jeans, and then my panties. Every time I did what they wanted to keep them from busting the guitar, they would change the rules. Then I had to do something else. I had to let them touch me."

She shivered and the tears fell faster. She hugged her knees to her chest and continued: "They touched my boobs and they touched me in between my legs. That was awful. I felt so violated, so dirty. Then they wanted me to touch them. And I didn't want to. I started to cry. Of course, they made fun of me and then they threatened me. The 2 brothers were the really mean ones. The other guy was just along for the ride. He couldn't wimp out in front of them; you know what I mean? So they all whipped out their dicks and the oldest guy told me to touch the 16 year old. I did and he came in my hand just like that." She snapped her fingers.

"I didn't know what happened, I swear, as dumb and naïve as that sounds. I didn't know what happened. That guy looked really embarrassed and the other 2 are laughing their fool heads off. I've got this _sticky stuff_ all over my hand and it was just gross. So I wiped my hand on his shirt and that pissed him off. I don't know why, it was his cum. So he slapped me and called me a bitch. The brothers thought that was hysterical. Then I had to give the younger brother a hand job. But I was smarter this time; I wiped the cum on my own shirt."

She paused for a moment and took another drink. She mopped up her tears with the edge of the sheet and then leaned back against the pillows. She took a deep breath and began again: "The older brother wanted a blow job. Of course, I didn't know what that was. When it was explained to me, I totally freaked out. '_Put my mouth on your dick? What are you, nuts?_' He grabbed me by the hair and pulled me down on my knees. Reminded me that he would bust my guitar if I didn't do it. So I did it as best I could. The good thing was that he was 17 and it didn't take long. The bad thing was that I had never done it before. He came in my mouth. Between the mouthful of cum and him pushing against the back of my throat, it stimulated my gag reflex and I threw up on him."

As far as I was concerned, that asshole got what he deserved after doing that to Elle. "Good for you. You sorta got even, huh?"

She shook her head sadly: No. He was really mad. He hit me really hard, knocked me over. Then he picked up my guitar and busted it over the chair.

Called me a whore and that I would pay for throwing up on him. He said he was going to fuck me. I knew what that word meant, and I didn't want any of that. I tried to get away. I was going to run out of the house stark naked, but I wasn't fast enough. They caught me and threw me down on the floor. The other 2 held me down while asshole kicked off his pukey sneakers and jeans. He knelt on the floor in between my legs and was pumping his dick to get hard again, when we heard the car pull up. The mom and little kids were back. They scrambled to grab their clothes and get out of my room, threatening me with all kinds of things if I told. Asshole told me he was coming back for me tonight after everyone was asleep. I hid the broken guitar in the closet and packed my suitcase. When it was time for the little kids to go to bed, I told the mom I would get the girls settled down. So I put them to bed and as soon as they were asleep, I grabbed my suitcase and climbed out the window. I started walking across town to Miss Mamie's.

It was a long walk. I don't know how long it took, but all the houses were dark when I got there. So I went around to the back porch and slept there. When the sun woke me up, I banged on the back door. Miss Mamie was always an early riser and I was sure she would be up. But there was no answer, so I went around to the front door. Still no answer."

A sob escaped her throat and she clamped her hand over her mouth to contain the rest. She reached over and picked up the glass and slugged it back. I took it from her and turned to refill it. When I turned back, Elle had disappeared under the sheet. I set the glass back down and slowly lifted the sheet. Elle was curled up in a little ball, arms wrapped around her knees, one hand still clamped over her mouth. I tried to pull the sheet down, but she grabbed it and pulled it over her head again. So I got under the sheet with her. The tears were streaming down her face, but she wasn't making a sound.

I reached for her, but she trembled at my touch, so I backed off. I just lay next to her and waited for her to compose herself. After a while, she whispered: "There was no answer at Miss Mamie's. So I went next door. One of the church ladies lived there, Miss Sylvie, so I knocked on her door. She told me that Miss Mamie died the week before. I felt like the world ended. There was no one left who cared about me. I didn't know what to do. I started crying and Miss Sylvie took me inside and let me cry myself out. I told her I couldn't go back to that home, that the boys had done bad things to me. She seemed to understand what I meant without me spelling it all out. She sent me to take a bath and put on clean clothes while she made me some breakfast. She told me that she couldn't keep me and that she would have to take me to my social worker. I was grateful for her kindness, for the bath and the food, and I did what I was told. She took me to my social worker and dropped me off. There was no where else for me to go and I had run away so many times, so they stuck me in juvie. I lived there for 3 months until they found me another home. This one wasn't so bad. I had a lot of chores to do and the baby to mind, but no one hurt me. So I behaved myself and stayed there until I graduated from high school. They toss you out of foster care when you reach 18 or when you graduate from high school. So at 17 & ½, I was out on my own. They paid the rent and electric on a furnished studio apartment for the next 3 months, gave me 100 dollars for food and wished me good luck. I didn't leave the apartment for 2 days. I would cry myself to sleep and then I would wake up, look around at my dismal room and do it all over again. After 2 days, I was hungry so I walked to Burger King. They had a 'help wanted' sign up, so I got a burger and my first job in one trip. When I saved up enough money to buy a used bicycle, I got a job washing dishes and bussing in a sit-down restaurant. I kept changing jobs and worked my way up from bussing to waitressing to prep work to assistant chef. I got paid and I got fed, so it was OK. One of my bosses was really nice to me and helped me with the paperwork for the local community college. She helped me get a used car. So I started taking classes during the day and working in the restaurant at night. I studied hard, got good enough grades and managed to get into pharmacy school. I worked nights and weekends and went to school during the day. I didn't have any kind of social life until I met Tony. He was the first guy I ever dated. I was 21 years old going on my first date. Pathetic, huh?"

I shook my head: "No. Not pathetic. You had a rough time. You survived a really bad situation."

She shrugged: "I better go now." She started to move away, but I grabbed her before she got far.

"Where are you going?"

Elle ducked her head. She wouldn't look me in the eye. "Come on, you've heard my tale. I don't want your pity. You don't need my shit. You don't need me around. You're a good-looking doctor who can find himself someone who is not so damaged."

I was stunned that Elle perceived herself as damaged. This is why she teared up when I called her perfect. She thinks that she is so damaged that I wouldn't want her around.

I had my own issues with that particular word. I certainly saw myself as physically damaged after the infarction. The unwanted surgery had left its mark and even if by some magic, the pain went away, the missing muscle would always limit the physical use of that leg. I had trusted Stacy and she stabbed me in the leg, then in the heart and twisted the blade.

I flashed back to that horrible date I had with Cameron when I told her "I'm what you need. I'm damaged." I knew what I was and apparently Elle considered herself that way also.

As I brushed Elle's hair away from her face, I wondered if two damaged people had a snowball's chance in hell of making something work.

I didn't know, but I knew I wasn't letting her go. I couldn't explain my feelings to her; I didn't understand them myself. All I knew was that I didn't want her to leave.

"You're right. I don't _need_ you. I _want_ you. I _want_ you here with me."

I picked up her hand and placed in on top of my scarred thigh. "You're not damaged. You're beautiful. Don't go. I want you here."

Elle tenderly caressed my thigh with a feather-light touch: "Really? You do?"

I nodded. There was a strange lump in my throat and I had difficulty speaking for a moment. Finally I croaked out. "Yes. Stay with me, baby."

She finally smiled at me: "I told you before, that's my song, cowboy."

"And I'm stealing it tonight, cuz I want you to stay. OK?"

Elle nodded. She leaned forward and planted a kiss right in the middle of my scar. She laid her cheek against it while lightly running her fingers along the crevices.

I could hardly breathe at the tender treatment of my ugly scar. Some emotion washed over me and I had to struggle to put a lid on it. I reached down and stroked her hair and she lifted her head to look at me. She smiled and scooted up the bed to lie next to me. Her body relaxed against mine and I slid my hands under the shirt and up her back. I pulled her close and she snaked her arms around my neck.

I kissed her very tentatively and was pleased when she kissed back. I deepened the next one and her lips parted and let my tongue slip in. Her tongue caressed mine and we sucked face for a while.

When we finally came up for air, I asked: "You OK? Ready for sleep?"

She nodded.

"Come on."

We edged our way back to the pillows and plopped our heads down on them. I pulled Elle over to me and she burrowed into my chest. She sighed, but it sounded like a contented sigh. After a couple of kisses, she said sleepily: "Good night cowboy."

I kissed her again and said good night.

As I drifted off to sleep, I hoped that I had finally heard all of the bad stuff that had happened in her life. But then I remembered the cuts on her ass and realized that there is at least one more story that I haven't heard yet.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

**HOUSE **

Consciousness was slow arriving the next morning. It took me a few moments to notice that my warmth was missing. I reached my arm across the bed and did not find Elle. That brought me to full awake mode.

I sat up and listened. The apartment was still. No sounds came from the kitchen or bathroom. I could sense that the apartment was empty. I looked on the floor; her robe was gone. That confirmed it.

I lay back down and covered my face with my hands. Why would she leave? Was she too embarrassed to face me after telling me so much about herself? It was a horrible story but it didn't reflect badly on her. My admiration for her rose to a new height after hearing that tale. Elle had survived a really terrible childhood. Although she seemed fragile at times, she really was quite strong. She had handled the adversities of her life much better than I did. Mine turned me into a bitter cynical misanthrope, while she was still genial and optimistic. How did that happen? Why would one person turn bitter and another remain cheerful? That was indeed a mystery and one that I would never solve.

I threw the sheet off of me and sat up. I didn't care about her past. She did what she had to do to survive and I would never hold that against her. And SHE didn't do anything wrong. All the wrongs were perpetrated against her. There was no reason for her to feel guilty about any of it. But rape victims almost always feel guilty. They blame themselves for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I think it is an attempt to try to grab back some of the control that they lost. And Elle had definitely been a victim of those boys, no matter how much she tries to tell herself that she could have gotten away. There's not much chance when it's three against one.

I looked around at the empty bedroom. This was unacceptable. I wasn't going to let her believe that she was too damaged for me. Hell, I'm a lot more damaged than she is. Maybe she hasn't seen my flaws or maybe she chooses to overlook them. Whatever it is, I knew one thing. I wanted her. I wanted her in my arms, in my bed, and in my life. Wilson was right; I had it bad. I picked my jeans up from the pile on the floor and pulled them on. Grabbing my cane, I headed over to her place to let her know.

I let myself in. I could hear the sputter of the coffee pot. I walked slowly into the kitchen. Elle was leaning up against the counter, head in her hands, as she stared at the coffee pot.

"A watched coffee maker never brews."

She chuckled and turned in my direction. "I thought it was a watched pot never boils."

I shrugged: "Same difference."

"If it doesn't brew, I'll kick its ass. I need coffee."

Elle's eyes were drooping and a bit blood-shot. She was still holding her head.

I took a couple of steps closer to her. "Got a hangover?"

"Headache. I'm sure I'll be OK once I get some caffeine in me."

She looked me up and down. "Missed me? Come over topless and barefoot to find me?"

"The bed is cold without you in it."

I moved a couple more steps closer to her.

She smiled: "I just wanted to make the coffee and bring it over. I should just bring the coffee maker to your place. That would make more sense, wouldn't it? Then I wouldn't have to get dressed to make coffee."

"I like the idea of naked you making coffee in my kitchen. Will naked you make breakfast too?"

I took one more step, propped my cane against the counter and held out my arms. She moved right into them and wrapped her arms around my waist. She nuzzled my chest with her face and then planted a kiss right over my heart. "How about if I strip right now and make you breakfast here?"

Propping her chin against my chest, she looked up at me with a mischievous look on her face.

I laughed and planted a kiss on her forehead. Relief washed over me. She wasn't going away. She was right here in my arms.

As I stroked her hair away from her face, I said: "You don't have to fry the bacon naked. I don't want you to get a spatter burn on your pretty boobies."

"I wasn't thinking of bacon for breakfast. I was thinking about having some sausage." I felt her hand cup my package through my jeans. "How does that sound?"

"Hmmmm, that sounds good."

I bent to kiss her, but she slipped out of my embrace. Glancing over her shoulder at me, she started walking to the bedroom. She slipped the robe off her shoulders as she went, dropping it on the floor. The shirt followed immediately after. I smiled at her retreating figure. I started unbuckling my jeans as I followed her into the bedroom.

It was nearly an hour later before we had our first cup of coffee. Elle padded out to the kitchen naked and brought 2 mugs back to bed with her. We reclined back against the headboard, propped up on pillows, sipping our coffee.

Elle extended her arm to her left as if she was going to set down her mug and then she said: "Crap. There's nowhere to set the mug down except on the floor. I just have to get some more furniture in here. I want nightstands, and I'm tired of having my clothes in cardboard boxes. I want a dresser. Do you want to go shopping at Ikea with me tomorrow?"

I shrugged: "I'll go if you want, but I gotta warn you. I'll probably find a nice comfy chair and take a nap. I'm not much on furniture shopping. Plus, I'm not too good with the carrying stuff part." Suddenly self-conscious, my hand went to cover my scar.

"Who said you gotta carry anything? They have men at the store to put the stuff in the car. That's their job. I want to do my part to keep them employed."

I smirked: "Yeah, that's great at the store. What about when we get back here?"

"I'll call the boys to come over and help. That stuff's heavy, anyway, and needs more than 2 people to carry it. Plus then, we have them here to help put the stuff together. It's all part of my evil plan. Feed them brownies, make them work." She giggled.

I nodded, but didn't say anything. It bothered me that I couldn't grab my end of a heavy item and help haul it into the building. No matter how Elle sugarcoated it, I still felt inadequate that I couldn't do more physically. Not that I enjoyed physical labor so much, but being unable to do it made me feel less of a man.

I felt her hand on my chest and she asked: "You went far away. Where did you go?"

I couldn't hold back the bitterness I felt: "Back to a time when I had two good legs. When I could run and I could help someone move furniture." I closed my eyes and grasped her hand, pressing it into my chest. "When I could pick a woman up in my arms and carry her off to the bedroom."

She leaned closer and I felt her warm breath on my cheek. After a soft kiss, she whispered: "You picked me up the other day and carried me to the kitchen."

"Yeah, well, you're light as a feather and it was only a few steps. I doubt I would have been able to carry you all the way to the bedroom." I kept my eyes closed. I didn't want to see the pity that I was sure I would see in her eyes.

Elle gently planted tender kisses across my cheek over to my ear. She kissed the shell of my ear and whispered: "I like it when you grab my hand and tug me down the hall, anxious as a little kid at Christmas, ready to unwrap his present. You make me feel desired and sexy. I think you are an amazing man. I've never"

I waited for her to finish the sentence. When she didn't, I opened my eyes and looked at her. Elle was blushing and at my glance, quickly shifted her eyes away from me.

I asked: "Never what?"

She blushed a bit deeper. Her skin had turned a pretty pink and it made her eyes look even bluer.

I started caressing her back and said: "Tell me. You know you want to. You never what?"

She closed her eyes and leaned into my caresses.  
Sighing, she said: "I've never come so hard or so often with anyone else. You're definitely the best lover I've ever had."

I chuckled. Score one for the cripple. I still had it, at least in bed.

"Oh come on. What about your ex-fiancée? He must have been good; you were going to marry him."

"Not nearly as good as you. He's definitely not in your league. Anyway, he was the one pushing marriage. I wasn't, uh, as excited by it as he was. He was ready to settle down and have kids and all that jazz."

"And you weren't so sure."

"Yeah, I was having doubts before, you know, it all came crashing down. I wasn't sure he was the right person and the whole push to have kids and."

Elle waved her hand in the air as if indicating that there was so much more that she just couldn't put into words.

"You don't want kids? I thought you liked them, judging by how you are with Audra."

"Well, I like kids. I just don't know if I can have any."

"Well, you're on the pill, hard to find out that way."

She gave me a playful smack: "Duh!"

"What makes you think you can't have kids?"

"History."

I frowned: "Family history or your history?"

She shrugged: "Both."

Suddenly she moved away from me. She sat up and swung her legs into a cross-legged position. "Oh no, you don't. I see what you're doing. I told you a big story last night. It's your turn. You're not getting another story outta me until you tell me one."

I smiled at the challenge. "Oh yeah?"

She stuck her tongue out at me: "Yeah."

I grabbed her and tossed her on her back pinning her to the bed with my body. "I told you not to stick your tongue out unless you plan to use it. So, where are you going to use it?"

Elle stuck her tongue out again, wagging it at me. I crashed down on her mouth and sucked her tongue into mine. She struggled for a moment, and then relaxed into the kiss. Her tongue lazily explored my mouth. I felt her hands cup my face. We broke apart briefly for air. I took her hands and pulled them above her head. Holding them down with one hand, I stroked her cheek with my other hand. I gently licked her lips and then kissed her deeply. As we kissed, I started slowly caressing my way down her body until I reached her ribs. I rested my hand there and then I broke the kiss. She looked at me so tenderly that I almost didn't say anything. But as usual, my need to solve the mystery overcame everything else.

My fingers slowly caressed her sensitive side. "Tell me or I'll tickle you."

Her eyes got wide: "Oh, you meanie! That's not fair. It's your turn."

"Something you should know about me, sweetheart. I cheat. So tell me."

I gently caressed her ticklish spots and she squirmed and struggled to free her pinned arms.

"No! It's your turn. Tell me something."

I continued to hold her down while I thought for a moment. She had revealed so much to me last night that I really owed her one. But I didn't want to tell her about Stacy or about my leg. The weekend was here, and I wanted to enjoy it with her. If I talked about either of those subjects, it would send me spiraling down the black hole and suck the joy out of the weekend. I had already told her some stuff about my dad. There is more to tell but again I didn't want to kill the weekend. Last night had been rough for her and I didn't want to add to her misery. I told myself that, but truthfully, I just wasn't ready to tell her yet.

I let go of her arms and rolled off of her. I saw the surprised look on her face right before I closed my eyes and draped my arm across them. That was my way of cutting myself off from the world. Elle curled up in a little ball completely under the sheet. My way was vastly easier and could be done anywhere, anytime. No sheet required.

I felt the bed shift and then her hand landed lightly on my chest.

"Hey, are you OK?"

I replied sarcastically: "Oh, just peachy. Hmmm, should I tell you how I became a cripple or tell you the saga of Stacy and how she helped me become a cripple? Oh, wait. They're basically the same story."

There was silence for a minute and then she said: "So basically you have one long ass story to tell me and you're not in the mood, are you?"

"You got it, sweetheart."

She nuzzled her face into my chest and then planted a kiss over my heart. I felt a smile break over my face; it was just so damn cute the way she did that.

I heard her whisper: "I like that smile. What would it take for an encore?"

I felt the bed shift again as Elle straddled my body. She gently lay down on top on me. My body became her bed, my shoulder: her pillow. I wrapped my arms around her to be her blanket. We simply lay like that for a while, not saying anything. I was her comfort and she was mine.

I must have dozed off because myoclonus woke me up with a jerk. He was becoming a habitual visitor. Elle stirred and started to ease off of me, but I grabbed hold of her. I felt her hand on my cheek and she asked if I was OK.

I kissed the top of her head and answered: "Yeah, sorry, I must have dozed off."

"That's OK. I think I did too. It's nice laying on you like this. You're warm and comfy."

"So I make a good bed, huh?"

She propped her chin on my chest and said: "Yeah." Her fingers caressed my cheek and I leaned into her touch.

She looked at me with such tenderness as she said: "You don't have to tell me now, but I do want to know what happened. I won't push you or hold you down and tickle you. I hope you'll tell me when you're ready."

She used her hands to push herself up so that she was sitting straddling my hips. "So you hungry? I could go for some pancakes, what about you?"

I smiled and before I could say anything, she laughed: "Ah-ha, pancakes! That's what it takes for a smile encore! Coolness."

She bent down and kissed me one more time before saying: "I'm off to the kitchen to make us pancakes and bacon."

I cupped both of her breasts in my hands as I said: "Put on a shirt. Don't want the girls to get burned by bacon grease." I leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on each pink nipple.

She giggled and climbed off of me. As she headed towards the kitchen, she picked up the discarded t-shirt and slipped it over her head.

I rolled onto my side and closed my eyes for a few minutes. She gave me a reprieve. I didn't have to tell her anything right now. I still wanted to know more about her, but it would have to wait a bit. I wanted to enjoy the rest of the weekend and put aside all the emotional crap for now, hers and mine.

Elle stirred feelings in me that had been long dormant. It's like when your foot falls asleep from being in the wrong position and goes numb. Then you shake it and the blood flow starts to return and you get that tingling sensation. I'd been numb for a long time and now I felt like I was tingling all over. It's mildly uncomfortable but necessary in the long run. If the body part is numb for too long, the feeling may never return. I had been numb for more than 5 years and I wondered if it was too long. Could there have been permanent damage? I needed to move carefully so that the new sensations wouldn't become overwhelming.

I slowly sat up and put my feet on the floor. I spied my jeans and bent over to pick them up. I could hear the sizzle of the bacon in the pan as I pulled my jeans on. The smell of the bacon cooking made my mouth water. I loved that she was cooking for me. I wanted to walk out to the kitchen and just wrap my arms around her. She made me feel good, and boy, did that scare the crap outta me. I was used to 'miserable'. 'Good' was going to take some getting used to.

The problem with being broken and damaged was that you tended to be much too cautious in every step you took.

I had thrown caution to the wind this morning when I woke up alone and decided to come after her. It was a big step and I had felt relieved when she was here for me. Could it be possible that once you get those first wobbly steps of happiness under you, that the walk would get easier, even with a limp?

I wasn't sure, but I was going to give it a shot. I picked up my cane and headed towards the kitchen.

**Elle **

I could feel him shut down when I asked him for his story. He rolled off of me and hid his eyes. I knew if they were open, I would see the pain in his soul. I climbed on top on him and tried to comfort him with the feel of my body pressed against his. It seemed to work as he dozed off. I knew the gist of the story from what Wilson had told me. I really did want to hear it from Greg, but it didn't have to be today. We had enough emotional turmoil for this weekend as far as I was concerned. It could wait. Eventually he would be comfortable enough to tell me.

While he dozed, I thought back to earlier this morning. I woke up first and thought my head was going to explode. It was noon and I was experiencing caffeine withdrawal and a hangover. Coffee was the cure for both. So I quietly crept out of bed, dressed and went to my place to start the coffee. I intended to brew a pot and bring it over to Greg's place, but he showed up before the coffee was finished. I joked with him about missing me and he gave me a lame reply about the bed being cold without me. But I think he did miss me. A look of relief had quickly passed over his face when he saw me. It was so quick, that if I had blinked I would have missed it. Then he held his arms out to me and I quickly went into his embrace. There was no place else I wanted to be. My feelings for him were getting stronger. He was so sweet and supportive as I cried out my story to him last night. I was amazed that this man could be so abrasive to everyone else and yet be so sweet to me. Well, most of the time. Sometimes he was rude to me too. I couldn't forget the comment he made in front of his poker buddies, but Wilson was right. He was marking his territory in front of the guys. He was staking out his claim on me way back then. That meant he must have feelings for me. This wasn't just sex to him. If it were, he would have let me leave his bed last night. But he didn't. He held me and comforted me until I could sleep again.

Wilson has known him for a long time so I should probably believe what he said that House will not tell me how he feels but he will show me. His actions will reveal his feelings and after last night I was almost completely convinced that Greg House had feelings for me. I snuggled deeper into his chest, feeling quite content.

A myoclonic jerk woke him up and I checked to see that he was OK. I let him know he was off the hook about talking about his leg and Stacy. I offered to make him pancakes and that made him happy. It's sad to think that such a little thing like making him breakfast makes him so happy. Didn't Stacy ever care for him this way? Did anyone?

I liked cooking for him. He ate with enthusiasm and always wanted more, often stealing the food off of my plate. But I didn't care. I liked seeing him happy. He was so damn handsome when he smiled and I would do just about anything to put that look on his face. Pancakes and bacon fit the bill nicely today.

After we ate, I cleaned up the kitchen and we went back to his place for a nap. It seemed a bit silly since we had basically slept the entire day away, but I always need my nap before I perform. We stripped and climbed into his big bed, and after some playtime, we napped until the alarm woke us at 5PM.

**HOUSE **

It had been a great day so far. Sleep, sex, food, more sex, more sleep. This was the way to spend a Saturday. Too bad that Elle had to work tonight, but that was all right. I enjoyed watching her perform.

Elle groaned when the alarm went off and burrowed deeper into my chest. I could hear her mumbling: "Nice and cozy here. Don't wanna get up." Finally with a loud groan, she forced herself to a sitting position.

"Now I really need some caffeine. It will be a Red Bull for me as soon as we get to the bar."

She looked over her shoulder at me: "I gotta hit the shower. I'll be back afterwards."

"Use mine. I'll wash your hair if you want."

Her face softened and she said softly: "Oh. I'd like that. Let me go get my clothes and I'll be right back."

I grinned and waggled my eyebrows at her. She smiled back and throwing on her robe, rushed out of the room. I heard the front door close and I slowly got out of bed and headed into the bathroom. I took a whiz and turned on the water so it would heat up. Elle was back in a few minutes. She laid her clothes on the bed and walked into the bathroom with her shampoo and conditioner. She set them down on the edge of the tub and shucked off her robe.

I admired her body for a moment and then stuck my hand under the water. The temperature was just right. I nudged my head towards the shower and said: "Get in. Hope you like it hot."

She laughed as she climbed in. "You know I do. This will be a lot more fun than the last time we showered together, huh?"

I groaned: "Did you have to remind me?"

"Oops. Sorry."

She ducked under the spray and wet herself. She looked incredibly sexy with the water running down over her breasts. I moved close to her and got wet myself. Then I picked up her shampoo and poured some into my hand.

It had a pleasant citrus scent. I steered her out from under the spray and started washing her hair. I worked the soap through her hair and massaged her scalp. Eyes closed, Elle had one hand on the wall for support. I knew she was enjoying it by her little hums and sighs. I grabbed the showerhead from its holder and rinsed her hair. I wet her body some more and then I aimed it right between her legs. She gasped at the sensation and her eyes flew open.

"Oh, you naughty boy. Oh, that feels good."

I chuckled and returned the showerhead to its holder.

Elle whined: "Why did you stop?"

"I don't want to distract you from getting ready for work. You're not blaming me for being late."

She growled and I laughed as I picked up the bottle of conditioner and poured some into my hand. I rubbed it through her hair and then grabbed the soap. I lathered my hands well and started washing her body. Again, she closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. I paid a lot of attention to her breasts making sure that they were really clean. Then my slippery hands worked their way down her abdomen, then to her hips and on to her thighs. She unconsciously spread her legs as I started washing her thighs. Her breathing became more rapid and shallow. I gently washed her pubic hair and she whimpered. As my hand slipped between her legs, I whispered: "Making you all nice and clean for my late night snack. As you strut your stuff across the stage tonight, think about what I'm going to do to you when we get home. Your panties will be soaking wet all night, won't they?"

She whimpered again and bucked against my hand. I smiled and captured her lips with mine. She kissed me greedily, her tongue demanding entrance into my mouth. I parted my lips and allowed her tongue to tangle with mine. While my right hand was busy between her legs, my left hand grabbed her arm and pinned it over her head against the wall.

Roughly I said: "Raise your other arm."

She obeyed and I held both of her wrists together above her head. She squirmed beautifully. Her desire was so great that she was thrusting hard against my hand. My fingers teased her entrance and I said: "Is this what you want?"

"Yes", she cried breathlessly.

I kept playing with her folds and occasionally touching her clit. Every time I touched it, she moaned loudly and thrust her pelvis forward.

I nibbled on her ear lobe and whispered: "You're mine, aren't you?"

She cried breathlessly: "Oh, yes."

"Tell me. Say it."

Elle cried out: "I'm yours."

As she said it, I rubbed her clit hard and she exploded with pleasure. She screamed and her body jerked. I had her well pinned against the wall, so there was no danger of her falling. I continued to caress her clit, feeling her little aftershocks until she whimpered: "Too much, no more, please."

I cupped her mound with the palm of my hand and just held it there. She pressed into the warmth and I felt her body sag. I released her wrists and quickly caught her in a big hug.

It took a minute for her breathing to return to normal, and then I heard her mutter: "Oh, wow. Wow. You are so amazing. You make me come harder with your fingers than most guys have with their dicks. Gawd, are you good."

"You don't have to call me Gawd, you can call me Greg."

She laughed and I liked the feel of her body vibrating against mine. My lips met hers for a slow lazy kiss. I felt her hands caressing the length of my body. I smiled when her fingers tangled in my pubic hair. Then she grabbed my cock and starting stroking.

I stilled her hand and said: "Naw, I'm getting old, sweetheart. I can't keep up with you."

"You're not getting old, you're getting hard."

Elle slid her slick body down mine, until she was on her knees in front of me. She took Mt. Gregory in her hand and rubbed him around on her face. The sight was so enticing and I found myself growing quickly. She planted little kisses on the head and little licks around the rim while caressing my balls with her hand. It didn't take long before I was at full length.

She looked up at me with a devilish look in her eyes: "Told ya. Why don't you lean back against the wall and hang on?"

I propped myself against the wall and held on to the grab bar that I had installed for extra support after my infarction. I had never used it for this purpose but it seemed to come in handy right about now.

Elle took just the head in her mouth and licked in ever-widening circles around the opening. The sensations were so fantastic, that I was lulled into closing my eyes. But then I opened them quickly. I didn't want to miss the view. Elle saw me watching and with a quick waggle of her eyebrows, quickly swallowed my entire length.

"Ahhghhh" I moaned. Unintelligible noises were all I could manage as she sucked and licked me. She looked so hot, on her knees with the water falling around her and my cock sliding in and out of her mouth. It was like starring in my own porno movie. Between the fantastic sensations and the extraordinary view, I didn't last long before I exploded in her mouth. She swallowed all I had to give and then slowly withdrew me from her mouth. Her tongue caressed the underside of my shaft as she pulled back and I shivered with delight. After a few extra kisses on the head, she rose and embraced me.

I still felt a bit wobbly, so I just wrapped one arm around her while still grasping the bar. I leaned my cheek against her forehead until my breathing returned to normal, and then I kissed her cheek.

"You are so amazing. I'm 47 and you can make me come 3 times in a day. I haven't come this much since I was in my 20's."

Teasingly, she said: "That's not a complaint, is it?"

I said hastily: "No. Not a complaint. Not at all. It's a complement, my sexy nympho."

She smiled up at me and cupped my cheek with her hand. After a soft kiss on the lips, she said: "You're mine, aren't you?"

My leg was getting tired from standing and the remaining thigh muscles were starting to spasm. With my last ounce of strength, I whispered: "Yes, I'm yours."

I stayed propped up against the wall long enough for Elle to slip out of the tub and fetch my little shower seat. I breathed a sigh of relief when my ass hit the plastic. I felt a tad embarrassed at my weakness, but Elle was completely relaxed about the whole thing. After I settled myself, she poured some shampoo onto my head and started washing my hair. Her fingers massaging my scalp felt really good and I let my body sag back into hers.

Elle reached around and hugged me from behind. Her hands were sudsy and she rubbed them all over my chest. After giving me a loud smack of a kiss on the cheek, she quickly washed me all over. The hot water was starting to run out and neither of us like cold showers. We hurriedly rinsed off and climbed out of the tub.

My cell phone rang while we were getting dressed. It was Wilson, wondering what I was doing tonight. Apparently Julie had yet another committee meeting. What kind of committee meets on a Saturday night? Definitely one that I don't want to know about. I told him that I would be at Satchel's and he could come and buy me booze all night. He said he would meet us there.

There were catcalls and whistles when Elle and I walked into the back room. Avi called out: "Look who got out of bed long enough to join us!"

Elle smirked and said: "Hey we also got out of bed long enough to have breakfast and to shower. _Together_."

That brought a few more whoops from the peanut gallery, but Elle just laughed and sat down to put on her makeup. I sat down next to Adam and started tuning Elle's guitars for her. Gen started braiding Elle's hair. Danny and Lenny were going over a rift together and Avi was playing some air drums with his eyes closed. Theresa walked in with a Red Bull for Elle and beers for the rest of us. I was touched that she remembered that I liked Grolsch. I was beginning to feel comfortable hanging around with Elle's friends.

At 5 minutes to 9, we all left the backroom. The band headed up to the stage and I joined Ricky at the usual table. Gen swung over to the ladies' room for a pit stop first. Since Ricky and I were alone for a moment, I took the opportunity to ask him about the significance of Jack Daniels and Janis Ian in Elle's life.

Ricky sighed: "Well, I guess you should know. Elle drinks scotch or beer most of the time. When she drinks Jack, it's because she wants to get drunk. Period. Not just buzzed or happy, but hammered. I don't know why it is, but every time I've seen her set out to get drunk, it is always with Jack. And about Janis Ian, well, have you ever listened to her music?"

I shook my head: "That kind of 'folksy' stuff has never been my style."

"Well, lift her CD of 'At Seventeen' some time and give it a listen. It is _damn_ depressing. And she seems to only listen to it when she is morose. So last night, we went heard Janis Ian playing, and saw the bottle of Jack, we just knew she was in a deep dark hole. And we hoped we weren't too late to pull her back out."

"Do you really think she is suicidal?"

"I don't think she would do it deliberately. But I could see her being so depressed that she just doesn't care enough to stop drinking in time before she falls asleep in the bathtub. We were more afraid of her 'accidentally' killing herself as opposed to a deliberate act." He shrugged his shoulders and looked a bit sheepish: "I guess we are kinda overprotective brothers."

"That's alright. I think she needs that."

He shrugged: "She's better now, much better. Back in January & February, she was so miserable. Barely got off the couch all day. Nightmares every night. It was a bad time. She seems much happier now. She has a job again, and she seems to be having fun with you." He grinned at me.

I smiled and nodded. "She's a whole lotta fun."

Ricky studied me for a moment in silence and then said: "Take good care of her. She's very special."

I smiled as the band walked onto the stage to thunderous applause and muttered: "Yes, she is."

Gen arrived back at the table just as the band was starting to play. Orion opened again with Stevie Ray Vaughn's 'The House is Rockin' and the crowd went wild. Many people stood up and started dancing right at their seats.

In the middle of the song, Wilson walked up to the table.

I stated flatly: "You made it."

He smirked: "Stating the obvious, that's not like you." He looked around and gestured to the band: "Wow. The crowd really likes them."

"Geez, now who's stating the obvious?"

He smirked and sat down. By the time I introduced him to Gen and Ricky, Theresa came over to get his drink order so I had to introduce him to her also. He bought us all a round and asked Theresa to start him a tab. Since he was buying me alcohol, I couldn't be too irked with him. We just kicked back, drinking and enjoying the music.

In the middle of the set, Tony and Bill showed up. Again, they walked to the edge of the stage to greet Elle before they joined us at the table. She smiled and nodded at them, and then they headed our way.

Wilson frowned: "Isn't that guy the brother of your former patient?"

"Yes, that's Bill Arnello and he's Elle's lawyer. The other guy is Tony, her old boyfriend. And he's here again, without his wife." I didn't like that one bit. I wondered what was up with him. Last week there was the excuse that wifey was home with sick kids. I wondered what the excuse would be this week. Remembering the way he greeted her last time, I wondered seriously if Tony still carried a torch for Elle.

Of course, they joined us at our table and I introduced Wilson to them. Can't piss off the mob after all. Theresa brought them drinks and we watched the band.

I found myself growing antsy as their set wound down. I knew Tony would greet her with a hug and a kiss and I didn't want him putting his hands on her. He may be married, but he still showed way too much interest in her for my taste. When she came out into the barroom, I was going to get to her first.

**Wilson **

The band had just started playing when I walked in. Judging by the crowd's reaction, they were a big hit. They were certainly loud. It was a vivacious crowd; people were dancing around the tables and in the aisles. It made walking a bit awkward, but I finally made it to House's table. He introduced me to the 2 other people at the table. When the waitress came by, House surprised me by introducing her also. It turned out that she was one of the owners. I bought a round for the table and settled back to enjoy the music.

I watched House out of the corner of my eye during the show. He was watching Elle with a slight smile on his face. He rarely took his eyes off of her. I knew he had it bad, but he seemed to be completely enamored with Elle. Suddenly he shifted and I could feel the tension from across the table. I followed his glance and noticed he was watching 2 men at the edge of the stage speaking to Elle. They finished talking and headed over to our table. I recognized one of them as the brother of one of House's former patients. I remembered he was an attorney and supposed to be in the mob. House introduced them to me and I was surprised that the second man was Elle's old boyfriend. I noticed that Tony wore a wedding ring, but House seemed tenser now since the two of them arrived. As he watched Elle on stage, he seemed to keep one eye on Tony.

I could really see the tension in House's shoulders when the set ended and the band trouped off the stage. Theresa set down beers and water for the band, so I assumed they would be joining us. Certainly there were 5 empty seats so that seemed reasonable. The back door opened and the guys started to walk out into the barroom. As soon as Elle appeared, House was on his feet. He quickly limped over to meet her before she even got close to the table. I noticed that Tony stood up also. He watched House's progress with a puzzled look on his face. Elle's face lit up as she saw House's approach. I could see her smile from across the room. When he caught up to her, he opened his arms and she walked right into his embrace, her arms wrapping around his neck. House planted a big one right on her lips and I heard a gasp. The look on Tony's face was one of complete shock.

Bill smirked and punched Tony in the arm, saying: "I guess Elle has found a new boyfriend."

Tony snarked: "Oh, shut up."

Then he turned to me and asked: "What is this?"

He waved his hand towards the two of them still sucking face in the middle of the barroom floor. I was astonished at House's PDA; the man had it worse than I ever could have imagined. He was never openly affectionate with Stacy, so this came as a complete surprise to me.

I turned, open-mouthed, to answer Tony's question. "It looks like a really good kiss to me."

"Don't be an asshole. You're his friend. You must know. Is he sleeping with Elle?"

We turned back and looked at the couple. They acted as if there was no one else in the room but themselves. They were so into each other. One of House's hands had drifted down to rest on Elle's ass. I could see House push his pelvis against Elle's and I'm sure that Tony could see that too.

Bill answered before I could get out a response: "Of course they are. Look at them. He's groping her right in the middle of the bar. If he ain't fucking her, he will be by tonight. They are totally into each other."

Tony scowled, but I chuckled inwardly at Bill's answer. They were so obviously into each other. I wondered if House knew how deep he was in. If this kept up, I was going to lose my bet to Cuddy. But if House is this happy a month from now, it will be worth the money.

**House **

I was on my feet and moving towards Elle as soon as she walked into the barroom. There was no way that Tony was getting his hands on her. I loved the way her face lit up when she saw me. I held out my arms and she walked right into them. I felt her arms wrap around my neck as I crashed my lips on hers. Her lips parted right away and I slipped my tongue in her mouth. I knew we were surrounded by people, but I swear at that moment, it was as if there was no one in the room but the two of us. The feel of her body pressed against mine and her moist lips returning my affection sent me into another world. I was sure Tony was watching and hoped that he was jealous as hell.

We finally came up for air and Elle stroked my hair as she teased: "Miss me much?"

"Yes, I can't stand it when I can see you but I can't touch you. Plus I promised you wet panties and I gotta keep my promise."

She giggled and I quickly kissed her again, my hand roaming down to her ass for a quick squeeze.

We broke apart again and I caressed her cheek. "Want a drink?"

She nodded. I tilted my head towards the table. "Let's go."

I took Elle's hand and led her back to the table. I could see that Tony had a huge scowl on his face and I smiled inside. I steered Elle to a chair so that she would end up between Wilson and myself.

She plopped down with a happy sigh and grabbed her beer. She guzzled half the bottle and then set it back down on the table with a big "AH! I needed that."

Then she leaned back against my shoulder and said: "Hi Bill, Tony. Jimmy, glad you could come. Are you enjoying the music?"

Wilson replied: "Oh, yeah, you guys are great."

Before Wilson could continue, Tony butted in: "What the hell was that?"

Elle frowned: "What the hell was what?"

Tony sputtered: "That! Over there, with him!" He jabbed his finger towards me.

Her eyes narrowed: "You mean, when I was standing over there kissing Greg? It felt like a kiss, didn't it look like one?"

I heard several snorts and looked over at the guys. Avi, Ricky and Danny were all cracking up. Lenny had his hand over his mouth trying to contain his glee, while Gen was giggling. Adam just shook his head with a bemused look on his face and Wilson was smirking.

The look on Tony's face was menacing. My arm wrapped even more tightly around Elle's shoulder.

In a low voice, Tony said: "Yes, it looked like a kiss, a very passionate kiss. That's why I'm asking you what's going on. I don't want some asshole taking advantage of you when you're vulnerable."

I tensed and started to give him a piece of my mind, but Elle squeezed my thigh. I took that to mean she wanted to handle this. I drew her closer, but kept my mouth shut.

Elle locked eyes with him. "Greg's not taking advantage of me. It's nice that you're protective of me. I always know that you have my back and I appreciate that. But you need to back off this time".

"I don't want you to get hurt again".

"Greg is not Charlie. He would never hurt me like that."

"Yeah, well, look what David did to you."

"Oh, stop it, Tony. What? I should never get involved with someone again just because I might get hurt. That's bullshit and you know it. David actually did me a favor. I found out what a wuss he was before I married him. Greg is completely different from either of those jerks. For one thing, he's _way _hotter in bed."

There were more chuckles around the table and I could see even Bill was smirking. Wilson was hiding his face behind his hand, but I could see his shoulders were shaking from repressed laughter. Tony's look could break glass, but Elle just stared at him smugly. Her hand stroked my thigh and it was obvious, from even across the table, what she was doing.

His gaze shifted over to me: "And just what are your intentions with Elle? You just going to screw her until you get bored with her?"

Elle slammed her hand down on the table and everyone jumped. Through clenched teeth, Elle hissed: "Stop right now. We've been seeing each other for barely a week. How the hell do we know where this is going? Just leave us be so we can figure it out for ourselves. And now the subject is closed."

She sat back, grabbed her beer and took a long swallow. I could see her eyes scanning the table, but no one said anything.

Elle leaned a little closer to me and squeezed my thigh again. I squeezed her shoulder in what I hoped was a reassuring manner. She turned to me with a smile and gently kissed my lips. I brushed her hair back from her face and tossed the length of it over her shoulder, exposing her neck and thus her hickey to our companions. I wanted to make it clear to Tony that she was mine and this was my mark. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him staring at it. He shook his head and leaned back to sip his drink. I kissed her tenderly for a moment, gently sliding my tongue into her mouth. She sighed contently when we broke apart and I could see the desire in her eyes. It made my chest contract and my groin throb. One more quick peck and Elle snuggled into my shoulder and picked up her glass of water. She drank her water slowly while observing the gang.

Elle has known Tony for a long time and I knew he was important to her. I wondered if she had fought with him over other boyfriends or if I was the first. Maybe he became more overprotective after the rape. I wanted to know more about this Charlie character, though. How did he hurt her? Maybe I could get that outta Ricky.

In the silence that hung over the table, Gen finally piped up: "So Tony, where's Nancy? Please don't tell me that the kids are still sick."

He shifted in his seat. He seemed uncomfortable. "No, the kids are better, but she finally caught what they had. So she is a little under the weather. She says that she hopes that she'll get to come and see everyone next time."

That broke the ice a bit and conversation resumed around the table. It wasn't much longer before Adam stood up and motioned everyone towards the stage.

Elle turned to me and said: "Try not to miss me too much."

I nuzzled her cheek and whispered in her ear: "Oh, but I will. Are your panties wet?"

She chuckled and said: "You'll find out later." She gave me a sweet lingering kiss on the mouth and then stood up.

She walked over to Tony and leaned down to whisper in his ear. Tony's face was expressionless while she spoke. Then Elle straightened up and squeezed his shoulder. She looked him in the eye and said: "I mean it."

He nodded. Elle gave me a wink before walking away.

Tony picked up his drink and slammed the rest of it back. He stared at me for a moment, then said: "She told me to be nice to you or else."

I shrugged: "She is the boss."

He stared at me for a long minute, and then said: "You know, when I asked you to take care of her, I didn't think you were going to end up in her pants."

I shrugged: "Things happen. But I'm still taking care of her."

We locked eyes. I wasn't going to back down; he needed to understand that she was mine now. Finally he looked away and muttered: "I need another drink".

He waved his glass at Theresa. She nodded and headed towards the bar.

Wilson caught my eye and gave me a nod. I smiled inwardly: the message had been delivered and received.

Theresa brought us a fresh round and then we kicked back to enjoy the next set.

**CHASE **

I hadn't had a chance to speak to Elle all week. I hadn't even seen her except from the far side of the cafeteria. Foreman and Cameron were always with me, so I didn't bother to go speak to her. I definitely didn't want to hear any lip from either of them. I heard about Elle's fight with Dr Rivera from one of the nurses. Apparently the whole 6th floor was happy to have someone who was spunky enough to stand up to the jerk. Everyone knew that she was called down to Cuddy's office afterwards, but no one knew the results of that meeting. Elle had made herself scarce after that. I was very curious to find out what happened.

I decided to come to the bar tonight, hoping I would get a chance to buy her a drink and talk. I didn't ask Foreman to come with me; I didn't want to hear his mouth if Elle came me the brush-off, or if, Gawd forbid, House was here. This way I only had to pay my own cover and buy my own drinks too.

It was about 10PM when I arrived. I headed right to the bar and found an empty stool. The band was taking the stage as a big beefy guy approached me and asked what I wanted to drink. I asked for a bottle of Sam Adams and it landed in front of me quickly. I nursed the beer as I watched the band. Elle was singing lead on every song. She was simply fantastic. Her singing and piano playing were just amazing. And she looked so hot in that black tank top and tight black jeans. I felt a stirring in my own jeans as I watched her. I figured if she was this passionate on stage, she must be a tiger in bed. I would truly love to get her in the sack. She had given me the brush-off twice now, so I wondered if she really had a boyfriend. It could be one of the band members. She seemed quite cozy on stage with the lead guitarist.

The bartender came over to see if I wanted a refill, so I requested another beer. I decided to ask him about Elle when he came back.

As he set the beer down, I said: "Hey, can I ask you something?"

He shrugged and said: "Sure."

"The girl singer, her name is Elle, right?"

He nodded warily.

"She's really good. Have they been playing here long?"

"Yeah, about 8 years."

I was surprised. "Really, wow. That's a long time. So I guess you know her fairly well."

He pulled himself up to his full height and crossed his arms across his massive chest. "Is that a question or a statement?"

I felt myself squirm under the intense gaze. "Well, I was just wondering if she was seeing anyone. Does she have a boyfriend?"

He merely nodded.

"Ah. One of the guys in the band, I suppose."

"Nope. If you feel you really need to know, it's that guy." He pointed to a table in the center of the bar, right in front of the stage. Just at the moment, the guy stood up. I saw him grab a cane hanging off the edge of the table and my heart sunk. He turned around and confirmed my fear. It was House, limping his way towards the bar, with Wilson right behind him.

Just to be sure, I confirmed it with the bartender: "The guy with the cane, that's her boyfriend?"

"Yep."

I nodded and slapped a ten down on the bar. I grabbed my beer and walked away quickly before House could get to the bar. I threaded my way through the crowd and ended up standing in a dark corner near the stage. I could see Elle really well, but hoped that I was in shadows dark enough that House couldn't see me.

**HOUSE **

The bar was really hopping tonight. The wait staff kept really busy running around with food and drinks for all the patrons. I knew the set was almost over, so I decided to hit the bar for more drinks. Wilson tagged along to help carry them back to the table.

We bellied up to the bar and Billy came over to serve us. Wilson and I requested more beers for the table along with water for Elle.

As Billy busied himself getting the drinks, he said to me: "Think you should know. There was a guy here asking about Elle, wanting to know if she was seeing anyone. I pointed you out as her boyfriend. I wanted to make sure he knew that she was not available. He took one look at you and took off."

I frowned: "What did he look like?"

"He's a real pretty boy. Got the kind of hair that belongs in a shampoo commercial. Hey, he's over there." Billy pointed to the far side of the barroom. He was standing in a darkish corner, but I knew that slouch anywhere.

I turned to Wilson: "The wombat is here."

"Chase is here, making a play for your girl? Woo-hoo, this should be fun. How many bouncers do you have, Billy? This guy may walk with a cane, but no one goes after what's his. He'll make mincemeat of the guy."

Billy frowned: "You know the guy?"

Wilson answered for me: "He is one of House's underlings at the hospital. House is his boss."

Billy snorted: "Oh, ho, going after the boss's girl. That will get him in trouble."

The band was finishing the last song as we spoke. As the crowd erupted in applause, Elle announced that they would be back after a short break. The band laid down their instruments and started off the stage.

I turned to Wilson: "Take the drinks to the table. I'm escorting Elle through the crowd."

I hobbled off as quickly as I could. I knew Jimmy would have some snarky remark to make about how bad I have it, and I didn't want to hear it. But the main reason I moved as fast as I could, was to get to Elle before Chase did.

The band strolled out of the back door and Elle was the last one out, as usual. My eyes locked on hers and she gave me a gorgeous smile. I held out my arms and she walked right into them. Her arms snaked around my neck and our lips crashed together. I poured every ounce of emotion in my body into that kiss and Elle responded in kind. I held her tightly, with one hand roaming down her back until it handed on her ass where it pushed her body even closer to mine. I gave her ass a nice squeeze and then we slowly broke apart.

Elle smiled dreamily at me: "Wow. That was nicccceeeee. I can't wait to get you home tonight. You really want to make sure I walk around with wet panties, don't ya?"

I grinned as I nuzzled her cheek. "I like knowing that you're wet and ready for me. After all I'm sitting around with a hard-on watching you prance around on stage."

She turned her head to kiss me on the lips again. "We could go in the backroom for some fun, but it's only a 10 minute break. I hate to rush such a good thing."

"I don't like to rush either. C'mon, let's go sit down. You need to rehydrate before you go up there again. Just keep in mind what's waiting for you when we get home." I pushed against her again so she could feel my desire.

She smiled and we turned to head towards our table. I steered her a bit in front of me, and then turned my head back towards that dark corner. I could see the wombat standing there with his mouth open. I gave him an evil grin, mouthed the word 'mine' and then followed Elle to the table.

As we threaded our way through the crowd, I realized this was the second time tonight that I had claimed my girl in front of another man. I had it bad, but I no longer cared what anyone thought. This gorgeous woman was mine.


	25. Chapter 25

**The Elle Word Chapter 25**

**House **

Suddenly it was the first of August and the dog days of summer were here. It was scorchingly hot which meant Elle was wearing tank tops and shorts all the time, not a hardship as far as I was concerned. Of course, I would crank up the A/C and make the apartment cold, just so I could see her perky nipples poking through the fabric of her tank top.

We had been together for almost a month, which both delighted and amazed me. Who would have thought she could put up with me for so long?

We had fallen into a routine, which surprisingly didn't bother me. She generally got home from work first and would hang out at her place until I got home. She usually cooked for me on Mondays and Tuesdays. Wednesday was poker night so I hung out with the guys and she did her own thing. Thursday was her yoga class so we got take-out on those nights. Fridays were usually pizza and beer on the sofa with some rented DVD's. On work nights Elle usually went to bed around 10:30. I always went into the bedroom with her and lay down for a while. We had sex probably 4 or 5 times a week. Sometimes I would fall asleep with her. Other times, when I was feeling restless, I would hold her until she dozed off and then I would return to the living room and watch TV or read until I felt able to sleep. On the nights that we didn't have sex, we often read to each other. We had finished "Skinny Dip" and started on another Carl Hiaasen book, "Stormy Weather."

On Wednesdays, I slept at her place. She didn't want to go to bed in front of my poker buddies. I had to figure out a way to convince her to do that, but for right now she slept in my bed 6 out of 7 nights, and that was good. On Weds when the guys left, I would go over to her place and climb in her bed. Sometimes she would wake up and I would get to tell her about my winnings. Other times she was sound asleep and I would just wrap my arms around her and doze off. Elle got some more bedroom furniture from Ikea, nightstands and a long dresser with a mirror on top. It looked more like a bedroom now and she was pleased with it. Now that she had finally unpacked all of the boxes, I needed to do some more snooping. She kept that silly purple dog parked on top of the bed. She would usually be hugging him in her sleep when I came over on Wednesday nights. It was cute; she looked so sweet and innocent. If she woke up when I climbed into bed, she would set him on the nightstand and wrap her arms around me. Otherwise I would fall asleep with my arms wrapped around the both of them. It was a little weird, but OK.

Sometimes I had to work late and she would be asleep by the time I got home. At first, she didn't want to stay at my place without me. I finally convinced her that I wanted to curl up with her warmth when I got home no matter what time it was. She got my point and stayed over when I was working late. She had to leave some lights on and she wouldn't sleep nude without me. She said she felt too vulnerable to do that alone. When I finally got home and crawled into bed, Elle would be wearing a tank top or camisole and some boxers. And that was OK, as long as she was there. I would wrap my arms around her and pull her close and fall asleep with my nose buried in her hair.

Even though we were together most of the time, we kept our separate apartments. My place was really too small for her to move her clothes over here. I cleaned out a drawer for her and she kept a few things in there. She had some toiletries in the bathroom, but most of her stuff remained across the hall. Generally when she needed to get dressed, she would just throw on a robe or one of my big shirts and then run across the hall to change.

I don't think either of us was ready for a complete live-in situation yet. Moving in together would be a big step and we would need a bigger place. That would be a big change that I was not ready for yet. I also knew that she needed her own sanctuary after becoming homeless when her relationship with David ended. Losing her home on top of everything else that happened had made her feel especially vulnerable.

The weekends were the best. The pleasure of waking up beside her was more than I could have ever imagined. Stacy used to jump out of bed even on the weekends. She always had something to do, somewhere to go. It wasn't like that with Elle. We would wake up together and just lay in bed, snuggling, talking, caressing. Morning sex was mind-blowing and afterward we would just contentedly lie in each other's arms. I was never much for cuddling but with Elle I couldn't get enough.

We'd stay in bed until her need for coffee took over. I bought a fancy new coffee pot with a timer. Elle would set it up the night before and the coffee would be ready whenever she wanted it. She would pad down the hall naked and come back with a mug for each of us.

I felt strangely relaxed around her. I slept in the nude again. I wandered around the apartment wearing just boxers. It was strange after wearing long pants to hide the scar for so long to have it out in the open. But it didn't bother her and I found after a short while, it didn't bother me for her to see it. I didn't like to tell her when I was hurting, but she would see me grimace and she would know. She would lay her hand gently on my thigh and in her sexiest voice ask me if I wanted a massage. She would work the tension out of my thigh with a nice massage. By the time she finished with my leg, usually my 3rd leg was feeling tense too and Elle would take care of him also.

One Sunday Jimmy came over to watch a WWF special that I had ordered on PPV. Elle was cooking some snacks across the hall so I opened the door to his knock. He had a 12 pack in his hand.

I grumbled: "Good. Just in time. The beer's almost gone."

I grabbed the 12 pack from him and headed to the refrigerator with it. He slowly followed behind me. I turned to see him staring at my legs.

I snarked: "So you've become a leg man now? I always thought you were a breast man. Me, I like a nice ass."

He looked up at me and said slowly: "You're in shorts."

"Stating the obvious, bro. It's HOT, what do you expect?"

He shook his head and said: "Wow, I haven't seen you wear shorts in years, no matter how hot it gets. This is different."

I just shrugged. Elle walked in just then with a big platter of chicken wings that she had just made.

As she set the platter down on the coffee table, she said: "Hey, Jimmy. Are you hungry?"

She stood up and Wilson's jaw hit the floor. Elle was wearing a pair of black silk boxers and a tight black and gray striped tank top that showed about 2 inches of her taut belly. There was a little picture of Tweety Bird right in between her breasts. By the way her nipples were poking through the fabric, I knew she wasn't wearing a bra. She often didn't wear one when we were home.

Wilson was just staring at her; he seemed unable to answer.

I elbowed him: "Stop drooling over my girl."

He closed his open mouth and looked abashed. "Sorry. Cute Tweety Bird."

I elbowed him harder: "Stop staring at her breasts. Mine!"

Elle giggled and said: "I'll be right back with the rest of the food."

I glared at him and we sat at opposite ends of the couch. Elle came back with a platter of little hors d'oeuvres. There were mini quiches and mini hot dogs on it. She set that down and went into my kitchen and came back with paper plates and napkins.

"You guys want beer, right?"

After affirmative responses from us, Elle headed into my kitchen one more time and brought back 3 beers and containers of potato salad and cole slaw. She distributed everything and then plopped down on the couch between us.

Jimmy looked at the spread and said: "Wow, Elle. This looks great. You didn't have to do all of this. Geez House, do you always make Elle do all the work?"

With a completely straight face, Elle replied: "No, he gets on top a lot."

She stared at Jimmy. I glanced over at him. His face was red and he was slack-jawed. A small smirk tickled the corner of her mouth. I could feel the corner of my lip rising. Her smirk grew bigger until she started giggling. I couldn't help it; I started laughing too. I pulled her half onto my lap and gave her a noisy wet kiss on the cheek.

"That was priceless, sweetheart. Look at Jimmy, he's still in shock."

She snuggled up against me, still giggling. I hugged her tightly against my chest and peppered little kisses on her cheek and neck. My hand crept around and cupped her breast. She giggled some more and shifted towards me. Her hands cupped my face and she crashed her lips on mine. I parted my lips and let her tongue slide into my mouth. My hand slid up her tank top, stroking her bare back.

In the midst of our make-out session, I heard Wilson chuckle:

"House, she is so perfect for you. Don't fuck this up, my friend."

That's not to say that everything was all sunshine and puppies. I would get wrapped up in a case and ignore her. Or my leg would be hurting more than usual and I'd snap at her. She'd make plans with Avi and Ricky and want me to come along. I would pout and not want to go, just wanting to be alone with her.

The first time we fought, I was working on a difficult case. I knew I had recently read a journal article about a patient with similar symptoms to mine and I was tearing through the apartment looking for the journal. Elle tried to help and I snapped at her. "I'm not that much of a gawddamn cripple that I can't find a journal article without your help."

Elle stepped back, hands held up in surrender: "No problem, babe. You know, if you want to be alone, if you need some space, you could just fucking say so, instead of biting my head off."

She stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her.

I swore and threw the journal I was holding across the room. I could see the handwriting on the wall. This would end up being like the last year of my relationship with Stacy. I'd ignore her, yell at her and she'd get pissed and storm out. Was this already the beginning of the end with Elle?

I was angry, but I still had a case to solve. I kept searching until I found the article I needed. I poured a big shot of scotch and sat down on the couch to read it. I got the answers I needed and phoned the ducklings to start running the tests. Then I sat on the couch and drank scotch while staring at the TV. This was my life before I met Elle. Did I want to go back to this? I knew I didn't, but what to do? The word 'apology' was not in my vocabulary.

At 10:30, the door opened and Elle entered the apartment. She was wearing a pale blue cami top with matching boxers. The fabric was so thin that I could see the outline of her nipples and the dark patch of her hair. I felt my pulse pick up the beat.

"Hey," she said softly.

I replied in an equally soft voice: "Hey."

"Did you find the article?"

I nodded. "Yeah, and called the ducklings to order new tests."

"Cool." She pointedly glanced at the clock and said: "It's bedtime for me."

I nodded again.

Elle walked around and stood in front of me. She extended her hand to me and said: "Come tuck me in?"

I was astonished. Was I forgiven for my little fit? Before she could change her mind, I stood up, took her hand and we headed down the hall.

Once we were in the bedroom, Elle pulled back the covers and switched on the bedside lamp. Then she walked back over and stood right in front of me.

"You know, Greg, sometimes we're going to fight. But you know the best part about fighting?"

I shook my head.

She took my hands and placed them on the waistband of her boxers. She encouraged my hands to push them down and then said softly: "The make up sex."

I licked my lips and slowly smiled. "Really? That's my favorite part, too."

I pushed her boxers down and pulled the cami over her head. She stood there, beautiful in her nakedness. I picked her up in my arms and gently laid her on the bed. I stripped my clothes off quickly, never taking my eyes off of hers. I climbed into bed and pulled her to me. And we made up. Twice.

We didn't fight often, but that was generally how our fights went. I would say something harsh. There would be a bit of shouting. Elle would storm over to her apartment and stay there for a while. Then one of us would cross the hall. It was usually Elle, returning for bedtime. She never asked for an apology and I never gave one. We just picked up where we left off before the shouting match. She would plop down on the couch and snuggle up next to me and we'd watch some TV. If it were bedtime, we would have some fantastic make-up sex. We never went to bed mad at each other.

Elle had not pressed me for any details about my leg or Stacy. I knew I should tell her about it, but I still wasn't ready yet. I had not pressed her for any more sad details about her past. I wanted to do my own snooping first. I kept hoping I would find some other photos or a yearbook or something that showed her existence between age 10 and college. I still wanted to know the real reason why she and Tony split up and how she got the cuts on her ass. And there was that comment about not being able to have kids. I wondered what that was about.

I had managed to get Ricky alone one night at Satchel's and ask about Charlie. He said: "Well you have to remember, this was before my time. I've been with Avi for only 2 years, so I'm the newest member of the tribe, next to you. I only know what I've been told."

He paused and shifted uncomfortably. He glanced around and seeing that we were still alone, he continued: "Elle had only been seeing Charlie for a few weeks. Apparently he was quite possessive of her. He was very jealous of anyone else paying attention to her. And you know how it is in the bar, guys flirt with her, bring her flowers. It doesn't mean anything to her; she thanks them for the flowers and nicely turns down their advances. That wasn't enough for Charlie. He started getting in their faces and being quite menacing. It was bad for business and Billy threatened to bar him if he didn't cut it out. So Charlie wanted Elle to quit singing here. Of course, she told him no. He started following her everywhere and apparently being quite the stalker. She told him to cut it out and of course, he didn't. Well, one night Tony showed up. He hadn't been in the bar for a while, cuz Nancy had just popped out one of the kids. So he shows up after a long absence and of course, they are happy to see each other. Tony grabbed her in a big hug; there was a chaste kiss and lots of talk about the new baby. Big fucking deal, right? Charlie went berserk. Not right there, cuz the guys could have taken care of him. No, he waits until they go back to her place and he proceeds to beat the crap outta her."

"Had he ever hit her before?"

"She says no. But Avi says he would see him grab her roughly by the arm and sometimes she would have bruises on her wrists. I think he was rough, but hadn't actually hit her until that night. So he beat her up and stalked out. Elle calls Avi and he takes her to the ER. She had lots of bruises, broken wrist and cracked ribs."

"Shit!"

"Yeah, no kidding. The police were called; she filed charges and got an order of protection. Well, you know how much good those things do. He was supposed to stay 1000 feet away from her. About a week later, he tried to grab her on the street and she ran into a store to get away from him. He took off before the police could get there. She was really scared of him and there wasn't much the police could do."

Ricky glanced around again before continuing. "So, out of desperation, she sicced Tony on him."

I frowned: "What do you mean?"

He raised his eyebrows: "Do I have to spell it out for you? You know who Tony's friends are. Charlie ended up with a broken leg and a shattered kneecap. They say he will never walk normally again. I don't know if Tony actually did it himself or just ordered it. With his temper, I could see Tony enjoying whacking a guy with a baseball bat. And Charlie was told to move outta New Jersey and never come back, never contact Elle again in any way or face the consequences. I heard he moved to Arizona."

I pondered this for a moment: "Tony took care of this problem for Elle. So Elle owes Tony in a big way, huh?"

"I don't think so. After all, it was Tony showing up at the bar that precipitated the beating. I think he felt responsible for it. It was more like HE owed her. He was happy to be able to help her. He's very protective of her. Tony wanted to teach David a lesson after he dumped Elle, but she forbid him from doing that."

I wanted to ask him more, but Gen and Theresa were approaching the table so we changed the subject. It was good to get this information. It was one more piece of the puzzle. I was glad to hear that this guy was no longer a threat to Elle. It sounded like Tony had taken care of the problem. Married or not, I still wondered about the depth of his feelings towards Elle and the real reason for their break-up.

We kept things quiet around work. I wasn't ready to have my personal life

up for scrutiny. Wilson and Cuddy knew, of course. And so did Chase, but he managed to keep him mouth shut for once. Sometimes we would see each other in the cafeteria, but we kept things professional. I hadn't even been back to her office for a repeat visit, although on slow afternoons, I did fantasize about it.

Elle had not had any more problems at work. Rivera had been on vacation and the other doctors were, if not appreciative of her input, at least they weren't nasty about it. I had not had to kick any doctor ass for my girl.

Things were going along surprisingly well for once in my life. Cuddy wasn't harassing me too much. Wilson wasn't lecturing me too much. Work wasn't too boring. My leg pain was somewhat tolerable although I still had my bad days and nights. Best of all, I had a gorgeous woman who seemed to be quite fond of me. Sometimes I wondered if she was just a hallucination. I was afraid that I would reach for her and find nothing but air. I found I liked to keep some physical contact with her as much as I could just to make sure that she didn't disappear. Elle just thought I was extremely affectionate and she grooved on it. But I knew that she was truly my new addiction. I dreaded to think what the withdrawal symptoms would be like if I ever lost my source.

**Cuddy**

I had a new case for House. It was only 9AM so I knew better than to expect him to be in at the ungodly hour. I headed over to the elevator to take it up to his office. As I was waiting for the elevator, I heard his distinctive step-tap behind me. What on earth was he doing he at this early hour?

"Dr House. You're here rather early."

"Cable's out, so no TV or internet. Figured I would just come in and either watch TV in Coma Guy's room or use my office computer to look at porn."

I looked him over. Still snarky, but he was looking better these days. He wasn't as gaunt as he used to be and the lines around his eyes were not as pronounced.

He caught me staring and said: "What?"

I smiled: "You look good. You look more relaxed and it looks like you've gained a little weight. Your clothes aren't just hanging on you anymore."

He snarked: "Yeah, well, regular meals and steady sex will do that."

"She feeds you well?"

A small smile appeared. "Yes, she does."

The elevator arrived and we stepped into it. We were the only passengers. Using his cane, he punched the button for the 4th floor.

I waited until the elevator started moving before I said: "Are you happy?"

He chuckled for a minute: "Who, me? Has hell frozen over?"

I didn't say anything; I just waited him out. I knew there was more, but wasn't sure if he would tell me or not.

Finally he simply said: "It's good."

I smiled: "I'm happy for you."

He snarked: "Aw, the twins miss me, don't they?"

I smirked: "Get over yourself, House. That ship sailed long ago."

He gave me one of those looks, the kind that used to make me weak at the knees. In a low voice, he said: "I still like watching your bodacious ass walking away from me and how good your legs look in those do-me pumps."

I laughed: "You'll never change, House."

"Nope, don't even try. It will be futile."

The elevator doors opened and we walked to his office.

When he had settled himself in his chair, I handed him the case file. "Good thing Elle likes you, just the way you are."

I turned and walked out of his office. Before I got out of sight, I glanced back and saw that he was watching me, as I knew he would. I smiled at him. He raised one eyebrow, smirked and then opened the case file.

I knocked on Wilson's door and then entered without waiting for an answer. We had not spent much time alone since our little tête-à-tête after the board meeting. There had been a lot of awkwardness at first, but we were getting back to normal.

He was charting when I walked in, but looked up and smiled when he saw me. "Good morning."

"Good morning. You're not going to believe this, but House is already here and it's only 9AM."

He chuckled: "It's not the first time. I think he's going to bed earlier because Elle goes to bed early on work nights."

"He's looking good, better than he has in a long time."

He shrugged: "She feeds him, she fucks him, she takes care of him."

"I asked him if he was happy."

He leaned forward, obviously interested: "What did he say?"

"A typical House answer, 'it's good'. But I think he is. He looks much better, more relaxed. You know, it's been a month since you came to my house to tell me about them."

He nodded: "Yeah, I know. You won the bet. I owe you. I'll hit the cash machine later and pay you."

I shook my head: "Don't bother. I don't want your money."

He smiled: "Seriously? Well, thanks. You know, seeing him this happy is priceless, isn't it?"

I nodded: "Yeah, after Stacy, I never thought it would happen again. Especially after she left the second time."

He shook his head with a small grin on his face: "You've haven't even seen the two of them together. He's different with her. Remember how Stacy used to complain that he wouldn't even hold her hand in public. House didn't believe in PDA's. All of that lovey-dovey shit belonged behind closed doors, preferably the bedroom door. That's all out the window now. He is so affectionate with Elle. He hugs and kisses her in the bar. He gropes her in front of me. If at all possible, he is in physical contact with her. He puts his arm around her. He holds her hand. I think she is his newest addiction. And he needs a constant hit."

I chuckled: "Well, as far as addictions go, this is a good one for him. If he is happy, he won't be in as much pain and he won't be popping as much Vicodin either."

I stood up to leave and as I put my hand on the doorknob, I looked over my shoulder at him. Softly I said: "And by the way, you don't have to worry. Your bun is not in my oven. I thought you might want to know."

I could see the relief on his face. I hid my disappointment. I really wanted a baby, and Wilson would be a great dad. But he was married and a child between us would certainly put an end to their wedded bliss. I wasn't certain just how blissful it was as James had been working a lot of late nights. But he wasn't cheating this time; I would have heard the rumors. Well, except for that little drug-induced quickie with me, he hasn't been cheating.

Softly, he said: "Thanks for letting me know."

"No problem. I'll see you later."

I quickly left his office and headed towards the elevator. As I passed the conference room, I could see House at the whiteboard He was listening to Foreman while he wrote the symptoms on the board. But I could still feel his eyes on me as I walked past the room. I put a little extra wiggle in my hips, just for him.

**Wilson **

I sank back in my chair and tossed my pen on the desk. When Cuddy told me that she wasn't pregnant, my initial feeling was profound relief. I knew she wanted to be, but I preferred it not be mine. My marriage was shaky enough and that would definitely send it toppling to the ground. But once that feeling passed, I realized that I also felt some regret. I'm 37 and I'm ready to have a family. I'd like to have a kid. My career is well established and I could cut back at work without a problem. But considering that Julie and I had not slept together in 3 months or so, I didn't see procreation happening any time soon. I needed to figure out a way to get our marriage back on track. I tried to think back to the reasons my other 2 marriages had failed. It was mainly due to my working too much and to my cheating. This time, I hadn't cheated. Well, except with Cuddy and that had been drug-induced. Still it was no excuse, but Julie had not found out about it. I had been smart enough this time not to confess my sin. I had been working late these last couple of weeks, but Julie was never home anyway. She was always out at some committee meeting or at her tennis lesson or something. When she would arrive home, I would offer dinner or a drink, and she would always turn me down. She claimed a long day and fatigue and would head right to bed. Alone. So even though I had been working late these last few weeks, I don't think she even noticed that I wasn't at home.

House had also been a disturbance with all of my marriages. None of my wives had liked him. They had resented the time I spent with him, and they hated it when I asked him over for holiday dinners. Of course, Julie hated him and I strived to minimize their time together. But I still had him over for Thanksgiving and other holiday dinners. After all, he was my best friend, and our friendship had survived all of my marriages. And the way things were going; it would survive this one too. Maybe there was something to that saying: Bro's before ho's. I wondered how Julie would feel now that House was dating Elle. Maybe she would see another side of him and be willing to put up with him a bit more.

I rubbed my hands over my face. What was the point? Julie didn't even want to spend time with me, why bother dragging House and Elle into the conflict? I needed to figure out what was wrong with my marriage before inviting anyone over for dinner. I pondered what I should try. Counseling? A nice romantic get-away? We could go to the Poconos for the weekend. I think I'll try that one first. I'm usually good with the romantic gestures. The counseling could wait. That would be the last ditch effort. What if she wouldn't go? I pushed that thought aside. I made a mental note to check for resorts later this afternoon when I had finished seeing my patients. I knew the resorts had rooms with heart-shaped Jacuzzis and champagne glass whirlpool tubs. Cheesy, yet romantic. I closed my eyes and tried to picture Julie in a heart-shaped tub. I shook my head to rid myself of the thought that she would just complain about getting her hair messed up. I tried to convince myself that a nice romantic get-away was just what our marriage needed.

I sighed and picked up my pen to finish my charting. I was glad that House seems to have found happiness with Elle. It had been a long dry spell for him. It was hard to admit, even to myself, but I was jealous. It had only been a month, and they were still in that sex-crazed stage where they couldn't keep their hands off of one another. Since I was still getting the cold shoulder from Julie, it was hard watching the incessant kissing and touching between the two of them. But he seemed happier than he had been in years, so I tried to be happy for him.

We had not spoken about his leg pain in a while, but I could always tell when he was having a bad day. The length of his stride was shorter and he gripped the cane so tightly that his knuckles would turn white. I wondered when he would get to the point of trusting Elle enough to help him with his pain management. After trusting Stacy as his medical proxy and the disastrous result of that decision, I wondered if it would ever happen at all. I resolved to work on my marriage first, and then in a few weeks, I would start nagging him again about seeing her for pain management.

**Elle **

It was a hot August. I was so ready to hit the beach again, but we were playing this weekend so that was out. I hoped Greg would want to go on my next free weekend. We had a lot of fun the last time.

It was hard to believe that it had been a whole month since that 4th of July weekend when we finally hooked up. It hadn't been all smooth; we had had a couple of fights. But all in all, it had been pretty good. I enjoyed his company and he seemed to enjoy mine. Despite his moods, I found it comfortable to be with him. We both liked simple pleasures, music, movies, and reading. We usually spent our Friday nights with rented movies, pizza and beer and it was great. We'd eat and then snuggle together on the couch while we watched movies. I would usually pick up the movies on my way home. This week I grabbed 'Basic Instinct 2', 'V is for Vendetta', and 'Stoned' which was a docudrama on the final days of Brian Jones. Greg and I were both huge Stones fans so I thought we would find it interesting. I knew he would order the pizza on his way home and it would arrive at just about the same time as he did.

I dropped the movies on his coffee table and then went to my place to change. A royal blue UF tank top and cut-off denim shorts was my outfit for tonight. I opened my lingerie drawer and pondered what to wear underneath. He loved to peel off my casual clothes and find sexy lingerie underneath. I decided to be especially naughty tonight. I put on a black lace shelf bra and matching black lace crotch-less panties. My breasts were completely exposed with the shelf bra, but it gave me a lot of lift. The panties were black lace with ribbon ties on each side and a slit in the crotch. I checked out my appearance in the mirror and smiled at my reflection. I knew he would love it. I was spending a lot of money lately on lingerie, but it was so worth it. He loved seeing me in sexy lingerie. Once he peeled off my outer layer of clothes, he would take his time looking me over and touching me through the lingerie. Sometimes he had me walk around the room and model it for him. I loved watching the desire build in his eyes and in his pants. He made me feel so sexy. I was really enjoying spending time at Victoria's Secret shopping for new outfits. Sometimes Gen would come shopping with me and we would have a blast. I had my eye on this black lace cutout teddy. I planned that one to be my next purchase. I quickly slipped on the rest of my clothes and went over to his place.

Greg and the pizza arrived about 10 minutes later. While he went into the bedroom to change, I grabbed the plates and beer and set up dinner on the coffee table. He returned wearing just a clean t-shirt and jeans. We put slices of pizza on the paper plates and propped our bare feet up on the coffee table as we settled in to watch the movies.

We finished the pizza and the first movie. We popped in Basic Instinct 2 next. There was a lot of nudity and it wasn't long before I felt Greg's hand stroking my thigh. I turned towards him and placed my hand on his cheek. A smile spread slowly across his face. He hit the pause button and tossed the remote on the coffee table. He wrapped his strong arms around me and pulled me onto his good leg. After a few nice gentle kisses, he started toying with my top. He pushed it off my shoulder revealing the black strap of my bra.

"Oooooo, black. Me likey. I want to see. Let's get this out of the way."

He grabbed the bottom of my top and slowly pushed it up. I lifted my arms to help out and grinned when I heard him gasp.

"Oh, baby. Look what I get to play with tonight. Ummmm, come to papa."

I felt his scratchy beard nuzzling in the valley between my breasts. All progress on shirt removal had stopped as soon as Greg saw the girls peeking over the top of the bra. My arms were still in the air while the top was hung up around my head.

I giggled at his enthusiasm. "Hey, finish what you started here. Get this off my head."

He murmured in a low voice: "Yes, mistress." He pulled my top off and tossed it on the floor. He leaned back slightly and took a good look. Then he said: "OK. I have to see the rest. Stand up."

He gave me a little push and I scampered off his lap. Obviously he was in a hurry to unwrap me tonight. I stood in front of him and let him unzip my shorts. Then I pushed his hands away and took a step back. I slowly slid the shorts down my legs. When they reached my ankles, I kicked them away.

Greg sucked air in through his teeth. "Nice." He drew that word out so long that it had 4 syllables. His hands went to my hips and toyed with the ribbons. "So do these untie?"

"I'll let you discover all the surprises these panties have for you."

"Surprises, huh?" His fingers gently traced the lace from my hip down towards the V. He slipped his fingers between my legs and I caught his look of surprise when he found my core sans fabric. He chuckled as he fingered my folds. "What a naughty girl you are tonight. Climb up here and give me a lap dance."

I straddled his hips careful to put most of my weight on my knees and not on his thigh. I snaked my arms around his neck and gently nudged his face into my valley. He nuzzled his face between my breasts and then he planted a kiss on each one. I smiled as I slowly ground my pelvis against his. His hands slid down inside my panties and rested on my ass. He pushed me even closer against him. I could feel his hardness straining against his jeans. His mouth found one of my nipples and he licked and sucked hungrily. I ground harder against him. I could feel the wetness pooling around my folds. I was going to start dripping any minute. Greg was going to have a damp spot on his jeans soon. He released my nipple and gave the other one a good tonguing.

With one hand he pulled my head down and smashed our lips together. His tongue demanded entrance and my lips parted for him. His other hand pushed my ass even closer to his hardness. The kisses were hard and passionate and I ground against him even harder.

He finally broke the kiss and said breathlessly: "Oh Gawd, you're so fucking hot. I'm about to cum in my pants. Unzip me quick."

I reached between our bodies and unbuttoned and then slowly pulled the zipper down. I eased off of his lap. He lifted his butt and I pulled his jeans down. I smiled when I saw that he had gone commando.

I teased him: "Didn't want those boxers to get in the way tonight? You horny boy."

He groaned: "Get those jeans down and get your ass back up here. I'm in pain here."

I tugged his jeans down to his knees and then said: "Yes, Dr House. Ooooo, you feel hot. I need to take your temperature."

I licked the head of his dick, and then I swallowed his length in one quick move. He moaned something unintelligible and I felt his hand on the back of my head encouraging my actions. I licked and sucked slowly, one hand caressing his balls, the other stroking the base of his shaft. After just a few minutes, he said: "Oh, Gawd, that's so good. But I want to cum in your wet pussy. Climb up here baby. And leave the panties on."

I gave him one last lick and murmured: "Yes doctor. Your temperature is way off the chart but I know just what to do to make you all better."

I straddled him again, tugging at the bottom of his shirt. "This is in the way. It needs to be removed for your treatment." He leaned a bit forward and I pulled the shirt off over his head and toss it away.

I rubbed my breasts against his naked chest and said: "Oh, that's much better."

He took his cock and teased my entrance with the head. "Ummm, baby, you are dripping wet. You need my treatment quick."

I slowly slid down his length until the lace tickled his balls. He shivered from the sensation and started thrusting up into me. I met him move for move. His hands were gripping my hips urging me on, harder and faster. We would crash together for a kiss, and then pull apart gasping for air. He suckled my nipple hard, making me cry out. His eyes never left my face. They would fall to half-mast occasionally but then he would pop them back open. I had one hand on his shoulder for support and the other hand fisting his hair. I couldn't help closing my eyes to focus better on the wonderful sensations between my legs.

"Open your eyes, baby."

I looked at him. It was difficult, as my eyes wanted to close again right away. We locked eyes and he raised his hand next to his face. He made a fist with the thumb sticking up. I moaned; I knew what he was going to do next. Eyes locked with mine, he slowly licked his thumb and then ran his hand down my belly. His hand wandered into my panties and I felt that thumb land on my throbbing clit. He rubbed softly at first, and then harder. I moaned and pushed harder against him.

He murmured: "You're so hot, so wet. Your pussy feels so good wrapped around my cock." It didn't take long for the sensations to build up. I felt that warm sensation start in my uterus. My thighs quivered, my vaginal walls spasmed and then I exploded. I cried out, hanging onto his shoulders for support. He thrust harder up into me and kept pressure on my clit with his thumb. It only took 3 or 4 more thrusts before he exploded inside of me.

He moaned as he came: "Oh, baby, oh baby, fuck me, fuck meeee."

I thrust against him riding out our orgasms until I collapsed on his shoulders. He gave my clit one last little tweak, and then pulled his hand out of my panties. He wrapped both arms around me and held me tightly. I snuggled my face into this shoulder and planted gentle little kisses on his neck.

It took a few minutes for our breathing to return to normal. Greg kissed my shoulder and then nibbled his way up my neck. He kissed my cheek and then pulled his head back to look at me. His hand was on my cheek and his thumb was stroking it gently. He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to. I could see it all in his eyes.

We slept until 10 on Saturday. When we woke, I got up and brought some coffee back to bed for us. It was a gorgeous day, hot, but the bluest sky you could ever ask for. Greg suggested a ride, so we took the bike out for a couple of hours. We found a diner, had a late breakfast and rode home. We had our usual Saturday afternoon nap and woke up at 5 so I could get ready for work.

The club was quieter than usual. I guess a lot of our regulars were out of town for summer vacations. We played most of our usual songs and then played around with some new stuff. Jimmy came to see us without his wife as usual. I still had not met the elusive Julie. She was always busy with committee meetings and such stuff. I couldn't understand why she wouldn't want to be with her husband on Saturday nights. Jimmy is such a nice guy; he certainly deserves better than that. I picked up the hints that they were having problems, but figured if Jimmy wanted to talk to me about it, he would.

Tony and Nancy were out of town, which was just as well. Greg was more at ease with Tony when Nancy came along, but the tension was still there. So it was a nice mellow night. We didn't make much money, but hell we didn't do this for the money anyway.

We finally made it home around 3AM. We slept until noon on Sunday and I made Greg a nice breakfast of challah French toast, bacon and eggs. There was an Alfred Hitchcock double feature playing at the local artsy cinema and I convinced Greg to go. They were showing the 3-D version of 'Dial M for Murder' and I had never seen it in that format. Greg thought it would be cheesy having to wear the silly little glasses, but I guess he went along to humor me. They were also showing my all-time favorite 'Rear Window'. I had never seen it on a large screen, so I was excited about going. Avi, Ricky and Jimmy met us there. We ate popcorn, tossing some at each other. The guys all laughed when I screamed at that scene in 'Rear Window' when Grace Kelly is in the apartment and Raymond Burr is coming back. I buried my head in Greg's shoulder and I could feel the vibrations of his body as he chuckled at my fear. But then he wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. I almost sobbed at the feelings that rose in my body. He made me feel safe, warm, and loved. We had never said that particular word to each other, but I felt it and I was pretty sure he did too. I wasn't expecting a big declaration of love, that wasn't Greg's style. But I felt so happy with him and he seemed happy too. Jimmy told me that he seemed less miserable overall and that he smiled more around me.

After the movies were over, we headed over to Satchel's to eat. I had my favorite potato skins and part of a burger. Greg finished the rest of it. It was just too much food for me. We hung out for a while, drinking beer and finally, since we all had work the next morning, called it a night around 8PM.

Greg and I went to bed around 10:30 and we made love again. It was slow and tender this time. When our bodies joined, it was as if two puzzle pieces had found their match. I felt like we were one body, one soul. He took his time bringing me to orgasm and when it hit, it was huge. He came right after I did and I could feel the strong force as he exploded inside of me. He rolled us on our sides, our bodies still joined. Tenderly, he stroked my cheek as he whispered: "So sweet, so beautiful."

His expression was so loving that my doubts were swept away. Words were not necessary; his eyes said it all. As for me, I knew that I had fallen completely in love with him. I expressed myself as best I could with my eyes and he smiled as he continued to stroke my cheek. I was sure that he could read me. I never wanted to lose this feeling that we had right now. It felt so right.

His dick softened enough that it finally slipped out of me and as always he sighed at the loss of contact. He pressed his lips to my forehead and then reached over and clicked off the lamp.

With his arms wrapped around me, I snuggled into his shoulder. He gave me a sweet, gentle kiss on the mouth and said: "Good night sweetheart."

I replied: "Good night cowboy."

I gave him one more little kiss on his chest and we drifted off to sleep.


	26. Chapter 26

The Elle Word Chapter 26

**_House _**

(Monday 2AM)

I woke with a violent jerk. I've had myoclonic jerks in the past but they seem to have become more frequent over the last couple of months. In the past, it had been one hard jerk, hard enough to wake me up and then it would pass. This time was the worst ever. Both of legs were in spasm and it wouldn't stop. It was the worst pain I had experienced since right after the infarction. On a pain scale of 1 to 10, this was at least a 25. I screamed from the pain.

Elle woke up immediately. She turned on the bedside light and touched my shoulder: "Greg, what is it? What's wrong?"

"Leg. Both legs. Spasm. Fuck. Fuck. Oh Gawd, it hurts so bad."

Tears were streaming down my face as I frantically rubbed my bad thigh. It hurt the worst, but the left leg was also bad.

Elle touched my left thigh and started to massage it, but her touch was too much and I screamed at her: "Stop! You're hurting me."

She immediately stopped rubbing. She gently laid one hand on each thigh and I actually whimpered at her touch.

"Scale of 1 to 10, what's your pain level right now?"

"Fucking off the chart, fucking 25! Shit!" I cried out as another wave of spasms hit my legs.

"Both of your legs are in severe spasm."

I interrupted her: "Don't you think I fucking know that?"

"You need a muscle relaxant. You got any Valium? Any Klonopin?"

"No" I managed to blurt out.

"I've got Ativan at my place. I'll run and get it. Do you want the heating pad?"

I screamed: "No! Get the fucking Ativan, already."

"OK, OK."

Elle jumped out of bed, grabbed a shirt and rushed out of the room pulling it over her head as she went.

I took the opportunity while she was gone to sob out loud. It hurt so badly and yet I couldn't stand for her to see me this way. I didn't want to cry in front of her. I sobbed until I heard the door slam and her hurried footsteps in the hall. I smashed the pillow over my face and wiped my tears on it.

Elle hurried to my side and popped open the bottle. "Here, baby, you want 2 mg?"

Raggedly I answered: "Yes."

She pushed the tablets to my lips and I dry-swallowed them.

"What's your pain level now compared to when you first woke up? Any difference?"

I shook my head. I was covered with sweat and I couldn't stop the tears from leaking out of my eyes. The pain was so bad that I thought I was going to die, and it would have been a welcome relief to my agony.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. Just tell me what to do. Heating pad? Gentle massage? I wish we had some IV Valium or Ativan so it would work faster. Do you want me to call Wilson to bring some?"

I screamed: "No, you stupid bitch. Do you think I want him to see me this way? I don't want anyone to see me like this."

Her lip trembled and she bit it to make it stop. I knew I had upset her by calling her a bitch, but I was beyond caring.

"What about your morphine? Want a shot of morphine? Or some scotch?"

I moaned: "The morphine, get the morphine."

Elle rushed out of the room. I could hear her drag the chair across the floor and she was back in a flash, laying the box on the bed next to me.

I punched in the lock combination and the lid popped open. Elle quickly removed the morphine and the syringe and started preparing it.

"Four mg, OK?"

I nodded.

She prepared the syringe, tied the tourniquet around my arm and swabbed my elbow with an alcohol pad. I pumped my fist to raise the vein, but my hand was shaking so much that I couldn't inject myself. I howled with frustration.

She had tears in her eyes. "Sweetie, I'll do anything to help. Just tell me what to do."

I snarled: "Anything, huh? Will you let me fuck you up the ass so I can raise my endorphins with a good orgasm? I figure that tight ass of yours has only been used once and would give me a really great orgasm."

She paled. I knew as soon as the words were out of my mouth, that I had crossed the line. But I didn't care. She didn't understand the amount of pain that I was in. She didn't get it. She was giving me platitudes when I needed IV drugs.

With tears in her eyes, she said: "You want me to suck you and get you hard?" One lone tear slid down her face and I had to turn away.

"Stupid cow. You think I can get it up when I'm in this much pain?"

"I don't know but I'll try. I'll suck you and see if I can get you hard."

She moved forward like she was going to grab my flaccid penis and I roughly pushed her away. She went off balance and fell off the bed onto the floor. I covered my eyes with one hand; this was going from miserable to horrible.

Elle picked herself up from the floor and leaned over me. She grabbed the syringe from my trembling hand and positioned it over my vein.

"Tell me what to do."

I screamed at her: "You don't know how. I can't just TELL you. You could rupture my vein if you do it wrong. Jesus, why couldn't I be bagging a nurse instead of a useless pharmacist?"

Still grasping the syringe, Elle stood up. Roughly she pushed my hip so I was forced to roll to my left side. Then I screamed as she jabbed the syringe in my ass.

"You fucking puta! What the hell were you thinking? You realize you could have hit my sciatic nerve and caused me even more nerve damage?"

"I'm just a useless pharmacist, what do I know?"

She pushed me onto my back and clambered back on the bed. She gently started massaging my left leg while I heaped abuse on her. She ignored me as I railed at her for probably a good 5 minutes. Then I felt the drugs start to kick in. My brain got a bit woozy and the spasms started to subside. Elle continued to gently massage my left thigh and then moved over to the right one.

I felt like shit. I was covered with sweat; my ass hurt from the shot and my pain level was still higher than most people could take. But the spasms were going away. The combination of all the drugs and the massage was working. I sneaked a peek at Elle; she was looking at my leg as she worked and her brow was furrowed with concentration. My pain level was down enough now that I realized how badly I had treated her. She was doing her best to help me and I treated her like shit.

I watched as she laid one hand on each thigh and closed her eyes. She kept her hands like that for a minute and I wondered what she was doing.

Then she spoke: "Your spasms seem better. What's your pain level now?"

"Twelve."

Her eyes flew open: "Twelve? Still so high after all that?"

I shrugged: "It's a helluva lot better than 25. Eight is normal for me anyway. So it's only a little bit above what I'm used to."

She said back on her heels, her eyes never leaving my face: "You live at an eight?"

I shrugged and looked away. I couldn't stand to see the concern written all over her face. "On a good day, it's a 6 or 7. The bad days are 9 or 10. So I guess that averages out to an 8."

"Greg, that's no way to live. Eight is too high. You need stronger meds and better pain control than you are getting now."

"Wilson already thinks I'm an addict. He's not going to give me anything stronger than Vicodin. Hell, he wants me off the Vicodin. He keeps hoping that you'll convince me to use Neurontin or Lyrica and get rid of the Vicodin."

She gently stroked my leg: "Wilson doesn't live in your body. He doesn't know how you feel. Only you do."

I sneaked a peek at her. She looked very pensive.

"Do you want to try another shot of morphine?"

"Naw, just give me 2 Vicodins. I'll be OK when they kick in."

Elle climbed off of the bed and picked up the Vicodin bottle from the nightstand. She poured 2 tablets out and then dropped them into my hand. I dry-swallowed them and lay back on the pillow, closing my eyes.

I didn't want to look at her. I felt well enough now to realize all the horrible things I had said to her, and I was ashamed of myself. She really cared about my sorry ass and I just kicked her to the curb. I couldn't take back those words now, and I was sure she would split now that I was doing better. I was an ass and there wasn't anything I could do to make this better.

I felt Elle climb back on the bed and sit next to me. Her hand gently caressed my leg and I almost moaned with pleasure. It was loving and tender and I felt like an even bigger ass at her warm-hearted treatment of me.

After a few minutes, she said something that rocked my world: "Greg, I'm going to tell you something and you're not going to like it. You need to get off the Vicodin."

**_ELLE _**

He had been in such horrible pain that I just wanted to cry for him. He said some really awful things to me, but I knew he didn't mean them. It was just the pain talking. He needed to lash out at something and I was the closest available target.

I was really upset when I couldn't do more for him. If I had been able to give him the morphine IV, his pain would have resolved faster. I vowed right then to get one of my nurse friends to show me how to do an IV push injection. I wanted to be prepared in case this happened again.

Finally, between the Ativan, massage and the morphine that I stabbed in his butt, the spasms subsided. His legs were no longer twitching and there was a lot less tension in the muscles. I was surprised when he told me that his pain was still at a '12' and then I was shocked when he told me that '8' was normal for him.

That was ridiculous. With all the options available in pain management, it was absurd for him to constantly be in so much pain. He needed to be on long-acting meds and the time had finally come for me to tell him so.

Greg was laying on his back with his eyes closed, one arm resting on top of his eyes in that oh-so-familiar way of his. I knew he did that when he wanted to shut out the rest of the world. I silently caressed his leg for a few minutes, trying to figure out exactly how to say the words. Finally I blurted out: "Greg, I'm going to tell you something and you're not going to like it. You need to get off the Vicodin."

He snorted: "Now who's been talking to Wilson? Did he clone you? I thought you just said." He started speaking in a mincing sing-songy way: 'Wilson doesn't live in your body. He doesn't know how you feel. Only you do.'

Then harshly in his normal voice, he said: "You taking that back now? You think I'm an addict too?"

Firmly, I said: "No, I do not think you are an addict. Yes, I think you need to get off the Vicodin and ROTATE TO ANOTHER OPIOID. You've heard of opioid rotation, right? You've been having myoclonic jerks for a while. You are having CNS excitatory effects due to the accumulation of the drug in your body. The acetaminophen in the Vicodin makes it worse due to the detrimental effect it has on your liver. The myoclonus will just get worse as long as you are on the Vicodin. It could progress to full-blown seizures. Have you had any other CNS symptoms like hyperalgesia or allodynia? Any hallucinations?"

He sighed: "No hallucinations. But Wilson patted me on the back the other day and I thought I would jump out of my skin. It felt like he had slugged me."

He heaved a big sigh. "You know when you grab my upper arms when you tiptoe up to kiss me? Sometimes it feels like your hands are vise grips and you're squeezing me really hard."

I felt sad, knowing that I had caused him pain: "I wish you had said something. You are having allodynia. That's two CNS effects you are having, cowboy. We really need to switch your meds."

"Wilson is not going to prescribe me anything stronger than Vicodin. I can't make it on ibuprofen and Lyrica alone."

"No, you can't, and I don't expect you to. Tomorrow, you're going to get some blood work. I want a CMP, liver enzymes and acetaminophen level. I'm putting you in the last slot on my appointment list and I'll call Chris to come over and see you. He will write your prescriptions. Wilson will not be involved at all. You need someone impartial to take care of your pain management issues, and Wilson is too opinionated."

He opened his eyes and looked at me: "Can you be impartial?"

I nodded firmly: "Yes, I can. In my office, you're my patient. I'll recommend what I think will be best for your needs."

He stared at me for a minute and then asked: "What are you going to suggest to Chris?"

"Normally I would switch you over to morphine, but since you are already have myoclonus, I think oxycodone would be better. Myoclonus can be a side effect with morphine, but is very rare with oxycodone."

I let him digest that for a minute. Then I continued: "I'm going to leave you a copy of my pain survey. I need you to truthfully fill that out before you come to my office. I really need to know how you feel and how much Vicodin you take so I can accurately convert the dose to oxycodone. Are you OK with this?"

Unreadable emotions were flicking across the deep blue pools of his eyes. He stared at me for a few minutes, and then he said softly: "OK. I'll do it."

A wave of relief washed over me. I released the breath that I didn't even know I was holding. I couldn't believe he agreed to let me help him. I tried not to show how relieved I felt and simply said: "OK. Good. Do you want to try to go back to sleep?"

He nodded. He still looked miserable, but at least his pain was back down to his accustomed level.

I touched his arm. "Sweetheart, you're all sweaty. Do you want me to get a cool cloth and wipe you down a little bit? I could change the sheets too if you want."

He just shook his head: "Don't bother. I'm OK." He closed his eyes and draped his arm over them again. I turned off the lamp and lay down next to him. I tried to snuggle up next to him, but he said coldly: "I'm all sweaty. You don't want to get too close."

He seemed very distant. I hope he wasn't pushing me away. He didn't like me seeing this side of him, and he probably wasn't happy about the pain appointment either. It was late and we were both exhausted. I was sure it would all blow over tomorrow.

I said: "I'm right here, if you want me." I touched his arm as lightly as I could and was thankful that he didn't flinch away from me. I listened for his breathing to even out, and when I knew he had finally fallen asleep, I let myself drift off.

My alarm went off at 6AM. I managed to turn it off quickly before it disturbed Greg. After the events of last night, it felt way too early. I sat up in bed holding my head in my hands. After a few minutes, I turned to look at Greg. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully and I was glad of that. I quietly got out of bed and padded down the hall. After using the bathroom, I went to the kitchen and got a glass of water. I took it back to the bedroom and left it on the nightstand next to his Vicodin. I put the metal box with the morphine on the nightstand also. If he woke up in a lot of pain, I wanted everything to be within reach for him. I left my Ativan there also.

I went back to the kitchen and poured myself a cup of coffee. I took it over to my place, where I showered, dressed and had breakfast. I dug out a copy of the pain survey and went back over to Greg's. I left it right next to the coffee pot. I left a little note on top of it:

_Cowboy,_

_I hope you're feeling better this morning._

_Please call or text me later and let me know how_

_you are feeling._

_I'll see you in my office at 4:30, OK?_

_Your Elle_

I really wanted to sign it 'love Elle', but I wasn't sure how he would take that. So I hoped that my signature would convey my feelings to him. I was really concerned about him and his pain level. I really hoped that he would show up today and that he would let Chris and I help him.

I returned to my apartment, gathered my things and headed out to work.

**_HOUSE _**

I felt somewhat hung-over when I woke up, but at least my pain was at the usual level. I rolled over and checked the clock; it was 10AM. I was going to be later than usual today. Great. Cuddy will be just thrilled. I slowly rolled onto my right side and even more slowly sat up. I noticed the metal box, pill bottles and a glass of water on the nightstand. Elle wanted to make sure I had everything I needed close at hand. She was so good to me and I was such a shit. The pain had been horrible but I still couldn't believe that I had said such things to her.

I slowly rose and hobbled to the bathroom. I emptied my bladder and then limped down the hall to the kitchen. The coffee was ready as usual and next to the coffeepot were the pain survey and a little note. I still had that other copy half filled out in my backpack. I read the note a couple of times. There was nothing to indicate that my outbursts from last night had affected her in any way. From the note, she still seemed as sweet and caring as always. She had signed it '_Your Elle'_. I wanted her to be mine, but I couldn't think of her like that anymore. She deserved someone so much better than me. I didn't want her to stay with me out of pity. This last month had been good, so good, but it couldn't last. How many of these outbursts would it take before she left me? I didn't want to find out. The longer she was around, the more it would hurt when she left. Better to just rip the bandage off now while the wound was still weeping than to wait until it had crusted solid to the scab.

I took a long hot shower and dressed. I made sure that I had both copies of the pain survey in my backpack and headed off to work. I managed to make it to my office without being seen by Cuddy or Wilson. Only Cameron was in the conference room. Cameron told me that the boys were off doing their clinic hours and she was doing some of my charting. I wanted to be left alone, so I decided to 'confide' in her. I let her know that my leg was really hurting today and wanted to be left alone as much as possible unless we got a case. She gave me her most sympathetic look and said that she would try to keep everyone away. I limped into my office and she brought me a cup of coffee. Then she shut my blinds for me, told me to page her if I needed anything and went back into the conference room.

I figured that I had an hour before Wilson would come looking for me for lunch. I pulled out the pain survey. Elle wanted me to fill it out honestly and I decided that I would. I wanted new drugs. I knew she was right about the need for opioid rotation. It was way past time for that, and there was no way that Wilson was going to cooperate with her suggestions. He would never write for oxycodone. I didn't want to have to discuss my entire pain history with this new guy, but I really didn't have a choice.

I looked at what I had written down last month. It was close to what I had told her last night. On the survey, I had said that '5' was my best and last night I told her that '6-7' was my best. I told her my average was an '8' and on the survey, I had written down a'9' for that answer.

I took out the clean copy and started filling it out. I answered '25' for the worst pain I'd had all month, '6-7' as the least amount of pain all month, and '9' as my average.

On the next question, 'what makes your pain better?', I used the same answers as last time and added one more. So I filled in the blank with 'Vicodin, scotch, piano, monster trucks, porn, General Hospital and sex.'

I looked at it again and then added: 'not necessarily in that order'. I wondered if her doctor friend would be reading this too, or if it were for her eyes only. Then I decided that I didn't care. I just wanted drugs.

I had to describe how my pain started, how long I'd had the pain, the location and type of pain. The questionnaire was long and detailed. For the second time, I marveled at the thoroughness of Elle's questions. I sketched the details of the infarction and subsequent muscle death. I left out the cardiac arrest but put in the details of the unwanted surgery.

I left the hardest question for last. 'What pain medication are you currently taking and at what dosage?'

I hated to put this down on paper. I really didn't want anyone to know how much Vicodin I took. Elle would have a fit when she found out how much acetaminophen I was consuming in a day. She was right to be worried about my liver. I checked my eyes every day looking for signs of jaundice. I knew I shouldn't be taking more than 8 Vicodins a day, but it just wasn't enough to control my pain. Oh crap, she wanted me to get my blood drawn too. I'll do that right after lunch and have the lab stat it.

I slowly wrote down Vicodin and then I paused. I gritted my teeth and continued. I wrote: minimum 10, maximum 16, average 12 per day.

Every day I was taking more than the maximum recommended amount of acetaminophen. On my really bad days, when I took 16 Vicodins, that was double the maximum recommended amount of 4 grams. I didn't want to see my bloodwork. I bet my liver was shot, especially with all the scotch I drink on top of the Vicodin.

Elle was right. It was time for this. I needed to get off of the Vicodin and onto another drug that didn't contain acetaminophen. I hoped Guskiewicz was an OK guy. This wasn't going to be easy. I hated to talk about all of this, and I was ashamed to face Elle after last night. But I was committing slow suicide if I continued the way I'm going now. If I wanted to die, I should be smart and do it quick and painless. Losing my liver would be a slow painful death and I probably wouldn't stand a chance of getting a transplant with my drug problems.

I finished the survey and was just stuffing it into my backpack when Wilson walked through the door. Cheerily he said: "Hey, I came to see if you wanted to go to lunch."

He stopped halfway into the room and glanced around. I knew he was taking in the closed blinds, the low light and my overall crappy appearance.

Slowly, he said: "OK. What's going on? The blinds are closed and you look like you have a helluva hangover. Was there a big drunken orgy last night that I wasn't invited to?"

"Nope. If you're buying, I'm eating. Let's go." I stood up and started towards the door, hoping he would take the hint. I knew better, but hey, there's always a first time.

He held up a hand and said: "Whoa. Hold on a minute. I'm sure you don't want to talk about this in the cafeteria, so just tell me now."

"There's nothing to tell. Let's just go eat. I'm starving."

"Did you and Elle have a fight?"

"No. C'mon, food! Let's go. I'll buy."

He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned up against my desk. "Oh, no. Something's up. Yesterday you looked good, relaxed, almost happy. Today you look like crap. The blinds are closed. You aren't listening to your I-Pod or watching TV. You're not surfing the net for porn. You weren't napping. Now you're offering to buy me lunch. I'll say it again; something's going on. Give it up."

I looked at the floor, while tapping my cane. "I just had a bad night. My leg was giving me some trouble."

"Some trouble? You look like you were up half the night. I saw Elle earlier and she looked tired too. Did you wake her up?"

I winced when he said her name. "Yeah, I woke her up. What did she tell you?"

"I didn't have time to talk to her. I just saw her up on the 6th floor and I just thought she looked tired. Why? What would she have told me?"

"Nothing. Come on, let's go before they run out of Reubens."

"House, they never run out of Reubens. Will ya stop with the lame excuses already? You had a bad night. Your leg must have hurt really bad that you woke Elle up. But there has to be more to the story than that. Sometimes you have bad nights. Was this the first time that you woke her up from the pain? Is that what's bothering you?"

"There was one other time that I woke her up, but it wasn't as bad as last night."

He went into his caring mode: "Look, this is going to happen. You're in a relationship now. You're going to have your bad nights, just like she has her nightmares that sometimes wake you up. I know you take care of her when she has her nightmares. Jesus, you broke into her apartment to help her before you were even sleeping with her."

I stumbled back to my chair. I couldn't stand anymore.

Wilson was nothing but persistent. "Did she do something that bothered you? Was she too caring? Are you seeing aspects of Cameron in her that you don't like?"

I grimaced at the mention of Cameron's name and quickly said: "No."

"Elle must have done something that bothered you. Or was it just the fact that she saw you like that."

I turned my head away from him. That was a big mistake as he jumped on that. "So that's it. She saw you, her big he-man, in tremendous pain and that shakes up your macho self-image. You can't stand that she saw you that way."

I muttered: "I'll buy my own fucking lunch. Thanks anyway."

In a warning tone of voice, Wilson said: "House, I know you. Don't push her away because of this. You two are good together. Don't blow this just because she saw you in pain. She knows you have pain. She accepts that."

I shouted at him: "Why should she? Why should she settle for a cripple? She's gorgeous. She could have anybody." My voice trailed off.

"But she wants you, you miserable jerk. Her face lights up like Times Square when she sees you. I'm pretty sure that she is in love with you."

I quickly looked at him: "Did she tell you that?"

He chuckled: "No. It just seems obvious to me that she is."

I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. Wilson was probably right. I could see it in her eyes last night after we had sex. It was such a tender, loving look. I quickly shoved that memory out of my head.

I snarked: "She's just in love with my dick. I give her the best orgasms she's ever had."

He smirked: "Oh, yeah? She tell you that?"

Defensively, I replied: "Yes, she did, in fact. She said I make her come harder with my fingers than the other guys did with their dicks."

He chuckled: "Nice. If your fingers are that good, no wonder she's in love with your dick. Come on. Don't let whatever happened last night get to you. It'll all blow over. Let's go have lunch. I've got a patient at 1:00."

Wilson just thought my ego was bruised. Good, I'll let him think that. I rose and we headed down to the cafeteria. He filled me in on the latest gossip about the woman in accounting that everyone suspected was really a guy and was about to undergo a sex-change operation.

After lunch, I drew my own blood and took it to the lab. I filled out the forms and ordered all the tests that Elle had requested. I gruffly told the lab tech that it was a 'stat' job. She nervously took it from me and promised the results within the hour. It's good to have a badass reputation when you want to get results quickly. I didn't use my real name of course. I used my favorite alias: Luke N. Laura.

That done, I had a lot of time to kill until my 4:30 appointment. General Hospital didn't come on until 3:00. I needed a distraction, but I couldn't think of anything that would hold my attention enough to keep me from thinking about Elle. I finally decided to head down to the clinic. It wasn't a good distraction, but at least I would be aggravated about something else besides my miserable life.

**_Elle _**

We were busy for a Monday morning. Between the lack of sleep and my concern about Greg, I was not at my best. I had my cell phone in my pocket and it was on vibrate. I checked it several times, but he didn't call all morning. I was concerned about him, but it was so busy that I didn't have time to call or text him.

I had to call Chris. I needed him to be able to meet with Greg this afternoon and I wanted to fill him in on everything before the appointment. I sent him a quick text and he agreed to meet me for lunch at 12:30. We went across the street to the taco stand for lunch. I didn't want Greg to see us lunching together. I didn't know how he would feel about me giving Chris some background on him, but I felt Chris needed it. I wasn't sure just how open Greg would be at the appointment.

Chris and I got our greasy tacos and sodas and sat down on a nearby bench to eat. We ate in silence for a few minutes and then Chris said: "So, how did you ever get the infamous Greg House to make an appointment?"

"Do you know anything about his pain issues?"

"I know he had an infarction. It led to muscle death and caused him a lot of pain. He asked to be put in an induced coma to ride out the worst of the pain and while he was out, his girlfriend authorized surgery to cut out the dead muscle. Unfortunately for him, there was a lot of dead muscle. So now he has limited use of that limb and a lot of pain. This is the scuttlebutt that I've heard. Is that about right?"

"He doesn't talk about it, but, yeah, that's basically the story. It's a pretty big hole in his thigh."

He looked surprised: "You've seen it?"

I blushed: "Yeah. We've been seeing each other."

He laughed out loud: "You're dating Greg House?"

"Shhhh, we aren't making it public at work."

"And it's a good thing. You would never hear the end of it. I haven't had any dealings with the man, but I've heard a lot about him. What on earth do you see in him? I heard that he is quite arrogant and nasty."

"He can be, but there is another side of him that most people don't get to see."

"And you've seen it?"

I simply nodded.

He shrugged: "OK, kiddo. I'll take your word for it. But on another topic, you're seeing him. He really shouldn't be your patient."

"I know. But really, all I'm going to do is make recommendations to you. You are going to be his doctor. You are the one who is going to write the scripts. I know it's not the best situation, but he really needs this. If I back out, he might not come see you. He's having myoclonus and allodynia. He really needs to change meds. He's only on Vicodin for his pain and he's taking too much of it. He's consuming way too much acetaminophen."

I took a deep breath and continued. "I'm not sure how much he will tell you. He's very private about his pain. He doesn't talk to me about it. I don't think he talks to anyone about it. He's been having myoclonic jerks for a while. Occasionally they will wake him up. Last night he had the mother of them all. He woke up in horrible pain. He told me it was a 25, way off the scale. He had bad spasms in both legs. I gave him some of my Ativan and I massaged his legs. It took about 20 minutes for the spasms to subside. After that episode, I convinced him to come in for an appointment with you. Wilson has been writing his Vicodin prescriptions and Wilson thinks he's an addict. He wants House to get off of the Vicodin and use non-opioids to control his pain. I don't think he is an addict. He's physically dependent, of course, but not an addict. He can't function without pain relief and he needs opioids. I gave him the pain survey and told him to fill it out. I want to switch him to Oxycontin. I don't know how much Vicodin he takes now, so I don't know how much oxy he will need. My plan is to get him off the Vicodin, use the Oxycontin for pain control and oxycodone for breakthrough pain. When he is stable, we could try Lyrica or another med for the nerve pain. I'm concerned about his liver after taking so much Vicodin for so long, so I want him on plain oxycodone, not on Percocet."

He nodded: "OK. Sounds like a plan. We just need to decide on a dose."

"You're OK with this? My making recommendations for him even though I'm seeing him?"

"I've seen the man. I know he's in pain. I trust your instincts. But I think if you continue to see him, once he gets stabilized and he has a rapport with me, he should just deal with me about his meds. I don't want anyone to think that you're his 'pusher', you know what I mean?"

I nodded: "Yeah, thanks."

We stood up and walked to the trashcan to dispose of our garbage.

"You know, Chris, before this happened, Greg used to be very athletic. He used to run and Wilson told me that he used to play lacrosse and golf. Now, it's hard for him to walk for any length of time."

I paused trying to think how to phrase this. "He's bitter about what happened. He didn't make the decision for the surgery. It was out of his control. He's angry that he can't do the things that he used to do. Be aware of that when you talk to him. I think that's why he is so nasty sometimes. I think he never got out of the anger stage of the 5 stages of grief."

He nodded slowly. "I can see that. It's hard for someone who was athletic to suddenly be in his condition. Maybe if we can get his pain under control, he could try a different sport. Swimming, perhaps. I bet he could play golf again."

"He can't put much weight on that leg. How would he handle the backswing?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure. Let me think about it. Maybe if the remaining muscles were strengthened, he would be able to handle it. I'll ponder on it, but I won't be bringing that up at our first appointment. Let's just talk meds this time."

I agreed and we walked back to the hospital.

I focused as best I could on my patients. But in between them, my concentration was solely on Greg. It bothered me that he hadn't called or texted me. I knew he was at work because I saw his retreating figure heading to the clinic as I returned from lunch. I was concerned at how he was feeling and wondered if he was going to keep the appointment.

Exactly at 4:30, there was a knock at the door. Immense relief flooded my body as I quickly walked to the door. I opened the door and gave him a big smile. "Hi. I'm glad you could make it."

He gave me a curt nod.

I backed up so that he could enter and I closed the door behind him.

He limped slowly over in front of my desk. I walked over to him and put my arms out to embrace him, but he stopped my forward movement by thrusting his left hand grasping some papers into the space between us.

Without looking at me, he said: "You said you could keep this on a professional level. Do you hug all of your patients?"

I tried to read his face, but it was completely devoid of expression. "You're right. We'll keep this professional. Chris will be here shortly. We have time to go over your pain survey before he gets here."

I indicated one of the chairs and said: "Please sit down."

He limped over and sat down heavily. He tossed the papers on my desk and looked anywhere but at me.

My heart sank. This was going to be harder than I thought. I sat down behind my desk and picked up his survey. I quickly read over his answers. Most of it was what I expected. I almost smiled when I read what he did to relieve his pain, but then I was afraid he wouldn't appreciate it so I didn't.

I focused on the 2 main parts: his pain levels and his medication use.

After what he told me last night, the pain levels didn't surprise me, but the Vicodin usage did. He was using way too much of that. I worried about his liver.

"Did you get the bloodwork done today?"

He nodded: "Look in the computer under Luke N. Laura."

I nodded and didn't comment about the use of the alias. He was so private about his pain that it didn't surprise me. I pulled up the labs.

The results were what I feared but not as bad as they could have been. The liver enzymes, AST and ALT, were both elevated, greater than 50 IU/L, and his acetaminophen level was also elevated, greater than 30 mg/L. Medically he was considered a chronic overdose case. I needed to suggest to Chris that we give Greg a course of acetylcysteine to decrease the toxic effects of acetaminophen on the liver. I feared Greg would not be very happy about that.

I asked: "Have you seen the results yet?"

He snarked: "Do you ask all of your patients that question?"

"No, I don't. But since you are a doctor, I thought you might have read them yourself."

He shrugged without answering me.

I bit my lip. He was really not making this easy on me. Before I could say anything else, there was a knock at the door and Chris walked in. I felt relieved to see him. I wasn't sure if Greg's behavior would be better or worse with Chris in the room, but I hoped he would respond to Chris better. Maybe I shouldn't be doing this; maybe I was too close to Greg to be involved in this fashion.

I stood up as Chris walked across the room.

He stood in front of Greg and the two men sized each other up. Chris stuck out his hand and said: "Chris Guskiewicz. Nice to meet you, House."

Greg stared at the outstretched hand for a moment and then reached up to shake it. "They call you Gus?"

Chris nodded: "They do."

Chris took the remaining chair. He didn't beat around the bush. "So Elle tells me you need to switch drugs. She feels the Vicodin is causing myoclonus and wants to switch you to Oxycontin. Are you OK with that?"

A flash of surprise crossed Greg's face, but he recovered quickly. "Yeah, sure."

Chris continued: "I know you have been on the Vicodin a long time, but it's too short acting for people with chronic pain. Elle feels that oxy would be better for you than morphine and I'm inclined to agree. If I'm going to be your physician, you have to agree to a couple of things."

Irritation flashed across Greg's face and then he composed himself. "What things?"

"You have to agree that I will be the only doctor writing your pain scripts for you. No more getting any drugs from Wilson or your fellows or anyone else.

Is that clear?"

Greg gave him a curt nod and Chris went on: "The other thing is that we want you to keep a pain diary. We want to know how often you need breakthrough medications and the level of your pain during the course of your day. We want to know anything else you do to help reduce the pain. Hot bath, massage, booze, whatever. I'm not sitting here in judgment of what you do. My job is to help you manage your pain. If your pain is not controlled with the current dose of oxy, I need to know so I can change it. If you're having side effects from it, I need to know so we can try something else. Are you with me so far?"

Greg nodded again.

Chris nodded and said: "OK. Elle, what dose of Oxycontin are you recommending for House?"

I answered: "He takes between 10-16 Vicodins a day. The average is 12. So that converts to 40 – 60 mg of Oxycontin a day. He could go with either 20 or 30 mg twice a day. I'm inclined to go with 30 mg twice a day because he often has to take more than his average amount of Vicodin and it is really not controlling his pain very well. His average pain level is 9."

Chris said: "So you would prefer to start him at the higher dose?"

I nodded.

Chris went on: "House, conversion is not an exact science, so normally we would try the lower dose and then bump you up as necessary. However, I trust Elle's opinion and I'll start you at the higher dose. However, if it causes you any problems, cut back. I'll give you 10 mg tablets so you can titrate the dose down if necessary. I'll give you an ample supply of oxycodone immediate release for breakthrough pain. Don't take any more Vicodin. Just use the oxycodone for breakthrough pain. Keep track of everything in your pain diary. I want to see you again on Thursday and you need to report how everything is going. On Thursday, we can change your dose of Oxycontin if needed. You may need to go up. It may take a little experimenting to get the right dose for you. Are you OK with this plan?"

House said: "You're asking me?"

"You're the patient and you're also a doctor. My job is to help you manage your pain. I can't make it go away, but I can make it more tolerable. I would like to see your average pain level decrease. You're at a nine now. Where do you realistically want it to be?"

Chris handed Greg a copy of the Randall Chronic Pain Scale. Greg took a minute to look it over.

Softly, almost wistfully, he said: "A four would be nice, but I'll settle for a six."

Chris said: "OK. We'll shoot for a 6 for now. Let's get it more tolerable and then we'll see if we can get it lower."

Chris pulled his prescription pad out of his briefcase and started writing. As he wrote, he told Greg exactly what he was doing: "I'm writing for Oxycontin 10 mg tabs. Take 3 tabs or 30 mg twice a day, 12 hours apart. This first script is for 21 tabs, which will be enough to last you until Thursday when I will see you again. This next script is for oxycodone immediate release tabs. Take 1 tab every 4 hours as needed for breakthrough pain. If one tab isn't enough, then you can up it to 2 tablets, but try one tablet the first few times. I'm writing this script for 30 tablets, which should be more than enough to last you until Thursday. If it is not, call me. If you are having _any _problems, call me. I don't want you to go back to the Vicodin. The excessive amounts of acetaminophen that you have been consuming are a concern. Did you get labs done today?"

House nodded and pointed to the computer screen.

Chris leaned over and looked at the screen. He chuckled: "Luke N. Laura, huh? I used to watch General Hospital in med school. We had a break everyday right at 3PM and a bunch of us would crowd into the lounge to watch it."

I watched his eyes scanning the numbers. Finally he said: "House, your AST and ALT are elevated. The acetaminophen level is higher than it should be. Medically you're a chronic acetaminophen overdose."

Greg's expression darkened: "What are you suggesting?"

"You have to stop the Vicodin and all acetaminophen products now. I would recommend staring acetylcysteine therapy now to prevent liver toxicity."

"NO. I don't want to take that shit. It's putrid. If I just stop taking the Vicodin, the levels will go down."

Chris said: "Yeah, they probably will, but taking the acetylcysteine will help to lessen any damage to your liver."

Greg said firmly: "No."

Chris looked at me and said: "Elle, what would you suggest?"

I looked at Greg's face trying to read it. Then I took a deep breath and said: "There are two schools of thought on the matter of chronic overdose. One opinion says to start acetylcysteine right away, take it for 12 to 24 hours and then recheck the levels. The other theory is to simply recheck the levels 24 hours after the last acetaminophen dose. If you see a decline, they feel dosing is not necessary. Dr House has been taking Vicodin for almost 6 years now. Waiting another 24 hours to recheck the levels isn't going to make that much difference."

Greg glanced at me and then quickly looked away. "I like the second one."

Chris said hesitantly: "Well, it's your liver. I would prefer you start it right away. If you'll agree to repeat the labs 24 hours after your last Vicodin dose, I'll hold off on ordering the acetylcysteine. When was your last dose?"

"At 3:00."

"OK. Tomorrow at 3PM, I want you to repeat the liver enzymes and the acetaminophen levels. Get them run stat and have the results sent to me. If the levels have declined, fine, no acetylcysteine. If they haven't, I want you to take it to help your liver detox. Are we in agreement here?"

Greg nodded: "Yes. I'll repeat the labs at 3PM tomorrow."

Chris said: "Fine. Try not to drink any booze today if at all possible. I want to see how far down your enzymes will go, and drinking won't help a bit. And don't take the damn Vicodin. Take the oxy."

"Got it. Message received loud and clear. In fact, here ya go."

Greg reached into his pocket and tossed his vial of Vicodin at Chris who caught it on the fly.

Greg said: "I don't need them any more, right? So no point in keeping them on hand, right?"

Chris nodded: "Right. Smart move. Get rid of temptation. It's too easy to reach for the familiar. So, here's a copy of the pain diary that we use. Keep track for everything like I mentioned before. Get your lab work done tomorrow and we'll see you back here on Thursday. Call me if you have any issues at all and I'll call you if your levels are bad. If you don't hear from me, that means they have declined enough that I'm satisfied that you don't need acetylcysteine."

Greg nodded his agreement. He picked up the prescriptions, folded them in half and stuck them in his jacket pocket. He stood up, grabbed the pain diary from the desk and headed towards the door. With his hand on the doorknob, he turned around. His eyes glanced at me quickly and then moved over to Chris.

"Thanks," he said succinctly and he walked out the door.

There was silence for a few minutes after he left, then Chris turned to me and said: "And there's another side to him?"

I gave him a small smile: "Yeah, really, there is. He is pretty grumpy today, though. He was really in a bad way last night and probably didn't get much sleep."

"You think he will do what I asked?"

I nodded slowly: "Yeah, I think he will. The fact that he even came here speaks volumes to me. And he gave you his Vicodin. That's major. I think he recognizes that he needs better pain meds and Wilson is not going to do it. So he has to cooperate with you or he will be back where he was, on the road to liver failure."

"You know, I really wanted him to start the acetylcysteine now."

"I know. I would have preferred that too, but I didn't want to fight him about it. He can be very stubborn. Better to let him think that he won a round with us. He'll be more cooperative the next time we suggest something for his own good."

He stood up and prepared to leave: "You are pretty good at reading people. I do hope you are reading him correctly. I hate to see you get hurt by him. He's made countless nurses and lab techs cry, and they weren't even sleeping with him."

"Thanks. I appreciate your concern. I think once his mind accepts this change, he'll be OK."

We said our farewells and Chris left. I gathered my things and headed for home.

On the way home, I stopped at the grocery store and picked up a few things. I decided to make meat loaf tonight, since Greg really liked it. I wanted him to have a pleasant evening and I thought one of his favorite foods would help. I also picked up some chicken to make for tomorrow night. I arrived home and carried the groceries into the kitchen. I changed into some jeans and went back into the kitchen. I made the meat loaf and stuck it in the oven. I made salad and mashed potatoes. When that was finished, I checked the clock. It was already 7PM. Greg would be home by now. I slipped on my flip-flops and headed over to his place.


	27. Chapter 27

The Elle Word Chapter 27 

**_HOUSE _**

I left Elle's office and headed straight down to the pharmacy to get my prescriptions filled. Fortunately there was no line and I was able to get them quickly. I slipped the vials into my pocket and headed back up to my office.

It was after 5:00 and the ducklings were gone. I found myself grateful for the small things.

I collapsed in my chair and thought about the whole afternoon. Gus seemed like a straight shooter. He didn't flinch at the amount of Vicodin that I had been taking, or at Elle's recommendation for my Oxycontin dose. I didn't appreciate him wanting to put me on acetylcysteine. I remember tasting that stuff in med school and it was absolutely horrible. A lot of people had puked it right back up. I had managed to keep it down, but I will always remember that rotten egg taste. I was grudgingly pleased that Elle had talked him into waiting until tomorrow's labs came back before insisting on the therapy. And she had convinced him to start me at the higher dose of Oxycontin too. I appreciated what she had done for me, but I couldn't see her again. I could barely look at her today. She wanted to hug me as soon as I walked in her office and I stopped her. I didn't deserve her affection after what I did to her. And yet she was acting as if nothing had happened. I didn't understand that. I called her every name in the book last night. As I gathered my things to head home, I tried not to think how much I would miss her.

I had been home just long enough to put my stuff away and collapse on the couch when Elle came over. I should have known that she would just pop over like always.

She said brightly: "Hey, I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes tonight. And salad too, but that's mostly for me."

I knew she would come up and hug me from behind so I shifted my body away from her.

Gruffly I said: "I don't want any dinner."

I could hear the concern in her voice as she said: "Are you feeling OK? Are you having any more spasms?"

"I'm fine, I'm just not hungry tonight."

"I could make something else if you don't want meatloaf. I bought chicken too. Or do you want some pizza or Thai?"

"I don't want anything. Just leave me alone."

I felt her hand on my shoulder. Her touch was warm and I ached to hold her, but I had to do this. I pulled away from her touch.

Now she sounded very worried: "Greg, what's wrong?"

I glared at her: "You said if I wanted to be alone, if I needed some space that I should just fucking say so."

Her face was pale as she slowly nodded.

Softly, she said: "OK. I'll leave you be. Would you like me to bring you over a plate when the food's ready?"

"What part of 'I want to be alone' do you not understand?"

I turned away from her and back towards the TV.

Behind me, I heard her say softly and sadly: "I could just bring you the food. I won't stay. I just thought you might be hungry."

I didn't answer her; I merely cranked up the volume of the TV.

She took the hint and walked out of the door. I heard the door close behind me.

I threw the remote down and buried my face in my hands. I tried to convince myself that this was for the best.

She was so good to me. I would have been in really rough shape last night if she hadn't been here to help me. I woke her up in the middle of the night and spend the next hour screaming at her while she tried to help me. Then she helps me with Gus and I have to admit she made that whole appointment go as smoothly as it could have possibly gone. And then she comes home and cooks dinner for me.

And what do I do? Give her nothing but crap.

I'm such a shit. I don't deserve her. She'll be better off without me. It will hurt for a while, and then she'll find someone else and get over it.

I brooded. What the hell was I going to do tonight? No hot girl to fondle. I can't drink; I need to get my liver enzymes down to prove I'm right about my liver. Shit. I wanted her. I needed her. She would be just the distraction I need right now as I tried not to think about my pain, the new meds and how bad my liver might be. I was kidding myself. I needed a distraction from thinking about her.

I planned to start the Oxycontin at 9:00, so I could be on a 9 & 9 schedule. I figured those hours would work for me. I popped open the vial of oxycodone and took one. I sure hoped this worked better for my pain than the Vicodin. I found myself hoping that it would give me a bit of a buzz tonight. I sure could use one. With that in mind, I took a second tablet. Better chance of a buzz this way. I was mindful of the fact that Chris told me to start with one tablet at a time, but I would take that under advisement tomorrow. I had to get through tonight first. I figured I could just lie in my silly little pain diary.

I put on WWF and watched it for a while, but it wasn't distracting enough. By then it was 9PM and I took my first dose of the Oxycontin. I had a bit of a buzz but it wasn't enough.

I played around on the piano for a bit, but I really wasn't in the mood for that.

I put on a John Mayall CD and closed my eyes to listen to that for a while. When I opened my eyes again, it was just after 10. I wondered if she was going to come over for bed or if I had scared her sufficiently to keep away.

Next I rifled through my DVD collection and pulled out some porn. I watched for a while, trying to get excited enough to whack off. My hand was not doing the trick tonight. I had been touched and caressed by her small soft hands for so many nights now, that my large rough hands felt strange. As I watched the action on the screen, I wanted her so badly. I quickly turned it off and tossed the remote on the coffee table.

It was 10:30 and Elle hadn't shown up yet. I figured that I had successfully driven her away for tonight anyway.

I decided to head to bed. The sheets were all sweaty sticky from last night. If Elle had been here, she would have changed them for us. Hell, she would have tossed them in the wash by now. I stripped the bed, tossed the dirty sheets in a pile on the floor and remade the bed with clean sheets. As I picked up her pillow to change the case, I caught a whiff of her scent. I pressed it to my nose and inhaled deeply. It was almost more than I could bear. I quickly pulled the old case off and tossed it on the pile. The bed made, I stripped down to boxers and climbed in. The half-finished copy of '_Stormy Weather'_ was on the nightstand, but I didn't want to read it without her. I was screwed. I turned off the light and counted sheep until I had an entire flock of them. I think I finally dozed off around 1AM.

**_Elle _**

I stumbled back to my place, the tears already welling in my eyes. Why was he so mad at me? I thought back over everything I had done, but I couldn't figure it out. I know he was upset that I had seen him in such terrible pain and I'm sure he was upset about all the things he had said to me. But if that didn't bother me, why should it bother him? Was he mad at me because I had been unable to give him the IV shot? Was he angry that I stabbed him in the butt instead? Did he think I was being condescending towards him? I had tried not to fawn all over him. I knew he wouldn't want that. I had tried to be helpful and comforting, but yet not overly so. Obviously I had failed miserably.

I paced the apartment, tears streaming down my face, not knowing what to do. The timer went off, indicating that the meatloaf was ready. I took it out of the oven, but I had no appetite. I cut myself a very small slice of the meatloaf and took a small scoop of potatoes. I made myself eat that small bit. I couldn't afford to lose any more weight. I wrapped everything else up with plastic wrap and put it into the refrigerator.

Hands trembling, I poured myself a shot of scotch. I took it into the bathroom and ran a hot bath. I soaked for a while, trying to figure out what I had done, and what I should do next. Should I go over for bedtime as usual? He seemed so horribly mad that I was honestly afraid to go back. I debated calling Jimmy, hoping that he could give me some insight in dealing with House in this type of mood. But Greg would hate it if I told Jimmy what happened last night. When I had mentioned Jimmy last night, that was the first time he blew up at me. Greg was very private and it would not be good for Jimmy to hear about all of this from me. I decided I better not call him.

I soaked until my fingers were pruney. As I dried off, I decided that I wouldn't go back over there tonight. He was way too angry to want any company. Hopefully tomorrow he will feel better about everything. He needs to see that this change is going to be OK. The new meds will work for him and his liver tests will improve. Then I'm sure he'll feel better. I'll make coffee in the morning like always and tomorrow will be a better day.

At 10PM, I got ready for bed. I realized that this would be the first time in more than a month that I would be sleeping alone for the whole night. Sometimes I went to bed alone when Greg was working late or when it was poker night. But he always showed up later and I went to sleep knowing that he would. Tonight he wasn't going to show up.

I felt a bit nervous, so I put on my nightlights and my sleep-inducing CD. I crawled into bed and pulled the sheet up to my chin. I thought I was all cried out, but I wasn't. I hugged my purple dog to my chest and wet his fur with my tears.

(Tuesday)

**_Elle _**

When I woke up, I felt a bit disoriented. I wasn't used to waking up alone. Secretly I had hoped he would come over in the middle of the night and crawl into bed with me, but obviously that hadn't happened. I padded out into the kitchen and started the coffee. While it was brewing I took a quick shower and got dressed. I made an egg sandwich and had 2 cups of coffee. Then I poured the rest into a carafe like I used to do. I quietly entered his apartment. I wanted to leave the coffee, to show him that things were normal between us. I wanted to slip down the hall and peek in the bedroom and see if he was OK, but I didn't. If he was still mad at me, I didn't think I could deal with it and then go to work. I just left the coffee and headed out to the hospital.

**_House_**

I had set the alarm for 9AM. I slapped the snooze the first time, but turned it off the next time. I slowly sat up and reached for my pills. I washed them down with a glass of water that I had left on the nightstand. On autopilot, I limped into the bathroom, relieved myself and then headed down the hall to get some coffee. In my sleepy fog, I was surprised to see the coffeepot contained the dregs of yesterday's coffee. Then it clicked. I had momentarily forgotten that I pushed her away last night. So there was no fresh pot of coffee waiting for me.

Then I noticed the carafe on the counter. She must have made coffee at her place and brought it over, the way she used to before we bought the new coffeemaker. Shit. I hadn't pushed hard enough. She was still reaching out to me and left a peace offering. What is it with her? Can't she take a hint?

I sighed. She probably thinks I was just in a bad mood after meeting with Gus and changing meds. She would be back tonight with dinner and hugs. And I would have to push harder. I felt like a shit, but it didn't stop me from drinking her great coffee.

Cuddy the witch must have been lying in wait for me as she grabbed me for clinic duty as soon as I limped into the hospital. The fact that I did a few hours yesterday had no impact on her. She followed me to my office where I dropped off my backpack and then followed me to clinic to make sure I signed in and went to work. Once there, I decided to stay for a while. It was boring dealing with all the stupid idiots, but it gave me something to do to help keep my mind off of everything. Plus I didn't want to run into Wilson. Sometimes he can read me, and he would probably figure out that something was wrong. I decided to work through lunch and avoid him completely. Finally at 2PM, I logged out of the clinic and headed across the street to the taco stand for my late lunch. By the time I got back, it was close enough to 3PM to draw my blood for my repeat labs. Again I drew it myself and labeled it Luke N. Laura. I walked it down to the lab and requested that they run it stat and e-mail the results to Gus and myself. That accomplished, I headed up to Coma Guy's room to watch General Hospital.

I took the long way around returning to my office, as I still didn't want to run into Wilson. It was 4:15 when I sat down at my desk and clicked on my e-mail icon. There was a message in my in-box from the lab. I opened it and scanned the results. My AST and ALT had dropped about 30 points apiece. They were just above the normal range now. I figured that by Thursday, they would be normal. The acetaminophen level had also fallen nicely; it too was just above the normal range. I considered myself to be home free. No nasty acetylcysteine for me.

We didn't have a new case; I had done my clinic duty for the day, so I decided to sneak out early. I made it down to my bike without getting caught. There was really nothing to go home for, so I decided to take a long ride instead.

**_Elle _**

I had felt stressed out all day wondering what kind of mood he would be in when I saw him. When I got home, I had debated cooking the chicken or not. Almost the entire meatloaf remained, so we could just eat that. I hated to make more food if he was still in a bad mood and didn't want to see me. On the other hand, I didn't want him to think that I didn't want to cook for him. To say that I was nervous would be an understatement. In the end, I decided not to cook the chicken and wait to see how things went.

It was 7:30 when I heard his step in the hall. He was later than usual, so I figured he probably had a new case. I decided to wait 15 minutes before I went over there to give him a little time to unwind.

With much trepidation, I walked across the hall. Again I wondered whether to knock or just walk in. I stood there for a couple of minutes, frozen and undecided. I couldn't believe how scared I was to face him. I still couldn't figure out what I had done to make him so angry. He had not come over to see me when he got home so I was assuming that he was still mad.

Finally, I took a deep breath, knocked twice to alert him, and walked on in.

**_HOUSE _**

The long bike ride had been nice. It would have been nicer with Elle's arms wrapped around me while I rode, but all good things must come to an end.

I got home around 7:30 and I was relieved that she wasn't waiting for me in my apartment. However, I knew I needed to be ready for her appearance. The carafe of coffee told me that she would show up tonight.

Sure enough, 15 minutes later, there was a quick knock at the door and Elle walked on in. I was sitting on the couch, my back to the door, watching TV. I heard the door quietly close and her soft footsteps as she walked closer to me. I could smell her citrus shampoo and I knew she was right behind me. I just ignored her and focused on the TV.

I felt her hand on my shoulder as she said: "Hey."

Harshly I said: "What do you want?"

I heard a quick intake of her breath. After a pause, she said in a tremulous voice: "I just came over to see you. Do you want some dinner?"

"I told you I wanted to be alone."

"That was yesterday. You still want to be alone?"

I snarked: "Clever girl. You figured it out."

In a soft voice, Elle said: "Greg, I'm not really sure what I did to make you so mad. Please tell me and I'll fix it, whatever it is. I'm sorry and I don't want it to be like this between us."

Oh Gawd, I couldn't take this. She was willing to blame herself for everything that had happened. I couldn't listen to this. I had to get her out of here and somehow insure that she didn't come back.

"You want to fix it? Fix what? You're just like everyone else, wanting to fix me. Well, I don't need fixing. So if that's what you're here for, you can forget it. We had some laughs and some decent sex, but that's all. I don't do relationships. I fuck around for a while and when it gets boring, I need to up the ante or call it quits. It's time to expand our sexual horizons and you don't want to take it up the ass, do you? You probably won't do a 3-way either. How about some bondage or some role-playing? The doctor and naughty nurse bit is lame. I'm talking real role-playing. Will you dress up like a hooker and go to a bar? I can watch from a distance as guys hit on you and you go off and give them blowjobs for cash. That would be fucking hot. Or I could be a rapist who breaks into your home and fucks you until you start to like it."

The sharp intake of breath and the paleness of her face told me that I was almost home free.

"You think you're doing me a favor fucking this old cripple? Well, you're wrong. I can get plenty of pussy. I don't need yours."

That did it. I saw her lip quiver and I knew my arrow had gone straight for the heart. Elle turned and walked quickly towards the door. As she pulled the door shut behind her, I heard a small sob. I could hear her door open and close and I knew she was finally gone. I had successfully driven her away. Reminding myself that it was for the best, I poured myself 3 fingers of scotch. I didn't have to have any bloodwork tomorrow. Tonight I could drink as much as I wanted.

**_Elle _**

As I staggered out of his apartment, I still didn't know what I had done to make him so angry, but he made it very clear that he didn't want me there anymore. I was sure that all the crap he said about wanting more exciting sex was just that: crap. He had never even hinted about those kinds of things before. He was saying all those things just to hurt me and make me leave. The true reason he wanted me gone remained elusive.

I almost had his door shut before a small sob escaped. I slapped my hand over my mouth before any more could leak out. I was trembling so hard it was difficult to get my key in the door, but I finally managed. I collapsed on the futon and let myself bawl. I cried for a while and finally the sobs subsided. I lay on the futon staring at the ceiling. I felt numb. I just couldn't figure it out. I guess I'll never know exactly what upset him so much that he decided to break it off with me.

I debated again calling the person who knew him best to see if he could shed some light on this. But then I figured, what did it matter? Wilson might enlighten me, but that wasn't going to change Greg's mind about us.

After a few more minutes on the futon, I slowly got up and headed into the kitchen. I warmed up a slice of meatloaf and some potatoes and ate it in front of the TV. I washed up my few dishes and then poured a glass of scotch. Back on the futon with my scotch, I pondered my situation.

OK. It wasn't as bad as when David dumped me. This time, I have a job and an apartment. I'm not homeless and needing to crash with friends. I had really developed feelings for Greg and I thought he had reciprocated them. This hurt like hell, but not as bad as when Tony and I ended it. Of course, Greg and I had only been together for a month, while Tony and I had been together for several years.

I tried to think of some positives. It had been nice to have some manly attention again. He had really been a lot of fun. Greg had made me feel sexy again. I had discovered that I could enjoy sex again after being raped. I had been afraid that the rape would have destroyed that joy for me, but Greg had shown me otherwise. Remembering our last round of sex on Sunday night and the tender look in his eyes, I wondered how he could just toss away what we had. But I guess the shame of my seeing him in such a pitiful condition was more than he could stand. I suppose that every time he looked at me, he would be reminded of that event, and he couldn't deal with that. I thought about all the nightmares he had comforted me through and all of the embarrassing personal stuff that I had told him. After the initial feelings of shame and embarrassment, it only increased my level of intimacy with him. I guess it didn't work like that for men, or at least for him.

I didn't know what to do now. I didn't feel like calling any of my friends and telling them what happened. I would tell them in due course when it didn't hurt so much. I got out my laptop and turned it on. I searched for concert tickets on the Internet, but couldn't find anyone I wanted to spend that much money on. I checked my e-mail and read the news. Finally it was 10:00 and I got ready for bed. After my usual ablutions, I turned on my nightlights and CD. I crawled under the sheet, hugged the dog to my chest and drifted off to sleep.

For the first time in more than a month, I had a nightmare. I woke up screaming around 2AM. I wondered if it was triggered by my stress at sleeping alone or by the cutting remarks Greg had made about rape role-playing. Well, whatever, it didn't matter. It had happened.

I got up and walked around the apartment for a bit. I flipped on all the lights and checked all the locks. I looked in the closets and behind the shower curtain and anywhere else someone could hide. As I was doing this, I knew it was stupid, but I did it anyway. It made me feel a little bit better knowing that no one was hiding here and I'm was all locked up.

I really needed to talk to someone about all this, but it was August. Gail, like most shrinks, takes the month of August off. I wouldn't see her again until after Labor Day. I briefly wondered if the suicide rate went up during the month of August.

I went into the kitchen and knocked back a shot of scotch. I tried to convince myself that I would be OK. This was just a minor setback. I have friends. I don't really need a guy in my life right now. I'll go to the beach or make some plans with the guys for the weekend. It will be a bit hard continuing to live across the hall from him, but my lease lasted 10 more months. I would just have to deal with it. We probably wouldn't see much of each other anyway. Work may be a bit more difficult, but it's a big hospital and he has no reason to come up to the 6th floor. I'll tell Chris that I agree with his opinion, that it is unethical for me to see Greg as a patient and just let Chris deal with him. I'll see Greg for Thursday's appointment, and tell him then he will just be seeing Chris in the future.

My nights would be lonely. I had quickly gotten used to him being around all the time. But I was sure that I would adjust. This was just one more change and I'd had a lot of them in my life. I remembered that when I moved in here, I had planned to stencil a design in the kitchen and had never gotten around to it. I could do that this weekend. I'll go to the craft shop tomorrow after work and find a stencil border and buy some paint. That will keep me busy for a little while.

It was already 3AM. I decided I had better try to go back to sleep. I flipped on the bathroom light for some extra reassurance and crawled back into bed.

(Wednesday)

**_HOUSE_**

I sleepily stumbled towards the kitchen. My sleep had been fitful no doubt due to the numerous glasses of scotch that I drank and the guilt I felt about how I treated Elle. In my sleepy stupor, I was surprised to find no fresh brewed coffee. There were 2-day-old dregs still in the coffeepot and the carafe from yesterday was empty. I guess that's it. I had successfully driven her out of my life. I sighed heavily and leaned against the counter, head in my hands. I told myself again that it was for the best and I headed back to the bathroom for a shower.

We still had no case. I managed to dodge Cuddy on my way in, now I needed to avoid Wilson. I skipped all of my usual hiding spots and prowled the hospital looking for some new ones. I naturally avoided the 6th floor. I didn't want to chance running into either Elle or Wilson up there.

Over in the maternity wing, I found the OB-GYN docs locker room. It was nicer than the one I usually used. There were several reclining chairs each with their own TV set. I guess they needed a place to relax in between deliveries. The chairs were quite comfortable. I popped an oxycodone and settled in to watch Dr Phil.

I must have nodded off because the next thing I knew Maury was on. That meant it was after 1:00. Good. I managed to dodge Wilson for lunch again. I felt better after that nap, so I headed off to the cafeteria for a late lunch. By two o'clock I was back in the conference room. We still had no case, so I sent the ducklings to the ER to look for anything weird that might have rolled in. Three o'clock found me in Coma Guy's room watching General Hospital with him. I took the long way back to my office and made it back without running into Wilson.

I almost made it to 5:00 without seeing him. Just as I was starting to gather my things, he strolled in the door.

"Hey, haven't seen much of you lately. Where have you been hiding?"

"Oh, I have some new places. Cuddy grabbed me as soon as I walked in yesterday and hauled me off to the clinic. I was there for hours. Today I found a new hiding spot and I'm not telling you. She may try to get it out of you by flashing her thong at you again."

He chuckled and said: "Fine. Don't tell me. That's one less lie I have to keep track of. I came to tell you I won't be able to make poker tonight. I have 2 emergency patients coming in."

I felt relieved that I wouldn't have to deal with him tonight, but I feigned irritation to throw him off. "What? Poker night is sacrosanct. You can't be absent for just any reason. It throws off the balance of the game."

"And emergency patients don't qualify as a good excuse?"

I huffed and whined: "Can't one of your colleagues take them?"

He shook his head: "No. They're my patients. I'm not turfing them to someone else just to play poker. Sorry, you'll have to do without me and my pretzels tonight."

I grumbled: "Yeah, well, who's going to bring the beer now? Damn it, I should have gotten Bus Stop Guy's phone number."

Wilson rolled his eyes. Exasperated he said: "Buy the beer yourself for a change. Once a year won't break your wallet. I gotta go. I'll catch ya tomorrow."

He turned and walked out of my office without waiting for a reply. I smiled inwardly as he left. I was actually glad he was skipping out tonight. I wanted to minimize contact with him for a few days until I managed to completely rein in my emotions about Elle. Wilson could read me a little too well and I didn't want to tell him about it until I was good and ready.

I stopped on the way home and bought two 12 packs and some pretzels. The other 3 guys showed up around 7:30. Accountant brought some decent cigars and we smoked, drank and played until 11:00. I won 350 bucks, a decent take for the night. After they left, I noticed that it felt strange cleaning up without Wilson. Interesting how quickly one gets used to a routine and how off kilter the world feels when it is disrupted. For the last several weeks, I had crossed the hall and crept into Elle's bed to sleep after everyone had left. I wouldn't be doing that tonight. She had made no attempt to come over tonight, but I didn't think she would after I had been so mean to her last night. I still couldn't believe that, stone cold sober and pain-free, I had made such cruel remarks to the only woman who had been good to me in years. I was an idiot. She was willing to forget the remarks I had made on Sunday night, chalking them up to my high pain level. I should have milked her for everything she was willing to give me: sex, food, companionship, love. Sooner or later she would have gotten sick of me, but in the mean time I could have had weeks or months of steady sex. But there was no taking back what I had done last night. There was no excuse for it, other than to completely hurt her and push her away. I had succeeded but I didn't feel happy about it.

I watched some TV while nursing a scotch. My body ached for her. This would be the third night sleeping alone. I wondered how she was doing, how she was dealing with sleeping alone. I hoped she wasn't having nightmares again. In the last month or so that we had been sleeping together, the nightmares had diminished to almost nothing.

I debated sneaking over there to see if she was sleeping OK. That was stupid, I argued with myself. If she were awake, she would think you came over to make up and sleep with her. If she were sleeping, so what? Why would that knowledge make me feel better? Finally I slugged back the remains of my scotch and headed off to bed.

I had to see her tomorrow at my appointment anyway. I'd be able to tell if she were sleeping well or not. She gets these dark circles under her eyes when she doesn't sleep well. If she had the circles, then I would know. It was going to be even harder to talk to her this time than it had been on Monday. I wonder if I could just see Gus in the future to get my scripts and not go through Elle. I'd have to ask him tomorrow about that. It would be the smart thing to do.

_**ELLE **_

It was a busy day so I was forced to concentrate on my work and not dwell on my miserable private life. Fortunately, no one at work knew that I had been seeing Greg, so it made it easier to hide the fact that I was depressed. If they had known, I would have been tempted to cry on their shoulders. It was better this way.

After work, I headed over to the craft shop to look around for some stenciling ideas. I found a nice tulip pattern. If I painted the tulips red it would stand out nicely against the sunny yellow wall. I bought the stencil, brushes and red and green paints.

I hated to waste food and there was still more meatloaf left, so I ate it for dinner again. I was seriously sick of meatloaf. It would be a long time before I made it again. My appetite was a little better tonight. I had 2 slices of the meatloaf and a bigger scoop of mashed potatoes. I had stopped at Mike's and bought a pint of chocolate ice cream too. After dinner, I put on some tunes and prepped the area that I was going to paint. I started painting the green leaves first. I got about halfway finished when it was time for bed. I was pleased with my work. It had been a decent distraction and it was going to look nice when it was finished.

I had a scoop of ice cream while I checked my e-mail and browsed the Internet. Then I brushed my teeth and made my usual preparations for bed. I really hoped that I would not have another nightmare tonight. I had almost forgotten how scared I get from them. I put on the nightlights, the CD and left the bathroom light on. I crawled into bed and hugged the dog to me. He reminded me of Greg and the fun day we had at the beach. It made me a little sad, but it was nice to have something to remember him by. I didn't even have a photo of Greg. I decided to call the dog Pookie. It was a dumb name, but I liked it for some reason. Anyway, no one would ever know his name besides me, so what did it matter?

Tonight it was 2:30 when I woke up screaming. Once I had screamed myself completely awake, I curled up in a little ball and sobbed. This sucked. I hope I wasn't going back to a pattern of having nightmares almost every night. I should stop drinking and take my Ativan at night for a while and see if that helps.

_Oh, crap!_ I left my Ativan over at Greg's place. _Damn!_ I need to get it back from him. I guess I could ask him for it today when I see him. Maybe it would be better to just go over there. I always get home before he does. I could just run over there and grab it and my other stuff while he's gone. I felt really sneaky doing that, but it would be less confrontational. And I didn't want any pity from him now that I was having nightmares again. He'd probably give me some crap about missing him and I didn't need that. The sad thing was that it was true. I did miss him. It seemed like I felt safe enough with him that I didn't have nightmares either. That made me feel really pathetic.

Oh well. Back to dealing with this shit myself. I'll see what kind of mood he is in at the appointment. If he is halfway nice, I'll ask him about it. Otherwise, I'll just go over and get it back.

I tiptoed around the apartment checking all the locks and the potential hiding places again. When I decided everything was still safe and secure, I went into the kitchen and poured myself a small one. As I knocked it back, I told myself that I couldn't keep doing this. I needed to find another way to relax besides drinking. Even after all these months, I still hadn't found a good way to deal with my nightmares besides scotch and Ativan.

I sighed. It was a long time until Gail came back from vacation. I bet she is going to give me an 'I told you so' about House. Maybe I needed a new therapist. All these months with her and I'm still having nightmares. Shouldn't we have figured out the root cause of them by now and made them go away? I felt so frustrated over my lack of progress in this area.

I stared at the bottle for a moment, and then poured myself another shot. I knocked it back and went back to bed. This time, I left the kitchen light on too. I was going to have a helluva electric bill next month.

_**WILSON **_

(Thursday morning)

I had an early morning board meeting so I arrived at work before my usual time. As I headed for the stairs in the parking garage, I saw Elle heading in the same direction. Her shoulders were slumped and she looked tired. No, make that exhausted. There was an air of defeat in her posture. I hurried to catch up to her.

"Hey, Elle. Hold up."

She stopped and turned to look at me. She had the saddest look on her face. I immediately wondered what House had done to her.

When I reached her, she said quietly: "Good morning, Jimmy. How's it going?"

"I'm doing fine, thanks. Are you doing OK? You look kinda tired."

She nodded: "I am tired. I haven't been sleeping well."

Her voice dropped even softer: "I've had nightmares these last 2 nights. When I wake up from it, I can't go back to sleep right away. And when I do fall asleep, it is a fitful sleep."

"Oh, sorry to hear that. I guess that explains why House looks so tired too."

She shook her head: "I wouldn't know about that."

I stopped walking. "Wait. What's going on? Aren't you two sleeping together?"

She shook her head sadly.

"What happened? Did you have a fight?"

Elle looked at me: "He didn't tell you anything?"

I shook my head: "No. He's brooding, talking less than usual. Actually now that I think of it, he's been avoiding me since Monday lunch. He looked rough that day and I asked him what was up. He made some comment, can't remember exactly what it was now. And I asked him if you two had had a fight, but he said no. I haven't seen much of him since then. I had 2 emergency patients, so I didn't make to poker last night either. He hasn't bugged me to buy him lunch for the last 2 days. I _knew_ something was wrong. So what's going on?"

Elle sighed: "I thought about calling you, but I was afraid that he would get madder if I talked to you. I thought it would all blow over, but it hasn't."

Elle gave me the whole story starting with the events of Sunday night's myoclonic spasm. I was completely amazed that House had agreed to see Elle for pain management and that he was letting Guskiewicz prescribe for him. I was surprised that the new prescription was for a different opioid, but I let that slide for the moment. Elle seemed to think he really needed it, and apparently Guskiewicz agreed. Perhaps it was better for me to be completely out of this loop. Then Elle told me how he had pushed her away on Monday and Tuesday nights. She now seemed completely resigned to the fact that House didn't want her in his life anymore.

"I wish that I could just talk to him. I'm sure we could straighten this out. I KNOW he didn't mean all those things he said. It was just the pain talking. I thought we had a good thing going. You know, Sunday was so nice, going out with you and the boys. Afterwards we went home and, well, you know, went to bed."

Tears came to her eyes and she pinched the bridge of her nose and took some deep breaths. "It was so nice, so tender. I really thought."

She paused for a moment to compose herself: "I really thought we had something. It felt like it. And then 4 hours later, all hell broke loose."

She took a very deep breath and said: "Anyway, thanks for listening. Sorry to dump all of this on you. I better go, I'm running late. Would you mind terribly sending the patient files up to me, so I don't have to pass by his office today?"

I nodded: "Sure."

"Thanks a lot."

She turned to hurry away but I stopped her by saying: "Elle, have faith. This will all blow over."

I didn't think she could look any sadder, but she proved me wrong: "I don't have any faith, Jim. I lost it a long time ago."

With that last remark, she turned and hurried away.

I stood there in a daze. This explained a lot. I couldn't believe that he was pushing her away like this. Typical House. He can't let anyone see his weaknesses. He tolerates me seeing them because he had to have help after the infarction. He had no choice then. And he still resented the hell out of it. I wonder why he was so afraid of seeming the least bit weak in front of anyone. Maybe it has something to do with his dad being a tough Marine colonel. I bet that man tolerated no weakness.

His actions were ludicrous. This woman not only tolerated him, she loved him. I could see it in her eyes. Behind the hurt, I could see the love she had for that crippled jerk. As soon as he came in, I was going to tell him what an ass he was and that he deserved to live in misery and die alone.


	28. Chapter 28

**The Elle Word Chapter 28**

**HOUSE**

I woke up at 9AM and took my pills. Today was my second appointment with Gus and I was not looking forward to it. He wasn't the problem but it was going to be difficult seeing Elle. I was going to have to start seeing Gus without Elle being there. I hoped he would agree to it.

I was tolerating the new meds fairly well. I think I needed a bit of a bump up, but the pain wasn't too bad. I needed to fill out that stupid pain diary before the appointment. I headed to the bathroom to pee and then limped down the hall to the kitchen. I reached for the coffee pot and then realized, for the second day in a row, there was no coffee waiting for me.

"_Of course not, you asshole, you drove her away." _

Gawd I missed her. I missed her warmth, her laugh, her kisses. I missed falling asleep with her in my arms. I missed all the little things she did for me not the least of which was making me coffee every morning.

Screw it. I showered, dressed and headed to work to get some of Cameron's coffee. Taking the mug into my office, I worked on my pain diary. I elaborated a bit. I mentioned taking hot baths and using the lidocaine patches to help with the pain. I figured that would be a good touch. I had used 24 of the 30 oxycodones that Gus had given me for breakthrough pain. I filled in some pain levels and times that I had taken the tabs. I wondered how I would feel if the dose was bumped to 40 mg twice a day. The pain was better with these meds than they were with the Vicodin. Wilson had been wrong all these years to not give me something stronger.

I finished the diary and slipped it back into my backpack. I poured another cup of coffee and took it out on the balcony. I leaned my cane against the wall and propped my elbows on top of it. It was a hot day, but the sun felt good on my face. I stood there with my eyes closed, face tilted up towards the sun. I heard Wilson's door open but didn't look over. I didn't really want to talk to him, but there was no hope that he would just go away. I had been avoiding him for 2 days now, and I'm sure he was curious as to the reason why. I heard him walk across the balcony and hop the wall.

I opened my eyes to find him standing right next to me. He had a hard look in his eyes as he stared at me. I decided to wait him out and let him speak first.

After a few minutes, he said: "What are you doing?"

"Standing here on the balcony, enjoying the sunshine. Isn't it obvious?"

He spit out: "You ass. Why are you pushing Elle away?"

_Crap!_ Elle must have confided in him. I wondered how much she had told him. I turned my head away; I couldn't look at him.

I muttered: "It's for the best. She'll be better off without me."

"You're hurting her. I know that she saw you at a very vulnerable time and I know how much you hate that. But she's your girl. She wants you, the good and the bad. She misses you."

I gripped the balcony wall as I stared down at the ground. "I can't, Jimmy."

He said angrily: "Why the hell not? Give me one good fucking reason why you are willing to throw her away."

The words I had spoken to her ran through my mind. I squeezed my eyes shut, a grimace of pain on my face that had nothing to do with my leg. I wanted her back, but I didn't deserve her.

Finally I admitted in a low voice: "I said some really awful things to her."

"House, whatever you said, it's forgotten. It was the pain talking; she knows that. She doesn't care what you said; she just wants you back."

I couldn't keep the anguish out of my voice: "You have no idea what I said to her. Even I can't believe I was that cruel. I can't even look at her. She deserves so much better than me."

He was silent for a minute, then he said: "You care. You care that you hurt her. Don't just push those feelings aside. She wants you. You're a crippled misanthropic bastard, but yet she wants you. You, Greg House, jackass extraordinaire. She wants _you."_

I stood silent and stared into the distance. I wanted her too. But I wasn't good at apologies; I really had no idea how to make this right again. And she might be able to forget what I said while I was in extreme pain, but what about the things I had said to her on Tuesday night? I couldn't blame the pain for those words.

After a few minutes of silence, Wilson went on: "If you really don't want her, then do her a favor and let her go. Be a man and tell her straight out that you don't want her around anymore. Send her a text message or leave a voice mail. Dump the stuff that has migrated over to your apartment back in front of her door. Ask for your key back. She'll get the message."

He smirked: "Then she'll need a shoulder to cry on. I haven't been getting any lately. Bet she'd like some comfort sex."

The blood pounded in my head as I turned to face him. I drew myself up to my full height as I said: "Don't you dare even think about touching her."

He shrugged: "Why not? You don't want her anymore. I saw her naked and she looked hot. And from what you've told me, she's really good in the sack. I'd like to take her for a spin. Maybe I can get her to skip yoga tonight. Julie's at another damn meeting anyway. I'll start out with my patented panty-peeler method of being 'the sympathetic friend'. I have a huge success rate with that, you know."

I dropped my cane and grabbed him by the lapels of his shirt. My right hand was balled in a fist. Through clenched teeth, I hissed: "Don't you dare."

He grinned: "Willing to fight me for her, aren't you? You moron! I'm pulling your chain. I'm just trying to get you to realize how much you want her back."

He peeled my fingers off of his shirt and smoothed down his collar. I just stared at him, analyzing what he just done. Wilson had brilliantly exposed my feelings for her. Who knew he could be so clever?

He bent down and picked up my cane. Handing it to me, he said: "Now. Usually I start with flowers and candy. But I think this is _way_ beyond that level. Normally, I would move up to jewelry, but somehow, Elle doesn't seem like the jewelry type to me. Is that your take?"

I bounced my cane on the floor as I thought. "You're right. She's not the jewelry type."

We both turned and leaned back on the balcony wall.

"She likes to listen to my I-Pod. I could get her one."

He nodded: "That could be good."

I thought for a minute longer: "Yeah, it's a nice gift, but it's not personal enough. I need something bigger."

"Get her a piano."

I snorted: "Yeah, that would make a statement. But I'm afraid it would remind her of the one David gave her and then took back."

He nodded thoughtfully: "Oh, yeah, right."

We continue to stare over the wall. Wilson propped his chin up on his hand and drummed his other hand against the wall. I puffed my cheeks up with air and blew it out, furiously tapping my cane against the ground.

Suddenly Wilson snapped his fingers and said: "I've got it! Spoil her for a weekend."

"Huh?"

"Take her to New York. Get a nice hotel suite with a view overlooking Central Park. Take her out to the theater; take her to a nice fancy dinner. Be romantic. Take her on a carriage ride through the park. Go find a nice jazz club. Hell, don't leave the suite at all and get room service all weekend."

I could feel a glimmer of hope. This felt right. I bet it had been a long time since anyone had treated her this way. Shit, maybe no man had ever spoiled her like that.

I turned to Wilson: "You've learned something after 3 marriages. You know how to suck up."

He laughed.

I grinned at him: "I'm thinking the Plaza."

He shook his head: "Closed for renovations. Go for the Ritz. Right down the block and same great views as the Plaza."

"OK." I turned and hurried into my office. Wilson followed. I quickly found the website for the Ritz and called them directly. I booked a deluxe park view suite on the 15th floor. It had many luxurious amenities, but I was particularly looking forward to the Jacuzzi tub big enough for two. I was assured that various assorted bubble baths and lotions would be found in our suite. I heard about the room-service menu and had them make an 8:00 reservation for Saturday's dinner at one of my favorite steakhouses. We would arrive Friday evening after work and I asked for late checkout, so we had the room until 6PM on Sunday. I would have liked a longer span of time to spoil my girl, but this would have to do.

Wilson had a huge grin on his face when I hung up.

I snarked: "Why are you so happy? You're not going."

He chortled: "This is going to cost you a bundle. Diamond earrings would be cheaper."

I leaned back in my chair, hands clasped behind my head and smirked: "Cheaper? Who cares? This is going to be so much fun. FAO Schwartz is only a couple of blocks away from the Ritz. We'll be two kids in the biggest toy store in the world. Room service and dinner at Ben Benson's too. It just doesn't get much better than that."

He parked his ass on the edge of my desk. "So when are you going to tell her? After all, you haven't been speaking to her."

"I have an appointment with her and Guskiewicz at 4:30. I'll figure it out by then."

**Elle**

Mrs. Atkinson, my 2:00 appointment had just left when there was a knock on my door. I called out: "Come in."

A young woman entered. I recognized her from the gift shop downstairs. She said: "Elle Kaplan, right?"

I nodded.

"These are for you." She held out a small vase with 3 sunflowers in it.

I was so stunned that I couldn't move or speak. She finally set the vase on my desk and walked out. My hands were trembling as I picked up the card. I dropped it twice before I could finally pull the card out of the envelope. It read simply: "_Thai take-out tonight?"_

I gasped and my hand went to cover my mouth. There was no signature but it was Greg's handwriting. It was Thursday, our usual night for Thai. Tears came to my eyes; I had to blink hard to make them go away. I didn't want to look weepy in front of my next patient. I sat there and stared at the card. He was reaching out to me. He wanted to give us another chance. My heart just leapt. I felt like doing cartwheels or something.

I wondered what happened to change his mind. He seemed so determined to push me away on Tuesday.

The light bulb clicked on. _WILSON_. He must have said something to Greg after our little talk in the parking garage. I chuckled at the thought of Jimmy lecturing Greg about this. Damn, I should have called Jimmy earlier; maybe I would have saved myself a couple of nights of grief. I leaned back in my chair and sighed. There was hope after all.

I looked at the card again. OK, the note had a question mark. That meant he wanted an answer. I thought I better keep it cool. He might back off if I seemed too anxious. I needed to be relaxed and not too eager.

I pulled out my cell phone and sent him a quick text: "_TTT? Yes. 7:30 after yoga, OK?"_

I hit send and anxiously waited for his reply. Fortunately I didn't have to wait long. This message was also short: _"OK."_

I couldn't wait to see him. I had two more patients to see before his appointment. Not that we would be alone, Chris would be here. But at least he would be in the same room. The next 2 hours dragged. I did my best to focus on each patient, but it was hard. I sighed with relief when the last one left.

Promptly at 4:30, Chris walked in. He looked around and frowned. "Where's our patient?"

I started to open my mouth, but before I could answer, there was a knock at the door. Since Chris was still standing, he opened the door. He stepped back to allow House to enter.

Greg had his backpack slung over one shoulder. He nodded at Chris and headed for the chair. He glanced at me and I gave him a small smile. He nodded at me and dropped heavily into the chair.

Chris immediately took charge. "How are you doing? Tell us about your pain levels since we last saw you."

To my surprise, Greg did just that. He pulled the notebook out of his backpack and flipped pages, describing the last 3 days. His pain levels were still higher than desired, but I knew we would have to play with the dose to get it just right. When he finished, Greg closed the notebook and sat back.

Chris nodded and said: "Well, Elle, your instincts were dead-on again. You were right to start House at the higher dose. I think you still need a bump-up. I think we should up your dose to 40 mg twice a day. What's your thinking on that, House?"

Greg nodded: "Yeah, that would be a good. I think I need a bit more."

"That's what we'll do today. I'll write you a prescription for Oxycontin 40 mg twice a day and another script for the same oxycodone for breakthrough pain. We will reassess your pain levels again at the next appointment and see if you need another adjustment. Are you comfortable waiting a week to see me again, or do you want to come back on Monday?"

Greg hesitated.

Chris quickly said: "Tell you what. Let's just meet again on Monday. I'd like to see if this dose will get you down to a 6 or not."

Greg nodded: "That's fine."

Chris went on: "Your labs came back improved enough that I felt it wasn't necessary to start the acetylcysteine. I know I don't have to tell you to continue to avoid acetaminophen products. Just stick with the oxycodone.

We are going to keep adjusting your maintenance dose until it is at the level that you need to maintain a 6. Now, let's discuss some other pain management issues."

I glanced at Greg; he was frowning. Chris either didn't notice or pretended not to see it and continued.

"You mentioned the lidocaine patches. Do they help?"

Greg nodded: "Yeah, I like to wear them at night. It doesn't look sexy in bed, but it helps a bit."

Chris smirked: "I bet your woman isn't looking at the patches while you're in bed."

Greg actually cracked a small smile.

Chris went on: "I'll write you a script for the patches also. How many patches does it take to cover the area?"

Greg held up 2 fingers.

"Hmmm, big scar, huh? Do you mind if I examine your leg?"

Greg stiffened. I knew how much he hated for anyone to see it. I was afraid he would be embarrassed with me in the room to watch the exam, so I stood up and said: "I'll just step out."

Greg looked at me and said quickly: "No. Stay."

I looked at him questioningly.

He went on: "It's not necessary for you to step out. You've already seen it. " I thought I detected a bit of a twinkle in his eyes as he said that.

Chris chuckled: "OK. Too much information."

Greg smirked and stood up. He started unbuckling his belt.

I sat back down; amazed that he was letting me see this side of him. I would have thought he would want the exam to be private. I felt a bit happy that he was allowing me to see this side of him. Between the flowers, the promise of dinner tonight, and his trust in allowing my presence at this exam, I felt a surge of hope that things would work out between us.

**HOUSE**

I really didn't want Gus to examine my leg, but since he was writing my pain scripts, I figured that maybe I should. Elle immediately sensed my discomfort and offered to leave the room. I told her to stay, making a little joke out of it, that she has seen it already. I didn't know if Gus knew the extent of our relationship, but he definitely did now.

I wanted her here for this. I wanted her to know that I was trying to let her in. After all our time together, I still had not told her about the infarction and about Stacy. After reading the pain questionnaire, she knew about the infarction, but I still needed to tell her about Stacy's role in all of this.

I stood up and unbuckled my belt. I unzipped my jeans and pushed them to my knees, leaning against Elle's desk for support. Gus examined the scar, asking questions about the type of pain and the exact locations of the pain. He examined the muscles surrounding the scar and had me flex them. Then he examined my left leg also.

He stood up and with a wave of his hand indicated that I could pull my pants up. I did so, and sat back down.

Gus was making some notes on my file and then he said: "House, your left leg is very well developed. It is over compensating for your right leg. I think if we strengthen the remaining muscles around your scar that might help your gait. Have you done any PT lately?"

I shook my head. "No, not since right after the infarction."

He nodded: "Well, after your pain is under control, you may want to consider some PT to work on strengthening the muscles in your right thigh."

"I'm not really keen on PT."

"Well, you wouldn't have to go for very long. It would just be a matter of learning a few specific exercises that you could then do on your own. Are you doing any type of exercising now?"

I snarked: "Besides sex? No."

He smirked: "Well, that's good exercise, but I'm not sure it is targeting those specific muscles. Do you play golf?"

"Not anymore." I was beginning to feel irritated at where this conversation was heading. I didn't want to talk about the things I couldn't do anymore.

Gus was persistent. "But you used to? You're a rightie?"

"Yes to both."

"So when you go into your backswing, you can't put that much weight on your right leg, correct?"

I merely nodded.

"Have you tried playing leftie?"

I frowned at him. "No."

He stood up. "May I borrow your cane?"

I handed it to him. He held the end of it as if it were a golf club.

"OK. Think about it. When you go into your backswing as a rightie, you end up with all of your weight on your right leg."

He demonstrated his swing for us.

"So if you 'switch hit' as it were, the weight will be on your left leg."

He changed his stance and demonstrated a swing as if he were a leftie.

"When you follow through on your swing, some of your weight will shift to the front leg, but it won't be as much stress as there is on the back leg. I think you could do this. Wanna try?"

I surprised myself by standing up and taking the cane from his extended hand. I missed being active and there was no way I was ever going to run or play lacrosse again. But if I could golf, that would be something. I could play golf with Wilson again. I couldn't walk the course, but that's what golf carts were for. I could feel myself warming to the idea.

I held the cane as if it were a golf club and took a tentative swing. It felt very awkward swinging left-handed but I did it. I felt some pressure on my right leg as I completed the swing.

Chris was watching carefully: "How did that feel?"

"It's very awkward swinging this way. When I follow through, I feel pressure when I shift my weight to my right leg. I don't know how many swings I would be able to take before it got too painful."

"But it's a lot less pressure than trying to swing right-handed, correct?"

I nodded in agreement.

Gus went on: "I think if you built up the surrounding muscles, you could manage 9 holes. A leg brace might help also, but I'd like to see you try it without one first. Anyway, this is just something to think about for later, when your pain is under control."

I remembered that day at the beach: "What about swimming?"

Gus looked surprised and answered quickly: "Swimming would be great. That would be an excellent exercise for you. Doing scissor kicks and frog kicks would really strengthen your thigh muscles. You could try that first, then maybe later add some more specific exercises from PT."

I looked at him quizzically: "So you're not just a pill pusher."

He shook his head and said seriously: "No. The main part of my job is to help get your pain to a tolerable level. Then the focus is on getting back as much of your life as possible. I can't get you running again. But we might be able to get you back on the golf course."

I stared at the floor for a minute. I couldn't seem to process all of this. Gus was seriously suggesting that with some modifications, I could play golf again. I was going to need some time to digest this. I felt a flicker of something in my chest, but I couldn't identify it.

Gus went on: "Anyway, we'll see you next Monday. Keep up with your pain diary. The first thing we want to do is get your pain under control at your current activity level. Then, if you are interested, we can try some other things both for pain control and to increase your activity level."

I nodded and then stood up. I slung my backpack over my left shoulder and picked up my cane.

Gus stood up and stuck out his hand. I looked at it for a second, and then shifted my cane to my left hand. I shook his hand, and not quite meeting his eye, said: "Thanks. I'll see you Monday."

I switched my cane back to my right hand and headed towards the door. Pausing right before I got to it, I turned and looked at Elle. I gave her a little eyebrow wiggle and smirked in a low voice: "And I'll see you later." She rewarded me with a smile and I headed on out the door.

As I headed towards the pharmacy to get my scripts filled, I suddenly realized what that little flicker in my chest was. It was something I hadn't felt in a very long time. It was hope.

**ELLE**

Chris looked at me and said: "Wow. What a difference since Monday. He actually was cooperative. And _**he**_ suggested swimming. I was going to wait until later to try that one on him."

I smiled: "I think he's motivated. I was surprised that you brought up the golf in this session. I figured you would wait until we got his meds stabilized. But I think he liked that idea. He hasn't told me much about his life pre-infarction, but I do know that he misses running and other sports. I think he would be really happy if he could play golf again."

He laughed: "Well, if you don't play, I'll end up making you a golf widow."

I smirked: "I'm not worried. There are other things that we like to do together."

"Yeah, too much information again. You know, if he gets back into it, you could learn to play also. It's a fun game."

"Maybe I will. Let's just see how it goes with him first."

He stood up and started gathering his things. "So he makes you happy?"

I chuckled: "Worried about me?"

"Well, I know your last 2 relationships didn't end so well. House is a difficult person. Seems like it would be very challenging to try to have a relationship with that man."

I nodded: "Yeah, it is challenging, but it's worth it."

"Well, since you are in a relationship with him, I think it's time you stopped consulting on his case. We'll tell him on Monday, that in the future, he will just be seeing me. It's not ethical for you to keep treating him, OK?"

I nodded in agreement: "Absolutely. He seems to be developing a good rapport with you so I think it's time for me to bow out."

I gathered my things and followed him out the door. Chris went back to his office and I headed down to the first floor. I wanted to see Greg, but I was determined to wait until after yoga. It was just going to be a normal Thursday night at 221 Baker Street. I'd come home from yoga; we'd have Thai takeout, watch some TV and go to bed. Maybe it sounded ordinary, but I was looking forward to it.

I did make a conscious effort to focus at yoga class, and it mostly worked. I was feeling relaxed and happy when I arrived back at my place. I unlocked my apartment and stepped inside. I flipped on the light and I was stunned by the sight on my dining room table. There was a huge bouquet of sunflowers. The small vase that I brought home from work looked liked its 'mini-me'. This bouquet must have had 20 flowers in a large cut glass vase. It was simply gorgeous. I slowly walked to the table, half expecting it to disappear.

I set the small vase down and pulled off the card. It read simply: "_TTT, waiting across the hall for you." _

I went into the bedroom and stripped off my yoga clothes. I tossed everything in the laundry basket and hurriedly pulled open my lingerie drawer. I had bought something new at Victoria's Secret last week and Greg had not seen it yet. It was their heart-snap peek-a-boo bra and panty set. It was black with little pink heart-shaped snaps that could be opened a little bit or a lot depending on how much you wanted to reveal. I put it on and popped 1 snap on each bra cup and 2 snaps on the panties. He'd get a little tease and then he could pop the rest himself. I shivered with anticipation. The bra had underwire cups and gave me some extra lift. Over it, I pulled on some black silk boxers and a red tank top. I let my hair down from the bun and brushed it out. I checked my reflection in the mirror and thought I looked pretty good. The dark circles under my eyes were gone. I slipped on some flip-flops and headed over to his place.

At his door, I suddenly felt shy. Should I knock or just go in like I always do? This week's events had really knocked me for a loop. I debated for half a minute, and then decided to just barge on in. After all, I wanted it to be as if this fight had never happened. Just act normal, I told myself as I opened the door.

Greg was standing by the coffee table pulling containers out of a large paper bag. He looked at me and smiled: "Right on time. The food just got here."

I smiled back and said: "Shall I grab the plates?"

He nodded: "Yeah, and the beer."

I smiled and headed into the kitchen. It seemed just like old times.

**House**

When Elle walked in, it took all my will power to not take her right then and there. She looked so hot in that tiny tank and those shorts, and with her hair flowing long and loose. We hadn't slept together since Sunday and my desire was intense. I managed to restrain myself. I had plans for the evening. I didn't want it to be a slam-bam-thank-you-mam kind of night.

Elle brought the plates, utensils and beer from the kitchen and we sat down to eat. I flipped through the channels until I found "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and Elle almost choked on her food trying to tell me that she wanted to watch that. She pointed at the TV and waved her hand around.

She finally swallowed and said: "Oh, I love this movie. Can we watch it?"

I chuckled inwardly and tossed the remote on the coffee table.

"Sure, sweetheart," I replied.

She rewarded me with a big smile. I stole a shrimp out of her pad thai and waggled my eyebrows at her.

As I watched the movie, I realized that Elle reminded me of Karen Allen. She had that cute spunkiness, the spark in her eyes, that big smile.

We continued eating and I watched her rapt interest out of the corner of my eye.

Finally I asked: "Why do you like this movie so much?"

"Are you kidding? It is one of the best adventure flicks of all time. And Harrison Ford is so hot in this movie. I was 10 when this movie came out, and."

She paused, staring off into space.

I nudged her: "And?"

She pensively looked down at her pad thai and then said quietly: "and it was the first time I thought a guy was cute."

"You thought Harrison Ford was cute, huh?"

Elle just nodded, her concentration flicking back and forth between her food and the movie. There was something else going on. Her mood had quickly changed since we started this bit of conversation.

At the commercial, I commented: "You got quiet all of a sudden."

She gave me a small smile: "Sorry. I just realized that this is the last movie that I saw with my parents. I didn't remember that until now. We saw it the weekend before I left for camp. How weird to suddenly remember that."

She shrugged and tried for a more upbeat mood: "Anyway, it's still a great movie." She reached over and snagged a piece of my beef and popped it in her mouth with a grin.

She seemed determined to put this sad memory behind her and I was all for that. I really wanted this to be a pleasant evening together.

We finished eating and sat side-by-side watching the movie. There were still inches of space between us and I didn't like that. I draped my left arm over her shoulders; my right arm across her hips and pulled her right up next to me. At the contact, I saw a small smile appear on her face.

I planted a small kiss on top of her head. It was the first time I had kissed her all night. She sighed and snuggled into my shoulder. I buried my nose in her hair and that citrus smell enveloped me. I kissed her hair a couple of times and then I whispered: "Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?"

Elle shook her head: "No."

"Good, what about the rest of the weekend? Are you free?"

She turned to me with mischief in her eyes: "I'm free, but I'm not cheap." Then she started giggling.

I cracked a smile. There's my girl. I had her back. I scooped her up and pulled her into my lap. I lifted her tank top and planted a huge raspberry on her naked belly. That sent her into another giggling fit. I razzed her a few more times and relished the feel of her quivering body next to mine. I pulled her top down and sat her up on my lap, waiting until the giggling subsided.

Once she had quieted, I asked: "You know what's in my bedroom?"

She shook her head.

I looked into her beautiful blue eyes and said: "It's Christmas in my bedroom. I'm going to close my eyes and wish that Santa has brought me a _special_ present even though I've been a bad boy. I'm going to count to ten and then I'm going to walk down the hall and hope to find that Santa has brought my desire cuz I want to unwrap my present. So here goes."

I put my hands over my eyes and slowly started counting to ten. I felt her slip off of my lap and then I heard her feet on the wood floor as she scampered down the hall.

When I got to 'ten', I said it quite loudly and stood up. I slowly limped down the hall. I stopped at the bedroom door and peered in. Elle was leaning against the bed. Somewhere, she had found a red gift bow and stuck it on her head. She bit her lip nervously and said: "I couldn't find any wrapping paper."

Would she really have wrapped herself in paper? I would have to buy some and find out. I grinned at her and she smiled back. Dramatically I looked at the ceiling and said: "Thank you Santa!"

Elle blushed and giggled. She bit her lip again in such an enticing way. Hooking my cane on the doorknob, I stepped towards her until I could place one hand on each hip. I leaned down until my lips were mere inches from hers and whispered: "Thank you, Santa. It's just what I wanted."

I brushed my lips against hers. Her lips parted and she leaned her body against mine. I kissed her gently and slowly slid my tongue into her mouth. Tonight it was going to be all for her and I was going to take it slow and gentle. That is, until she can't take it anymore and begs me to fuck her hard.

My hands slipped under her tank top and teased her bare skin. She sighed appreciatively and leaned closer to me.

I started slowly pushing her top up and then I whispered in her ear: "May I take this off?"

"Yes" was the breathless reply.

I slid the top up and over her head. Elle assisted by raising her arms. Once I had the top off, I let it fall to the floor. My eyes went right to her breasts. She had on the cutest little bra with heart shaped snaps. One snap on each cup was open. I teased the opening on her left breast with my finger: "Nice. Did you wear this just for me?"

She shivered as I gently caressed her breast and softly whispered: "Yes."

Gawd, I loved it when she dressed for me. I slowly popped one of the snaps on her bra and said: "Are you my present? Do I get to unwrap you?"

Her small hand caressed my cheek. The look in her eyes was so tender as she said: "Yes, I'm yours. You can unwrap me."

Elle amazed me. I hadn't apologized to her. I sent her some flowers and indicated that she should come over for take-out. I hadn't had a chance to tell her about the trip to New York yet. I hadn't really done anything to make up with her and yet here she was, in my arms, dressed for my pleasure, eager for my touch. I didn't deserve her. I knew she could do so much better than me. But Wilson was right. She wanted me and I wanted her.

I popped another snap on her bra. I pressed my lips against her exposed skin. Elle shivered again and sighed: "Oh, cowboy."

I popped open the last snap and now I had full access to her nipple. I gently licked and suckled on it. Elle moaned and pressed closer to me. Meanwhile, my hands were busy at the waistband of her boxers. I slowly inched them down, caressing her skin as I went.

When the waistband reached the swell of her hips, I pulled away from her breast. I planted a gentle kiss on her lips and said: "Need to finish unwrapping my present."

Elle simply nodded, desire burning in her eyes.

I gave the boxers a good push and they fell around her ankles. Elle stepped out of them and kicked them away. I held her out at arm's length and took a good look. The panties had cute little snaps just like the bra and she had 2 of them popped open already. I ran my fingers down inside of the open cleft and smiled as she shivered when I reached her soft hair.

"So pretty, so soft," I whispered to her.

I slid my fingers deeper into her panties until I found her moist core. As I slid two fingers inside of her, she moaned and leaned her head back, exposing her lovely neck. My mark had faded away; I had to do something about that. At first I kissed and suckled her neck gently as I fingered her. As her passion grew, so did the intensity of my actions. I wanted my mark back so I suckled harder. My fingers curled, thrusting against her g-spot while my thumb caressed her sensitive clit.

Her hands clutched my upper arms tighter as she cried out: "Oh, Greg. Oh, that's so good." Her breath hitched and then she cried out: "Oh, Gawd, I'm gonna come. Ooooooooh. Oh, Greeeeeeeeeg."

Her walls clamped around my fingers and there was a fresh flow of moisture as her orgasm hit. I continued to thrust until it became too much for her and she moaned out: "No. No more."

I slowly eased my fingers out of her panties. They were sopping wet with her juices. Her eyes were half-closed but she watched as I brought my wet fingers to her lips and traced them, leaving a trail of wetness behind. Then I stuck my fingers in my mouth and licked the rest of her juices off. Her eyes were amazing; the blue color had deepened and they were full of passion and desire. I moved my hand to the back of her head and pulled her closer to me. My lips gently brushed hers and my tongue slowly licked her lips tasting her scent on her mouth. She moaned against my mouth and I felt her hands cupping my face.

Elle pressed up against me and deepened the kiss. I parted my lips and let her tongue go exploring in my mouth. We kissed until we ran out of air, and then we reluctantly parted.

Her hands ran down my chest and she said: "You have too many clothes on."

I smirked: "You want to unwrap me?"

"Yes" came her eager reply.

She pushed up my t-shirt and together we pulled it over my head. Elle ran her fingers through my chest hair. Then she planted a kiss right over my heart and rubbed her face against my skin. Wrapping her arms around my waist, she squeezed me tightly, planting several more kisses on my chest. She giggled with delight and I couldn't help but smile. She was so cute, so giggly happy. Little did she know that I had more fun planned for her.

I felt her hands fumbling with my belt buckle, but I wanted to take charge again.

"No, no." I whispered as I gently moved her hands away. "I haven't finished unwrapping my present yet."

I scooped her up in my arms and gently laid her on the bed. I took off my jeans, but left my boxers on. I crawled into bed next to her and started fondling her right breast.

"I didn't unwrap this one yet."

I slowly popped the snaps one by one, kissing the newly exposed skin. Elle purred with delight when I finally popped the last snap and zeroed in on her nipple. I gave her right nipple a good tongue bath while my thumb played with the other one. I nuzzled my face in the valley between her breasts while her fingers played with my hair. I tongued her left nipple a bit and then I looked up at her. She looked at me so lovingly that I thought my heart would explode.

The wheels in my brain started to whirl with negative messages. _Why would she want you? You're a crippled old bastard. You're going to fall in love and she's going to break your heart. Then you'll be all alone. AGAIN._

I shoved those thoughts aside as I crashed my lips onto hers. As she returned my kiss with equal passion, I told myself that she wasn't going anywhere. I had cruelly pushed her away and yet, surprisingly, she had come right back. We both had our broken bits, but together we could be whole.

I wanted to stretch out our lovemaking, but my desire was overwhelming. I couldn't wait any longer. As we kissed, I popped the snaps on her panties and shoved my fingers inside again. She moaned against my mouth and bucked her hips up to me. Elle ran her hands down my body and slipped them inside my boxers. I groaned as I felt her small hand wrap around my shaft. She thumbed the head, smearing the pre-cum around.

I had to get inside of her or I was going to explode in her hand. I shoved my boxers down, freeing Mt Gregory and then I pulled her panties off. I gently pushed her thighs apart and lay in between them. Her pussy looked so luscious that I felt compelled to have at least a quick snack. I lapped her core from top to bottom a few times and then I pressed my tongue right against her clit. Elle moaned and shivered with pleasure. I pressed harder and she moaned louder.

Huskily I said: "Tell me what you want." As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I pressed my tongue to her clit again.

Elle cried out: "Oh! I want you inside of me. Fuck me, Greg, fuck me."

She wiggled her hips increasing the tongue pressure on her clit.

"Are you suuurreee that's what you want? You seem to like my tongue right here."

I wiggled my tongue back and forth on her clit, alternating the pressure and then finally pressed my flat tongue hard against it.

Elle screamed with pleasure: "YES! Please, oh, please, Greg, fuck me."

The 'please' put me over the edge. I needed to be inside of her now.

Quickly I moved on top of her, supporting my weight mostly on my left elbow and knee. With my right hand, I used Mt Gregory to tease her entrance as she bucked against me, trying to get him inside. When she howled with frustration, I pushed my way in.

Two quick thrusts and I was balls deep inside of her. I felt like I was right where I belonged. I moaned at the wonderful sensations. She was so tight and so wet that I knew I wouldn't last long. I tried to distract my brain, but she felt so good that mentally reciting baseball statistics wasn't working tonight.

I hooked my right arm under her left leg and lifted it so I could thrust deeper. Her walls grasped my cock tighter and I knew she was close. She cried out as her orgasm hit, her walls gripping my cock and coating it with a fresh flood of moisture.

A couple more thrusts and I exploded deep inside of her, crying out her name. I rode out my orgasm with a few more thrusts and then I collapsed on top of her, my face buried in the crook of her neck. When I stopped panting, I kissed and nuzzled her neck. Finally I lifted my head to plant a kiss on her mouth, and I was startled to see one lone tear slide down her cheek.

I caught it with my thumb and brought it to my mouth. Her eyes were brimming with tears but that was the only one that fell.

Before I could even figure out what to say, she whispered: "I missed you."

Emotions welled up inside of me. I had hurt her badly and yet here she was. I didn't know what to say. As glib as my mouth could be on most occasions, I was no damn good at apologizing.

I floundered for something to say: "Elle, I'm an ass. I didn't mean,"

She didn't let me finish. She laid a finger across my lips to shush me: "You might not have meant what you said, but you _did_ mean to push me away by saying those things. I don't really understand why you did that."

She paused as if giving me time to explain myself, but I couldn't. I buried my face in the crook of her neck so I could avoid her eyes.

Her fingers gently stroked my hair and the back of my neck. "And I let you push me away. I didn't fight back. I should have, but my self-esteem has taken a beating over the last year. I keep thinking that I'm going to wake up and find that this isn't real, that it just has been a really great dream."

She gently caressed my cheek with her thumb and then she said: "And, yeah, you are an ass, but you're _my_ ass." She bit my shoulder to emphasize her point. I found myself hoping it would leave a mark, her brand on me.

She gently coaxed my head up and planted a slow, sweet kiss on my lips. Then she leaned back on the pillow, smiled seductively and asked: "So Santa was good to you?"

I returned her smile and chuckled in amazement. She was letting me off the hook for my horrible behavior. I couldn't believe my luck.

I kissed her gently and said: "Yes, he was very good to me. I really, really like my present."

As she caressed my face, she said: "I got a present today too. I got this huge bouquet of flowers. They are so beautiful."

I planted a little kiss on the corner of her mouth: "I'm glad you liked them."

She kissed my cheek and said: "You remembered that I like sunflowers."

"Sunflowers and tulips."

She licked my earlobe and whispered: "I'm impressed."

I chuckled inwardly. That impressed her? She really hasn't had a man who has given her what she deserves. Well, I hoped this weekend would be a decent start.

I wrapped my arms around her and rolled us until she was on top of me. Her legs straddled my hips and she rested her head on my shoulder. Her fingers played with my chest hair. I ran my hand down her length, stroking and caressing her back and ass. I loved the feel of her body against mine.

After a few minutes of delicious cuddling, I said: "Sweetheart, when you get home from work tomorrow, I want you to pack a bag for the weekend."

Her head popped up and she stared at me with big eyes. "We're going away for the weekend? Where?"

"Shhhh, You don't want to spoil the surprise, do you?"

I could see that she was just barely containing her excitement. "No, no. I don't want to spoil it. I just need to know what to pack. Casual or dressy clothes?"

"Hmmmm. Mostly casual but bring something kinda dressy for Saturday night. Don't forget your bathing suit. And bring lots of this kinda stuff," I said, as I fingered her bra, the only piece of clothing that was still on her body.

Elle smiled. "I can do that. I think I just might have one or two surprises for you too."

I grinned: "I can't wait, sweetheart."

"Neither can I," she said right before her lips crashed down on mine.


	29. Chapter 29

The Elle Word Chapter 29

**_Wilson_**

I anxiously waited for House to show up on Friday. I was dying to know if he had made up with Elle. I shouldn't have given it a second thought. I could tell by the way he barged into my office that all was forgiven.

"Top o' the morning to ya, Jimmy my boy. How are ya today? Get any from the missus last night?" He plopped his ass down on my sofa and sat there grinning like an idiot and twirling his cane.

I stood up and shut the door so that the whole hospital wouldn't hear our conversation. "No, I didn't, but I'm thinking you did. You don't get this happy from your right hand and Jenna Jameson vids."

He smirked: "You're so right."

I perched on the edge of my desk and said: "So I take it that you made up with Elle?"

He leaned back against the couch, eyes closed, still grinning like a fool. "Yup. We made up real good. Twice for her, once for me, but it was so excellent."

"That much detail I don't need. What I am curious to know is what it took to get her back in your bed."

He stopped twirling his cane. He opened his eyes and stared right at me. "Not nearly as much as I thought it would. I sent some flowers to her office with a note inviting her over for dinner. I sent a really big bouquet to her apartment. She loved them. She was so impressed that I remembered her favorite flower. She came over, we had dinner and I didn't even get to tell her about the trip before we ended up in bed. And she was wearing this really sexy lingerie. She dressed for me, before she came over."

I could hear the awe in his voice, the complete surprise at her actions.

"I told you, man. You just needed to reach out to her. She knew you were in pain and didn't mean all that crap. She just wanted you back. She just wanted YOU."

He had a puzzled look on his face: "I know. But I still can't believe it."

He shook his head as if to realign his thoughts and said: "So we're leaving for New York right after work. Can't wait to see the look on her face when we pull up to the Ritz. I'm sooooo getting laid tonight."

I laughed: "Yeah, you are. Just try to get through the day without getting into trouble with Cuddy."

"Oh, yeah, I'm hiding in my new spot. See ya Monday."

He limped quickly out of my office.

I chuckled and went back to my paperwork. It was good to see him happy again. Elle was good for him and I hoped he wouldn't fuck it up again anytime soon.

**_ELLE_**

Work dragged today. I kept glancing at the clock, but it was ticking so slowly. I couldn't wait to get out of the hospital, as I wanted to run a quick errand before I went home to pack. Finally it was 4:30. I said good-bye to my co-workers and rushed to my car. I headed to the mall and made a quick stop to pick up a couple of surprises for Greg. Then I headed home. I pulled out my suitcase and started going through my clothes deciding what to bring. I couldn't imagine where he was taking me so it was hard to choose. I finally decided on a dress with some strappy sandals for Saturday night. It was nice but not overboard dressy. If Greg wore a jacket, it would be just right. I finally managed to pack enough clothes including several sexy pieces of lingerie. I took a quick shower and put on a nice red lacy bra and matching panties. Over that I pulled on some tight black jeans and a red knit V-neck blouse. I had just slipped on some black flats when I heard my door open. A moment later, Greg walked into my room.

As he walked in, he said: "Ready to go, sweetheart?" Then he stopped in his tracks. With a glint in his eyes, he pointedly looked me up and down.

He growled: "Me likey. Come 'ere."

He held out his arms and I walked right into them. He squeezed me tightly, lifting me off the ground for a brief second. He seemed so happy and relaxed. It was so nice to see him this way that I just started giggling.

"What's so funny, little girl? Hmmm? I'll give you something to laugh at."

He started tickling my ribs.

I squealed: "No, no. Don't tickle me."

I squirmed and tried to get away, but he held me tightly with his left arm while he tickled me with his right hand.

He stopped after a moment looking extremely pleased with himself. I was worn out from laughing and my body sagged against his. He held me close and brushed my hair away from my neck. As he nibbled on my neck, I could hear him mutter: "Mine. All mine." I could feel his hardness pressing against me.

As he continued to nibble, I said: "You know. We don't have to go anywhere. We could just stay here."

He raised his head and gave me one of his faux serious looks: "What? No way. Everything we can do here, we can do there plus a bunch of other stuff. Are you ready?"

I nodded: "Yes. I'm all packed."

"Good", he said as his mouth claimed mine. He kissed me deeply for a minute, his hand on the back of my head keeping me as close as possible.

He released me and I rocked back on my heels trying to regain my balance after such a passionate kiss.

His hand slipped down to my ass and gave it a squeeze. "Grab your bag and let's go. We're taking your car, it has a better sound system, but I'm driving."

I trailed behind him with my suitcase and asked: "Still not telling me where we're going?"

"Nope. You'll figure it out soon enough when we get close to our destination."

We headed over to US Highway 1 and then got on I-95 heading north. Greg had brought several of his favorite CD's and we were listening to John Mayall as the miles rolled by. We didn't talk, but it was a comfortable silence. I stared out at the passing scenery, my hand resting on his shoulder. He hummed along with the music. When we left I-95 and merged into I-78, I turned to him and asked: "Are we going to the city?"

"Ding, ding, ding, ding. And the lady guesses it on the first try. There will be an amazing prize waiting for you at our final destination."

I couldn't hide my excitement: "Really? We're going to the city for the weekend."

He glanced at me, a grin gracing his face. "Yeah, babe. You OK with that?"

I squealed: "Oh, yeah. I love going to New York. Theresa and I come every year. We go Christmas shopping and see the tree and stuff like that."

He reached his hand over and placed it on my thigh. "Well, it's not December, so tell me what else you like about New York."

I felt like bouncing in my seat. I rested my hand on top of his and said: "Oh Gawd, where do I start? I like going to that French bookstore by Rockefeller Center and Papaya King for hot dogs. The Godiva store on Madison and 66th. Junior's cheesecake in Grand Central. There's Artie's deli, and Tasti-Delite. Oh, and Central Park. I just love Central Park. The Strand bookstore and all the big music stores. I could spend hours in them. Have you ever been to Bleecker Bob's in the West Village? You would really like that place. He has a ton of rare and out-of-print vinyl. Oh, and I love just walking around the city, but especially in the Village. There's always something new and interesting to see."

"So, food, shopping and walking."

I giggled: "Yeah, what do you like to do in New York?"

"I like getting a really great steak, hearing some nice music."

"Is that what you want to do while we're here?

He smirked: "Maybe. We'll see if we manage to get out of bed long enough to go anywhere."

"Silly. I told you we could do that at home."

He gave me that smile, the one that made me weak in the knees and wet in the panties.

"Wait until you see the room. You may not want to leave, plus we can get anything we want delivered."

"Really? Can we get some Junior's cheesecake delivered?"

He grinned mischievously: "What flavor do you like?"

"I like the raspberry swirl and the chocolate mousse."

He simply smiled and didn't say anything more.

We rode on for a few more miles and then I asked: "So where are we staying?"

He simply said: "You'll see. Pop in that other John Mayall CD for me, will ya sweetheart?"

I didn't ask him anything more as we rode towards the city. He wanted to surprise me, so I just sat back and enjoyed the rest of the ride.

**_HOUSE_**

I couldn't wait to see the look on her face when we pulled up to the hotel. She was going to be really surprised. I was pleased that she told me some of the things that she liked about NYC, cuz I hoped to surprise her with a few of those things. Right off the bat, we were having Junior's Cheesecake for dessert tonight. I'd get the concierge to arrange to have some delivered to our suite later on tonight.

I wanted to indulge her as much as possible. Saturday night I had already arranged for us to dine at Ben Benson's and go to a jazz club afterwards. These were things that I enjoy and I thought she would like them also. But I also wanted to include some of the things she had mentioned. I could do some walking, but not a lot. Wilson had suggested a carriage ride in Central Park; that just might be a good idea. Elle loved the park, a carriage ride was romantic and I wouldn't have to walk. Browsing music stores sounded like fun and we take a cab there. There was a Godiva store inside of Rockefeller Center near the French bookstore that she mentioned; we could certainly visit that. Actually there was too much to do in such a short period of time, but at least I had plenty of ideas. If we ever managed to get out of the suite, we had lots of choices.

The Ritz had valet parking. As I pulled up to the front, I watched Elle's jaw drop. Her eyes were huge as she turned to me and whispered: "Are we staying here?"

I smiled and nodded. The look on her face was priceless. Before she could say anything else, parking attendants swooped down upon us and opened our doors. We stepped out and I handed the keys to the guy, telling him we had only 2 bags. They quickly took the bags out and headed in with them. I offered Elle my left arm. "Shall we, my dear?"

She nodded shyly and took my arm. We slowly walked into the lobby. My leg was stiff after the long drive. We checked in quickly and the bellhop took us to our room. He took our bags into the bedroom while Elle wandered slowly around the suite. I tipped him excessively and placed an order for the cheesecake. He assured me that it would be delivered within 2 hours and hurried off.

I had just closed the door behind him when Elle grabbed my arm. She whispered: "Greg, this place has 2 bathrooms!"

I chuckled inwardly. "Why are you whispering?"

"I don't know. It's very lavish. It's, um, I don't know. I never stayed anywhere like this before."

"Do you like it?" I momentarily worried that she didn't.

"Oh, yes, it's beautiful. It's just. It must be so expensive." I could see her swallow hard. "You didn't have to do all this."

I took her in my arms and said: "Oh, but I wanted to. I wanted us to have a nice weekend together. Look out the window; there's Central Park. We can get room service. And you know what is only a couple of blocks away?"

She smiled at me and said: "FAO Schwartz."

Now it was my turn to be surprised. Of all the things that were close by this hotel, how did she know I was thinking about the world's biggest toy store? Maybe she knew me better than I thought.

I smirked: "That's right, baby. BIG toy store. We can go play there, what do ya say?"

She smiled: "Yeah, I'd like that. But you gotta see this place. Come on, you gotta see the bathrooms."

She dragged me into the one closest to the bedroom. It was lovely. It had a large marble tub, big enough for two, and a separate large shower stall. There were plush his and her bathrobes and a vast array of soaps and lotions set around the tub.

Elle pointed inside the tub: "Look. See the jets. It's a Jacuzzi tub."

I nuzzled her neck: "Nice. Wanna take a bath with me later?"

She sighed: "Oh, yes."

Damn, I felt my cock twitch already. This was going to be a good night.

I took her hand: "Let's go check out the bedroom."

We walked into the bedroom. It had a huge king-size bed with lots of pillows. You could see the view of Central Park from the bed. There were a couple of plush chairs, a desk and a low backless chaise lounge at the foot of the bed. There was a very spacious, comfortable feel to the room.

Elle turned to face me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "So this is my prize, huh?"

I bent down and brushed her lips with mine. "Yes, a weekend in New York at the Ritz-Carlton with your cowboy. You likey, or did you want the consolation prize instead?"

She nuzzled her face against my chest and said: "Oh, me likey very much. I can't think of anything better."

"Good. I'm starving. What do you say to room service, and then a nice long bath?"

"I'd say that sounds fabulous."

We sat down on the sofa to check out the room service menu. Elle's eyes popped when she saw the prices, but I placed my hand over that side of the menu and said: "You're not allowed to look at the right-hand side of any menu this weekend. Or any time for that matter. If I take you anywhere that involves a menu, I want you to order whatever you want. OK?"

She nodded and whispered: "OK."

She took me up on it and ordered onion soup, a mixed green salad and salmon risotto. I got mini crab cakes for an appetizer and steak au poivre with country style potatoes. We ate in front of the TV. The Ritz had about a gazillion channels and a selection of DVD's also. I surfed the channels while we ate. The food was fabulous. We shared bites with each other. I found that I really enjoyed feeding her and watching her enjoy her food. We ate until we were stuffed and then settled back to watch some TV. My bare feet were parked on the coffee table while Elle was snuggled up next to me, her legs curled under her.

About a half hour later, there was a knock at the door. She started to get up, but I stopped her. I opened the door to that same bellhop who pushed in a small cart with a covered silver platter on top of it.

"Your dessert, sir," he announced. I thanked and tipped him. He grabbed the cart with the remnants of our dinner and made his exit.

I took the platter and set it down on the coffee table. "Ready for dessert, madam?" I asked.

She looked as happy as a little kid at a birthday party when the cake hits the table. She bit her lower lip enticingly and said: "yes".

I lifted the lid and announced: "Ta-Da!"

Elle squealed: "Oh my Gawd. Junior's! You got me cheesecake! How did you do that?"

"I told you sweetheart. This is New York. You can get anything delivered."

I cut a small slice of each flavor and placed it on a plate for her. As she took it from me, she said: "You're going to spoil me."

I chuckled: "You said that like it's a bad thing." I cupped her face in my hands and said: "I wanna spoil my girl."

She blushed and softly said: "Thank you."

I watched as she took a bite and then a blissful look appeared on her face.

"Oh, you gotta have some, cowboy. It's SO good."

I let her feed me a couple of bites. It was delicious, but I was really stuffed from the steak. We decided to put the rest in the mini-refrigerator and bathe for a while. We could have more dessert later.

I watched as Elle bent over the tub, adjusting the faucets until she got the temperature just right. It was a large tub so it would take a while to fill. She stood and walked back to the vanity, wrapping her hair up in a loose bun. I smiled knowing that later on I would be letting her hair down. I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her. She smiled at our reflection in the mirror. I started kissing her cheek and nuzzling her neck, while watching her reaction out of the corner of my eye. I reached for the hem of her shirt and slowly pulled it up. Elle lifted her arms and allowed me to pull it over her head. We watched in the mirror as my hands stroked her bare tummy upwards towards her breasts. She looked stunning in that red bra. I nibbled on her neck as my hands toyed with her lace-covered breasts. Eyes half-closed, she sighed as she leaned against my body. My hands slid down to the jeans and I started to unfasten them. I could tell by her shallow breaths that she was becoming very aroused. I slowly pulled her zipper down and pushed her jeans down to reveal matching red panties. I had one hand splayed across her belly and the other hand dipping into her panties to play with her soft hair. I whispered to her: "Stunning visuals, hmmm?"

Elle sighed: "Oh, yes."

We stared at our reflection as my hands roamed over her body. I reached up and popped her bra, slowly sliding the straps off of her shoulders. I cupped her breasts and toyed with her nipples.

She whispered: "Take your shirt off. I want to feel your skin against mine."

My hands left her body long enough to pull my shirt over my head, then I wrapped my arms around her again.

She sighed, leaning back against me. We watched my hands caressing her body.

Elle murmured: "I want you."

Mt Gregory sprang to full attention and I pressed him against her ass.

Nibbling on her neck, I said huskily: "Turn around."

Her hand reached up to my cheek, her eyes, hooded with lust, but her gaze never leaving mine. "No, like this. I can see your face in the mirror."

She was willing to try this position as long as she could see me. That was all the encouragement that I needed. I pushed my jeans and boxers down and pressed my naked body against her. She slowly ground her ass against me. I groaned with pleasure. I pulled her panties down and admired her body in the mirror. My hand slid down to caress her hair and then moved lower. I parted her folds and found her delightfully wet. I slid my fingers inside of her and rubbed her clit with my thumb. My left hand cupped her breast, my thumb caressing her nipple.

Elle was quite aroused and was grinding her ass against my cock. I wanted inside of her badly. I nudged her legs a bit further apart. Grasping my dick in my hand, I teased her entrance with the head. She bent over the vanity and rose on her toes to give me better access. After teasing her entrance for a minute, I slowly entered her. I watched her face, prepared to stop if she showed any sign of distress. But there was none. I only saw lust and pleasure on her face. With one hand on each hip, I started thrusting slowly at first, and then faster. Elle moaned and thrust back against me. We quickly fell into a rhythm. I could tell by her breathing and by the look of her face that she was already close. I slipped one hand down to her clit and pressed against it. Her mouth opened in an 'O' of pleasure.

I could tell by the way her walls were clamping down on me that she was about to come. She had been using her hands to support herself on the vanity, but now she lifted one hand to the mirror. She cupped the reflection of my cheek and looked right into my eyes. I don't think I had ever been so turned on in my life.

Elle struggled to keep her eyes open as she came. My name left her lips as a sigh as I felt the familiar flood of moisture signaling her orgasm. I wasn't as quiet as I exploded into her body. I moaned her name loudly, and then collapsed against her, my body suddenly boneless and unable to stand.

I took a couple of deep breaths and then managed to pull myself up. I didn't want to squash her against the vanity. Elle leaned back against me and I wrapped my arms around her. We stood there for a moment, just enjoying the feel of our bodies touching.

Suddenly Elle cried out: "Oh my Gawd, the tub."

We quickly looked over at it. The water was close to the top, but not overflowing yet. Elle moved towards it, but her pants were puddled around her ankles, so her forward progress was hindered. She ended up sprawled on the floor, laughing at her clumsiness. She managed to kick away her clothes and crawled over to the tub in time. She turned off the tap and then crawled back to me. She untangled my jeans and boxers from around my ankles so that I would not end up on the floor also. I pulled her up from the floor and set her on the vanity. Kneeing her legs apart, I stood in between her thighs. I cupped her face and gently kissed her lips. I felt her hand on the back of my neck encouraging me deeper and I obliged. In my arms was the sexiest, sweetest woman I had ever known. I briefly wondered how long it would take me to fuck this up again, but I quickly pushed that thought out of my mind. It wouldn't happen this weekend.

I broke this kiss and said: "Come on sweetheart, let's take a bath." She took my hand and I led her towards the tub.

The water was the perfect temperature, nice and hot. It felt wonderful on my leg. Elle let me ease myself in and get comfortable, and then she arranged herself in between my spread legs. She leaned back against my chest and let out a contented sigh. We just sat like that for a while, blissfully snug in each other's arms. When the water started to cool, Elle let some out and refilled the tub with more hot water. We took turns soaping each other with the body wash. It was both soothing and sensual to have Elle's hands washing me all over. When the bath water cooled off again, we decided it was time to get out. We hopped in the shower for a quick rinse to get rid of the soap residue.

I couldn't keep my hands off of her. I needed to touch her, caress her, or hold her in my arms. Hotels are wonderful in that they never run out of hot water. We stood under the warm shower for a long while, our bodies pressed together, our lips locked in passionate kisses. I finally decided to turn off the shower before my leg protested standing for so long.

The towels were large and fluffy. I wrapped her up in one and pulled her over by the john so I could sit down to dry her off. Once Elle was dry, I dressed her in one of the luxurious robes provided by the hotel. She insisted on returning the favor and drying me off. Once I was dry and dressed in a matching robe, we strolled back to the living room and plopped on the couch. We were both extremely relaxed from the bath and the sex, so we snuggled on the couch and I surfed through the channels. There was nothing on so I turned off the TV and put on the stereo. The last person staying in this suite must have been into crooner music as this station played a lot of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and similar artists. It was relaxing music, so I left it on, and we hummed along to the tunes. I shouldn't have been surprised that Elle knew most of the songs; she had an amazing repertoire of music.

We sat snuggled against each other while we listened. Elle was nuzzling and gently kissing my neck. I turned my head to kiss her and happened to notice the view from the window.

I gently tugged her to her feet: "Hey, come over here and see the lights of the big city."

Hand in hand we walked over to the window to take in the view. I wrapped my arm around her and she leaned into me as we looked out at the city. Deano was crooning 'Everybody Loves Somebody Sometimes' and we started to gently sway to the music. I turned Elle to face me and took her in my arms. My leg prohibited me from really dancing, but I thought I could sway a bit with her. The thick robes prevented us from having the close body contact that I desired. So I pushed hers off of her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. My hands went into her hair and let it out of the bun, her long locks cascading down her back. Meanwhile, Elle was untying the sash and opening my robe. I pressed her to me and the skin-to-skin contact was delicious. I picked up her hand and after kissing her palm, placed it on my cheek, holding it there with my own hand. Her other arm snaked around my waist. She nuzzled her face against my chest and planted a kiss over my heart. I felt myself smiling; it was so cute the way she did that.

Perry Como was up next, singing 'It's Impossible'. Elle's head rested on my chest as we continued to sway to the song. At another time of my life, I might have found this to be cheesy, but now it felt just right. I kissed the top of her head and heard her make a contented sigh. I smiled; maybe it wasn't so hard to do romantic.

We continued swaying into the next song. This time it was Elvis, crooning 'And I Love You So'.

_And I love you so_

_The people ask me how,_

_How I've lived till now._

_I tell them I don't know._

_I guess they understand_

_How lonely life has been._

_But life began again_

_The day you took my hand._

The lyrics really hit home for me. Since Stacy's departure, I had walled myself off to keep from getting hurt again. I had been lonely but dealt with it, figuring it was the lesser of two evils. With Elle here, there was light in my life again.

_And yes, I know how lonely life can be._

_The shadows follow me, and the night won't set me free._

_But I don't let the evening get me down_

_Now that you're around me._

Elle's arms tightened around me. I wondered if the lyrics were getting to her too. I kissed the top of her head. We were both scared of getting hurt again. I had just about fucked it up this week. I hated to admit it, but I owed Wilson a big one. There was nowhere else I wanted to be, but right here, right now, with Elle in my arms.

We swayed until the end of the song. I bent down and kissed her gently on the lips. "Ready for bed?"

She nodded and said softly: "Yes."

I clicked off the stereo and hand in hand, we walked into the bedroom together.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

I was startled from my sleep by Elle's screams. I groggily realized that she must have been having a helluva nightmare. I quickly flicked on the bedside lamp. I started talking to her soothingly in French and placed her hand on my cheek. She flinched away from my touch, curling herself into a small tight ball as she sobbed.

That was strange. She hadn't had a nightmare in a while, but she was always reassured by touching my face. Now, every time I touched her, she jerked away. Finally I stopped trying and just talked soothingly to her and after a while, her sobs subsided.

She finally let me put my arms around her, but her body remained tight and rigid. Her hands were fisted and her arms were crossed over her chest.

I tried to get her to look at me. I stroked her hair away from her face and said: "Sweetheart, are you OK?"

Elle glanced at me and quickly looked away, but not before I saw the fear in her eyes.

"Baby, it's me. It's Greg. You're safe. Baby, look at me. There's no one here but us. It's OK."

Elle kept her head down; she wouldn't meet my eyes. I didn't pressure her, but I was curious by this reaction. In the past, she was always comforted by my touch, but tonight she shied away from me.

Then something occurred to me. "Sweetheart, this wasn't your usual nightmare, was it?"

She shook her head, still refusing to meet my eyes.

"It was something new, one you never had before, right?"

Elle gave a quick nod.

"Do you want to tell me what it was about?"

She shook her head much more vehemently this time.

I was getting frustrated. She wouldn't talk to me and her body remained stiff. She clutched the bed sheets tightly around her body and shivered.

"Are you cold, sweetheart?"

She nodded.

I got out of bed and limped over to the closet. There were a couple of blankets on the shelf and I grabbed one and laid it gently over her. She pulled it up under her chin and I could just barely hear her when she whispered: _"Merci."_

I grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. She flinched but I hung on until I got it. Her pulse was fast. She seemed to still be in a state of fear or panic or something. I just couldn't figure it out. It had been 20 minutes since she woke up screaming. In the past, she has always calmed down by now.

I limped out into the other room and grabbed the bottle of scotch and a glass.

When I returned to the bedroom, she was still lying in the same position, staring straight ahead. I poured her a double shot and sat down next to her.

"Sweetheart, sit up. You need to drink this."

She glanced at the glass, and slowly started sliding towards the head of the bed. She kept the blanket clutched around her body. I plumped the pillows against the headboard and she sagged back against them. When she was settled, I handed her the glass. I watched as she first took a small sip and then a bigger one. Finally she knocked the whole glass back. She sighed, closed her eyes and leaned back against the pillows. Suddenly she gasped and her eyes popped open staring straight at me. She was trembling and I grabbed the glass before she could drop it.

"Sweetheart, what is it? You need to talk to me. I've never seen you react like this. You haven't had a nightmare in a long time."

She turned her head and looked away from me, clutching the blanket harder.

_Oh shit._ "You've had them recently? Did you have one when we were sleeping apart?"

She nodded and held up 2 fingers.

"You had nightmares on 2 nights when we were sleeping apart?"

She nodded again.

"Were they like this one?"

She shook her head and in a soft voice said: "No. They were my usual nightmare." She snorted: "My usual nightmare. That sounds great, doesn't it? Gawd, I'm such a basket case."

She leaned forward and hugged her legs, her chin resting on top of her knees.

I was grateful that she was finally talking. "You're not a basket case, sweetheart. Something's upset you and it comes out in your nightmares. Can you tell me about it? Maybe we can figure out what's bothering you."

She snorted: "Believe me. You don't want to her about this one."

That worried me. Not that she ever wanted to talk about them, but her whole demeanor this time was so different. It was an anomaly and I was quite disturbed by it.

I scooted over so that I was closer to her. I tentatively put my arms around her and was pleased when she did not flinch away this time. I hugged her a little bit tighter and she finally leaned into my embrace.

I whispered to her: "I want you to tell me. I want to be here for you, the way you were here for me last week."

A sob escaped her lips and she turned and flung her arms around my neck. I held and rocked her while she cried. Finally her tears subsided and she said: "You don't want to know. It's too upsetting.

"I can take it."

"It was kinda like my other nightmare. Someone broke in and he was raping me. I was on my stomach and he was on top on me. Only we were on the bed, not on the floor. And he kept talking to me. He was saying: 'You like this, I know you like this. Why won't you admit that you like it? Say it, say you like it.' He wouldn't stop talking, trying to get me to say that I liked it."

She looked up at me with tears running down her face. "It was your voice, Greg. And when I looked over my shoulder at the man on top of me, it was you.''

I was stunned. "I was raping you? I was the one raping you up the ass in this nightmare?"

Elle nodded and covered her face with her hands. "I didn't want to tell you. I knew it would upset you."

I thought I would blow a gasket. This was because of all the horrible things that I said to her on Tuesday night. No wonder she kept jerking away from my touch. I had just been raping her in her dream.

I was shocked back into reality by her tearful pleas: "I'm sorry, Greg. I'm really sorry. Please don't be mad. I don't want to spoil our weekend."

There was no way I was letting her blame herself for this. I cupped her face and forced her to look at me. "Stop apologizing. You have NOTHING to be sorry for."

I hated to see the tears that were leaking out of her eyes, knowing that I had done this.

She whispered: "You're not mad at me?"

"No, sweetheart. You should be mad at me. This is my fault."

I threw myself down on the bed, covering my face with my hands. For the first time in a very long time, I felt ashamed of my behavior.

I felt her hand on my chest and I grasped it with one of mine. Her nose was half clogged from crying so much and she made this little squeaky noise every time that she inhaled. I opened my eyes just as she was leaning towards me. She cupped my cheek with her hand and I pressed against it. Then she leaned down and gave me a small kiss on the lips.

"It's not your fault, cowboy."

I had to own up. I owed it to her. I sat up and clutched her by the shoulders. Firmly I said: "Yes, it is. If I had not said all those things to you on Tuesday night, this would not have happened. I planted those thoughts in your mind and they came out in your nightmare. Elle, I would never do those things to you. I swear."

Hesitantly she said: "So, you don't. Um, you don't want kinky sex or role-playing."

"No. I just said those things to push you away. I don't like anal sex and I certainly don't want to watch you giving blowjobs to strangers. You're mine and I want you all to myself. I would NEVER share you."

Softly I continued: "And I would never rape you or pretend to. I am not a nice person, but I would never hurt you physically. I know I knocked you off the bed the other night."

She stopped me: "You were in so much pain you didn't realize it. You would have never done it otherwise."

She was still excusing my behavior. I couldn't understand why she was so good to me. Perhaps Wilson was right. I looked into her eyes and was relieved to see that the fear was gone. It was replaced by something else. It was a gentle tender look. How could she feel that way after all I had done to her this week? What the hell did she see in me?

I flopped back down on the bed. "Elle. You deserve someone so much better than me. Someone who will treat you the way that you deserved to be treated."

Elle looked pointedly around at the room, and said: "This is pretty nice if you ask me."

She lay down next to me and put her head on my shoulder. "You are good to me. We had a bit of a setback this week, that's all. We'll get past it."

I caressed her face: "You're so beautiful. You could have anyone. You don't have to settle for this old cripple."

Elle laughed: "You know, for a guy who has such a huge ego 99 of the time, it's surprising that you doubt yourself this way. You are an amazing man and I really care for you. I only want you."

My heart swelled, but I had to snark: "Really? What if Harrison Ford walked into the room and wanted you?"

She bit her lip: "Well, he is on my list. I could just have sex with him the one time, and you could have sex with someone on your list."

"Like Angelina Jolie?"

"Yeah, exactly."

I smiled at her: "I'd turn her down. She couldn't hold a candle to you."

She giggled: "Really? What if it were the two of us? Are you going to lay there and tell me that you wouldn't want a threesome?"

I chuckled: "Oh Gawd, woman. No man would turn down a threesome but you alone just about put me in a coma. As flattering as it would be to have two beautiful women all over me, I couldn't handle it. Two of you would kill me."

"But what a way to go," she said, waggling her eyebrows at me.

I guided her hand to my semi-erect shaft. She immediately grasped it and started to slowly stroke it.

I kissed her mouth and then said: "I only want you."

Her eyes lit up. Gracefully she climbed on top on me, never letting go of Mt Gregory. She kissed my forehead and then ran her tongue down the length of my nose, planting a little kiss on the tip. I reached up to kiss her but she pulled back.

"You want me?" she said in a small voice filled with wonder.

I took her face in my hands and said: "Yes, I want you."

She looked at me for a long minute, a small smile on her face.

"I'm all yours," she said as she simultaneously crashed her lips on mine and slid Mt. Gregory inside of her.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30

**_HOUSE_**

It was around 10AM when my bladder woke me. Elle was still sleeping peacefully, her head pillowed on my shoulder. I lay there for a few minutes drinking in her beautiful face. As much as I hated to dislodge her, my need was becoming urgent, so I gently slid a pillow under her head and moved my arm away. She let out a little sigh and then settled back down.

I limped to the bathroom, did my business and then swung through the living room for the room service menu before heading back to the bedroom. I sat down in one of the chairs and watched her sleep for a few minutes. I thought back to the events of late last night. I hated knowing that I had caused her a tremendous nightmare. It had been a bad week and I was determined to make up for it. 'A set-back', Elle had called it. She seemed more than willing to put it behind us and move forward. I still couldn't understand what she saw in me, but I was happy that she saw something worthwhile.

Then the light bulb went on. I just said I was happy. I'm happy? This is the strange feeling in my chest? I feel happy when I'm with Elle, ergo she makes me happy. I tried to analyze it: was it the newness of the relationship or something else? I tried to think back to the beginning weeks with Stacy. Had I been this happy with her? I must have been, but I couldn't remember. After all it was more than 10 years ago when we starting living together. It had been a long time since I felt this way, too damn long. I still felt I would screw it up again with Elle and probably irrevocably the next time, so I damn well better enjoy it while it lasts.

I took the menu and climbed on the bed, bouncing it a bit. She sighed and stirred a bit, but didn't wake up. I pulled the sheet off of her and bounced the bed some more. Her eyes opened partway as her hand groped for the sheet. I climbed on top on her naked body and said: "Looking for the covers?"

As her hands caressed my back, she murmured: "I was, but this is so much nicer."

My lips nibbled their way across her cheek until connecting gently with hers. A soft delicate kiss and then I whispered: "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

She smiled sleepily at me: "Yes, I did. And you?"

"Like a rock. That second orgasm really knocked me out."

Elle giggled: "I noticed. Better than a sleeping pill, huh?"

"Oh, so much better."

I nibbled on her neck for a minute and then said: "What do you say to some room service breakfast and then we go out and play?"

"Sounds good to me. I'm starving actually. Feel like I had a work out in the middle of the night."

"You did cuz you were on top doing all the work. That's why I let you sleep an extra 15 minutes after I woke up."

"Whoa! A whole extra 15 minutes! What a sweetheart." Elle playfully poked me in the ribs and I rolled off of her. I plumped the pillows up against the headboard and I leaned back on them, pulling her to me. I held the menu so that we could both read it. I decided on blueberry pancakes with bacon and Elle got a bagel platter complete with cream cheese, lox, tomatoes and eggs.

By the time we got out of bed, found our robes and slid them on, the bellman was knocking on the door with our food.

We ate in the living room, listening to some nice jazz on the stereo. The pancakes were extraordinary and I shared them with Elle. She in turn shared her breakfast with me. After we finished eating, we took a quick shower and got dressed.

We walked out onto Central Park South and turned right. FAO Schwartz was only 2 blocks away and I figured I could manage that. I had forgotten how long the cross-town blocks were; getting from 6th Avenue to 5th Avenue was like walking 5 blocks uptown. I had taken my meds so my leg didn't hurt so much, but it tired easily. Maybe Gus was right and I needed to strengthen the remaining thigh muscles. Swimming could really be the ticket; I'd have to think about that some more, but not now.

We made it to 5th Avenue and there was a convenient empty bench. I suggested to Elle that we sit for a few minutes and do a little people watching. I draped my arm over her shoulder and we made up stories about the people walking past. After 15 minutes or so, my leg felt better and we continued to FAO Schwartz.

It is the ultimate toy store. It is 3 huge floors packed with all kinds of fun stuff. When you walk into the first floor off of 5th Avenue, the room is a jungle of stuffed animals. From the tiniest turtle to a life-sized giraffe, you can find any type of animal here. They are not my thing, but I could tell that Elle liked them; she was constantly touching them as we passed by. There was a big display area of the store's signature pets: Patrick and Penelope, stuffed dogs with long floppy ears. Patrick was brown and Penelope was pink. Elle stroked Patrick's head as we passed by and then she stopped. "Oh Greg, feel how soft this is."

I humored her by petting the dog and she was right; it was very soft. I glanced at Elle; she had that little kid look on her face. Remembering how happy she was with the purple dog that I had won for her at the beach, I picked up a medium-sized Patrick and rubbed him against her face.

I said: "Patrick wants to lick your face."

Elle giggled and hugged the dog. The dog was big, about 2/3's her size. As she hugged him, I knew I had to buy him for her. She looked too irresistibly cute with that dog. She set him back down and we walked on. I would surprise her with him and have him sent to our hotel. We browsed around and then headed up to the second floor. It was a Saturday madhouse up there. We took our time strolling around, looking and playing with toys. After a couple of hours, we decided we had played enough and it was time to move on.

We headed towards the escalator and then Elle stopped me. Biting her lip, she said softly: "There's something I want to get you. But I don't want you to see it. I want it to be a surprise."

I grinned. I couldn't imagine what she was planning. But I could use this to my advantage. "OK. How about if I wait for you downstairs while you do your thing?"

She nodded eagerly, and after a quick kiss, I headed to the escalator. I hurried over to the display table and grabbed a medium sized Patrick dog. I took him over to the cashier, paid and asked for him to be delivered to our room at the Ritz. Elle would have a surprise waiting for her when we got back.

I waited for her by the front door. I was surprised when she appeared without a package.

"Hey, thought you were getting me a present." I stuck my lip out in a pout.

"I did, silly. It's being delivered to the hotel. That way we don't have to schlep it with us for the rest of the day."

I pulled her to me, softly kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear: "Clever girl." We hailed a cab on 5th Avenue and headed down to the Village. We walked around for a while, nibbled on a knish and a hot dog and poked our heads into various shops. We eventually made our way to Bleecker Bob's, cuz Elle wanted to show me the cool vinyl. It was actually quite impressive. I bought a couple of albums to add to my collection. We walked around a bit more, and when I tired, we grabbed a cab back to the hotel.

Two big bags from FAO Schwartz were sitting on the couch when we returned. It was easy to see which bag contained Patrick as one of his ears protruded from the bag. As I handed the bag to Elle, I grinned at the surprised look on her face. "But, Greg, you didn't have to get me anything. You planned this whole weekend."

"I rarely do things because I _have_ to. I wanted to get him for you. You two make a nice couple."

She laughed at my smirk and pulled Patrick out of the bag. She gave him a hug, and then tiptoed up to give me one. She kissed the shell of my ear and whispered: "Thank you."

I bussed her cheek and said: "You're welcome. Now, I heard something about a present for _moi_?"

Elle giggled and handed me the other bag. I was quite surprised when I opened it to see the remote-controlled Porsche that I had enjoyed playing with in the store. I felt the grin take over my face. This was so cool.

I gently kissed her lips and said: "This is terrific. Thank you sweetheart."

Shyly, she said: "You really like it?"

"Yes, I really like it. In fact, I can't wait to take it to school and show Jimmy. He's going to be SO jealous."

Elle giggled. I set the package back down on the couch and took her into my arms. Elle slipped her arms around my neck and our lips connected tenderly. After a gentle affectionate kiss, I said: "Come on. Let's lie down and take a nap before dinner."

Elle nodded in agreement and we headed into the bedroom. I stripped down to my boxers, Elle to her panties, and we crawled under the covers. We cuddled up together and quickly fell asleep.

We had dinner reservations at 8:00, so I had left a wake-up call for 6:30. I figured that was plenty of time to get ready. The nap was quite refreshing and I was looking forward to our evening together. We rarely went out. Most of the time we stayed in, enjoying take-out food and rented movies. I knew Elle was OK with that, but I felt she deserved more. I really hoped she would enjoy tonight.

Elle took her clothes into the other bathroom to get ready. She seemed to want to make an 'appearance', so I took a quick shower alone and got dressed. I put on some black pants and a blue shirt. Over that I slipped on a black jacket. As I was transferring my wallet and keys into these pockets, Elle walked back into the room. I paused, mouth hanging open, at the gorgeous woman in front of me. She had on a sapphire blue dress. It was a V-necked sleeveless design with a wide fabric belt that accentuated her small waistline. The dress fell to just above her knees showing off her lovely legs. On her feet she wore some black strappy sandals with a small heel. Elle had put on just a little bit of makeup; just enough to accentuate her big blue eyes.

I finally managed to pick my jaw up off the floor and said: "You look absolutely stunning."

Blushing just a shade, she said softly: "Thank you. And you look very handsome."

She walked over to me, and placed both hands on my shoulders. She leaned up and gave me a gentle kiss on the mouth. My arms wrapped around her; my hands on her ass and I pulled her against me. I could feel desire stirring already. I was in trouble if we stayed in this room much longer. A couple more gentle kisses and I backed away.

"Let's go sweetheart, or we'll never leave the room.'

She giggled: "You said that like it's a bad thing."

I shook my head: "It's not, but I really want to take you out tonight."

She surprised me by placing her hand over my crotch and caressing gently. With a sultry look, she simply said: "Later." Then she turned and walked out to the living room.

It took me a minute to readjust my package and then I followed her out there. We went downstairs, grabbed a cab and headed off to Ben Benson's.

A good New York steakhouse never changes and it was true for Ben's. The décor was the same; even the waiters looked the same. We were shown to a table for two in a fairly quiet corner of the noisy restaurant. Elle gazed at the menu while I glanced over the extensive wine list. I finally settled on a Napa merlot and the waiter scurried off to obtain it.

I reached over the table and took her hand. "Have you been here before?"

Elle shook her head.

"The side dishes are huge. I'll order a couple for us to share. Do you want steak or something else?"

"I was thinking about the lamb chops."

"That's a good choice."

The waiter returned with our wine. He uncorked it and poured a small portion for me to try. It was very good, so I nodded for him to fill our glasses. He filled Elle's glass and then mine. After he walked away, I lifted my glass and said softly to Elle: "To the most beautiful woman here. Thank you for giving me another chance."

Elle blushed a most becoming shade of pink. She picked up her glass and clinked it against mine and said: "And here's to the smartest, sexiest man around. I feel very privileged to know you."

We sipped our wine. I reached across the table and took her hand again. She gave me her most beautiful smile and, under the table, I felt her leg press against mine. We sat in companionable silence, sipping our wine, until the waiter came back for our order. Elle ordered a baby spring mixed green salad to start and the triple lamb chops for her entree. I ordered their T-bone steak, medium rare, and mashed potatoes with caramelized onions and sautéed spinach for us to share.

The food was delicious and the company superb. We talked about the city and our favorite places to dine and visit. Elle clearly loved Central Park and knew a lot of its history. She told me how the Obelisk was acquired from Egypt and transported over here in 1881. That led me to tell her some stories about the year we lived in Egypt. She was clearly fascinated listening to my tales as a 12 year old searching for mummies.

We decided to pass on dessert, knowing we still had cheesecake waiting for us in the mini-frig back in our room. Our next stop was the Blue Note Jazz Club. Spyro Gyra was playing this weekend and I had been lucky enough to secure a reserved table for the 10:30 show. I asked the waiter to have the maitre d' flag us down a cab and we slowly headed towards the door. I put my arm around Elle as we wove our way through the crowded restaurant.

I saw them at a 4-top in the middle of the room. Mark and Stacy Warner were sitting with another couple. Stacy was in the middle of a heated discussion with the other man and Mark merely looked bored. He glanced our way and I could tell the very moment that he recognized us. His mouth dropped open and his eyebrows rose in surprise. I could see his eyes shift over to Elle and he looked her up and down. Then he caught my eye, smirked and gave me a knowing nod. He gave Stacy a nudge and pointed in our direction. She glanced over and her eyes grew wide in surprise. She seemed to stop talking in mid-sentence to her companions.

At that same moment, Elle noticed them. "Isn't that the Warners sitting over there?"

"Yep," I said, my eyes looking away from their table.

"Geez, Stacy's eyes are so wide, you'd think she stuck her finger in a light socket. Guess she's surprised to see us, huh?"

"It would appear so."

I felt Elle's arm snake around my waist. "I wonder just how big her eyes can get."

Then I felt her hand grab my ass.

I grinned at my ballsy girl. "Is it show time?"

She smiled, shrugged and said: "Why not?"

Good point. I pulled her around to face me and I bent to kiss her. It was an open-mouth kiss with a lot of noticeable tongue. As we kissed, my hand slid down her back and squeezed her ass. It wasn't a long kiss; the restaurant was too crowded for that. People kept jostling us, and I heard someone mutter: "Get a room" as he walked past us. I chuckled as we broke the kiss. Elle had the most mischievous grin on her face. I glanced over at the Warners'; Stacy's face was pale and Mark was smirking. I shot Stacy my most wicked smile as I pulled Elle closer and kissed her temple.

"Let's get out of here, sweetheart," I said as I grabbed her hand and led her towards the door.

The cab was idling outside the restaurant and we jumped in. It was a long ride from Ben Benson's to the Blue Note, but we made good use of the time by making out in the back seat of the cab. That kiss in the restaurant just whetted our appetite for each other. By the time the cab pulled up in front of the Blue Note, Mt Gregory was at full attention.

"The things you do to me," I muttered, reaching for my wallet.

"Hey, you weren't complaining a minute ago." Elle smirked at me, her hand still resting on my knee.

We stepped out of the cab and I pulled her in front of me. I needed to hide my problem while it calmed down. Looking down at her face, I saw how red and swollen her lips were from the passionate kissing we had just shared in the cab. Sporting visible evidence of the effect she had on me, I just had to ask: "Are your panties wet?"

She surprised me by saying: "Who says that I'm wearing panties?"

She giggled at the shocked look on my face and then tugged on my hand. "Come on. We better get to our seats. The show is about to start."

I allowed her to drag me into the club wondering all the while what exactly did she have on under that dress.

The show was fantastic, 2 hours of non-stop jazz by one of the best bands in the country. Elle and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We even got up and 'danced' to a couple of songs. Of course, the 'dancing' consisted of merely swaying while holding her in my arms, but she seemed to really like it, judging from the smile on her face. I found I really enjoying dancing with her; it was so sensual. No wonder sex had all those nicknames associated with dancing like the horizontal mambo. I found myself wondering if I strengthened my leg muscles if I would be able to do a bit more besides sway with her.

After the show was over, we lingered over our drinks for a little while. Then we caught a cab back to the Ritz. Once inside our room, I took off my jacket and tossed it over the back of the couch. Elle dropped her purse on the coffee table and started to head towards the bedroom.

I grabbed her arm and pulled her to me: "Now it's really show time. I've been waiting for quite a while to see what you have on under that lovely dress."

Demurely she said: "What do you think I have on?"

"I don't know, but I can't wait to find out. You hinted that you might not be wearing panties, so my interest is aroused, among other things."

In a sultry voice, Elle asked: "Do you want to unwrap me or shall I strip for you?"

"Let me unwrap you."

I steered her into the bedroom. I slowly unzipped her dress and pushed it off of her shoulders. I saw black lace straps, and I continued lowering her dress. Her breasts were also covered with black lace. I was getting quite turned on, so I quickly shoved her dress all the way to the floor. With one hand on my shoulder, she stepped out of the dress and kicked it out of the way.

My eyes felt like they were going to pop out of my head. She was a goddess, standing there, still in her heels and wearing only a cut-out black lace thong-style teddy. Her back was almost entirely bare. There was only one ribbon around her back that tied just under her breasts and the thong string on her lovely bottom. Her breasts were covered in black lace and a sheer layer of fabric ran down her belly until it reached a small triangle of lace that covered her pubic area. It was incredibly hot.

I gulped. "You had this on, all night, under your dress?"

She replied huskily: "Yes."

"Oh. My. Gawd. If I had known that, we would have never left this room."

I stared at her beauty for a long minute, and then I slowly ran one finger down her lace-covered body. Elle shivered at my touch. Cupping her face in my hands, I asked softly: "You wore this, just for me?"

She nodded: "Yes, cowboy. Only for you."

Elle snaked her arms around my neck and tiptoed up to kiss me. We kissed slowly, tasting and savoring each other, while my hands roamed down her naked back. My passion grew quickly and I pulled her against my growing desire. She smiled against my mouth as she slowly ground her pelvis against me.

The feeling I had in my chest this morning returned even stronger. I felt positively giddy. This gorgeous woman wanted me, dressed for me, forgave me for being such an ass. She didn't seem to care that I had a big hole in my thigh and that I was limited in certain physical ways. It didn't bother her that I snore or that I pee with the bathroom door open. She accepted me and loved me for who I am now, not the person I used to be before the infarction. And I knew she loved me; I could see it in her eyes. There was no need to say it. Words weren't as important as actions, and by Gawd, I was going to show her how I felt.

I scooped her up in my arms and carried her over to the bed. I set her down very gently and started unbuttoning my shirt while toeing off my shoes. She knelt on the bed and started unbuckling my belt. I quickly shed all of my clothes except for my boxers. I was wearing a new pair of boxers, black silk with little red hearts on it.

Elle smiled when she saw them. Her hand caressed the fabric as she asked: "Did you wear these just for me?"

As I climbed into bed and took her in my arms, I said: "Yes sweetheart, only for you."

**_ELLE_**

I woke up in Greg's arms. He was lying on his side with both arms wrapped around me and his face snuggled into the crook of my neck. I could feel his morning woody pressing into my leg and I smiled, remembering our lovemaking last night. He had really loved that teddy I wore. It was so much fun to surprise him by dressing that way. And I loved the boxers he wore. I couldn't imagine him being the kind of guy who would buy boxers with little hearts on them, so I know he got them just for me and I was really touched by that.

I hated to get out of bed, but I really had to pee. I tried to wiggle out of his embrace without waking him, but I was unsuccessful.

I felt his embrace tighten around me and a sleepy voice said: "Where're you going?"

"I just gotta pee. I'll be right back."

"Nope." I felt his lips nibbling on my neck.

As good as that felt, I really had to go. "Cowboy, really, I gotta go. Let me up."

He grumbled: "OK, OK. I gotta go myself."

We both climbed slowly out of bed. I scampered to the further bathroom, leaving the closer one for him.

I could hear him chuckling as I trotted down the hall.

"Nice ass, sweetheart."

I smiled and put a little extra bounce in my step for him as I continued down the hall.

I peed, washed my hands and rinsed my mouth. We went to bed last night without brushing our teeth and my mouth felt icky. I opened the cabinet and found some complementary mouthwash so I used it. Ah, now I had minty fresh breath again. I started walking back to the bedroom and discovered Greg was now in the living room. He was wearing the heart boxers and I smiled when I saw him.

He smirked: "See something you like?"

I replied: "Oh yeah. I like those boxers on you."

He leered at my naked body and said: "Oh yeah? Wanna see me without them? Perhaps I should catch up with you."

He dropped the boxers. Mt Gregory was semi-erect already. I immediately thought about taking him in my mouth and I subconsciously licked my lips. Greg made his cock twitch and then he chuckled: "I know what you're thinking."

"Oh yeah, what?"

"Come over here and I'll tell you."

"Nope, you come over here."

He came after me and I playfully ran away from him. He was chasing me around the couch and we were laughing, when his cell phone rang.

He scoffed: "It's probably Wilson. Just leave it."

Feeling particularly mischievous, I grabbed the phone out of his jacket pocket and said: "Hmm, let's see who it is. An 858 area code, where's that?"

I ignored the desperate look on his face as he lunged for me and I deftly sidestepped him.

I opened the phone and said: "House's den of sin. Chief sinner Elle speaking. Lust and gluttony are today's specials. How may I help you?"

The look on Greg's face was priceless. He quickly stalked towards me, desperate to grab the phone but I kept dancing away.

I heard an older sounding female voice say: "OH! I was sure I called my son's number. I hit speed dial '2' and that's his number. Is he there?"

"Well, he might be. There is a man here who could be your son. Is he tall, devilishly handsome with blue eyes that can make a girl melt on the spot?"

Greg groaned and lunged after me. I managed to keep a couple of paces ahead of him as we circled the living room.

On the other end of the phone, the woman chuckled. "That's sounds like my Greg. And who are you?"

Oh my Gawd. This must really be his Mom. And I had been so flippant when I answered the phone. Oh, man, he was going to be pissed at me for saying all that. My mental discourse slowed me long enough for him to catch up to me. Just as he was throwing out his arm to capture me, I held the phone out to him and said in a small voice: "I think it's your Mom."

He wrapped his left arm securely around my waist and grabbed the phone with his right hand. He dragged me back to the couch and we plopped down together. I squirmed, but he wasn't letting me escape. He hissed in my ear: "You are in SO much trouble."

He glanced at the phone as if to confirm the calling number, sighed, and spoke into the phone: "Hi Mom."

**_HOUSE_**

I was going to kill her. Death by tickling seemed appropriate. Now I was going to have to explain her to Mom. I desperately hoped that my Dad was not on the extension listening to this conversation.

"Hi Mom".

"Hello, dear. So who was the young lady that answered your phone?"

"That's Elle, Mom."

"L? Like the letter?"

"No. It's E-L-L-E. It's short for Arielle."

"Ah. Like the magazine. So who is she, dear?"

I looked down at the now quiet woman in my arms. She had her head down and I wondered what she was thinking. We had never defined our relationship and here was my Mom, putting me on the spot.

"Humph, Elle is indescribable, Mom. I can't give her a label."

"Oh, come on Greg. This is your mother. Try me."

I gave Elle a gentle squeeze as I spoke these next words. "Elle is my neighbor. My friend."

With a teasing lilt to her voice, Mom said: "And she is answering your phone at 10AM on a Sunday morning? She must be a very _good_ friend."

I smiled. I could rarely fool Mom. She had a built in bullshit detector and could easily catch me in a falsehood.

I gently caressed Elle's ribs as I spoke my next words: "She is a very good friend, Mom. For some unknown reason, she is willing and able to put up with me. She is beautiful, smart, and a gifted musician. And she's is a mischievous little vixen who has wormed her way into my heart."

Elle looked up at me, with surprise in her eyes. I gave her a gentle smile, and kissed her forehead slowly and tenderly.

There was a hush on the other end of the phone and then, in an awed tone, Mom said: "Gregory House, you have a girlfriend."

I smiled at Elle and said: "Yes, Mom, I have a girlfriend."

Elle smiled shyly and then buried her face in my chest.

"And how long has this been going on and why haven't you told your mother?"

I laughed: "Uh, we've been seeing each other about a month. We met about 6 weeks ago when she moved in across the hall from me."

"So it's pretty new?"

"Yes, Mom."

"Alright, I forgive you for not telling me. I want to know more about her, and I'd like to meet this new woman in your life."

Of course, I wouldn't mind Mom meeting Elle, but Dad was a whole 'nother story. "I'd like that too, Mom. But it's impossible for us to get away right now. Elle just started this job and she doesn't have any accrued vacation time yet."

"Well that's was part of the purpose of my call, sweetie. Your dad is going on a fishing trip with some of his Marine buddies. I'll be alone for almost a week, and I was wondering if you would like a visit from your ole Mom."

I was stunned. Mom never came to visit alone. I hadn't had any significant time alone with her in years, not since Dad's last mission when I was about 10.

I must have been lost in thought for several minutes, because I heard Mom say: "Greg? If this isn't a good time, I don't have to visit."

Hurriedly, I said: "No, it would be great to have you visit. I was just so surprised that you would fly all the way here by yourself."

She scoffed: "I'm a big girl. After living in so many foreign countries and moving 20 times in 20 years, I think I can handle a cross-country flight."

I mumbled: "I didn't doubt you Mom. I'm just so surprised that you want to come see me."

Gently she said: "Well, it has been a while. I miss you."

I whispered: "I miss you too, Mom."

"Well, I have a reservation for Thursday. The flight arrives at Newark around 5-ish and I fly back on Monday evening. And I'll get a hotel room. I don't want you to make a lot of fuss for me."

"Oh no, Mom. Don't get a room. You can stay with me. It's no fuss, really."

"Are you sure, dear? I don't want to get in the way, especially between you and your new girl."

I chuckled: "It's not a problem, Mom."

"OK. Well, I'll e-mail you the flight details later on today after I confirm them. Will you be able to pick me up at the airport?"

"Yes, I can."

"Great. I'll see you on Thursday. Tell Elle I look forward to meeting her."

"I will, Mom. Bye."

"Bye, dear."

I closed the phone and placed it on the coffee table. I couldn't believe that Mom was coming. Alone. I could have a decent visit with her without my dad around.

As I was gathering wool about Mom's upcoming visit, Elle started to squirm away from me. I tightened my grip on her and pulled her onto my lap. She seemed tense. I tilted her chin up so I could see her face. She bit her lip and wouldn't meet my gaze.

"I'm sorry, Greg. If I had really thought that was your Mom, I wouldn't have said those things."

"It's OK. She was amused."

I nuzzled her cheek and continued: "She's coming for a visit and she's looking forward to meeting my _new_ _girlfriend_. She offered to stay in a hotel, but I don't want her to do that. So I guess I'll put her in my room and sleep on the couch while she's here."

"You could just sleep at my place, or would that be too weird with your Mom across the hall?"

I pondered that for a minute and then said: "No. It wouldn't too weird. Mom is cool about stuff like that. If it were both of my parents, that would be a different story. But then again, if it were both of them, they would definitely be staying at a hotel and not with me."

I brushed my lips against hers and then deepened the kiss. She responded but not as enthusiastically as she usually did.

I broke the kiss and looked down at her. She was still having difficulty meeting my eyes. I cupped her chin and forced her glance upwards.

"What's up, pussycat? You're in a funky mood."

She gave a little shrug and said: "I guess I'm nervous about meeting your Mom. What if she doesn't like me?"

"What's not to like? You're smart, sexy, beautiful, talented and passionate. I'm sure I can think of a few more adjectives; just give me a minute." I started nibbling on her neck.

Elle was having none of that. "NO, really. What if she doesn't like me?"

My confident little vixen had turned into an insecure mouse in the span of 5 minutes. She looked sad and scared. I found it hard to believe that it had to do solely with my Mom's visit. After all, Mom would only be here for a few days, and then she would be back in San Diego, all the way across the country. If, by some weird fluke, she didn't like Elle, what difference would it make?

"Trust me, she'll like you. What Mom wouldn't like you?"

As soon as the words rolled out of my mouth, I realized what I had said. Her own mom had been gone a long time and most of the substitute 'moms' had run the gamut of indifferent to abusive towards her. The scar ran deep into her heart. No wonder she was so worried about meeting mine.

I pulled her as closely as she would let me. "She'll like you. I know she will. You're a wonderful person. And you make her son happy. That, alone, will score you a hundred brownie points. Speaking of which, will you make some of your fantastic brownies while she's here?"

She smiled a little bit: "Of course, I will."

She snuggled closer and seemed to relax a bit. I held her and nuzzled my face against her hair.

Her little voice piped up: "Greg? Do I really make you happy?"

My insecure little mouse. I looked deeply into her eyes. I wanted to make sure that she saw what I felt, cuz I couldn't say it very well. In my most serious tone, I said: "Yes. You make me happy."

Her face lightened and a small smile appeared.

I couldn't let this conversation get too mushy and I went on: "And you would make me _really_ happy if you would get your naked butt into the bedroom and grab the room service menu, cuz I'm starving!"

Giggling, she climbed off of my lap and headed towards the bedroom. I turned so that I could watch her naked tushie sashay down the hall. I felt good about Mom coming to visit, but also a bit nervous about Elle's reaction. She seemed truly concerned about whether Mom would like her or not and I didn't think there was any way I could alleviate her fear until she met Mom herself. I wondered how she dealt with the parents of her other boyfriends and if she had felt the same fear before meeting them.

After a few minutes, Elle walked back into the living room with the menu in her hand and clutching Patrick in front of her. She handed me the menu and said: "I would like French toast with extra bacon for Patrick."

"Patrick wants bacon, huh?"

Elle nodded solemnly. She had both arms wrapped around Patrick, clutching him to her body. She looked incredibly adorable like that, innocent yet sexy.

"Don't move, baby."

I quickly grabbed my phone and took a shot of her like that. I reviewed it and smiled. It looked great.

I directed her: "Put your head on top of his and give me a little pouty look."

She did as I asked, and I clicked off another shot.

Elle asked with just a touch of worry in her voice: "You're not going to put these up on the Internet, are you?"

I shook my head: "No way, sweetheart. These are just for me. Patrick hides all your naughty bits, anyway."

She leaned over, showing off her cleavage over the top of Patrick's head and gave me a saucy look. I caught that one too.

Elle laughed: "Porn with a stuffed dog. What will they think of next?"

"This is PG-13 porn. Nothing shows. I just know that you are naked behind the dog and that makes it really hot."

I had Elle lie on the couch and pose a few more times. She looked incredibly sexy and I couldn't wait to download these pics onto my computer so I could see them on a bigger screen.

Our little photography session lightened her mood considerably. She giggled the entire time. Finally she set the dog aside and lay there completely naked in a most provocative pose for me.

I set the phone down and asked: "Are your panties wet?"

"As you can see, I'm not wearing any. But if I were, they would be."

"Just what I wanted to know." I moved towards the couch and into her arms.

It was an hour later when we ordered room service. I answered the door in my robe, while Elle just lay on the couch with Patrick on top of her. When I closed the door, she sat back up again. We ate in the living room. Elle never did put on her robe so I had a great view while we ate. Elle had French toast and bacon while I had Eggs Benedict. I offered her some of mine, but she made a face, saying she didn't like runny eggs. So I gobbled mine down and had a few bites of her French toast as well.

"So your Mom is arriving on Thursday?"

I nodded: "Yep, around 5-ish."

"I could make dinner if you want. What kind of food does she like?"

"Mom's not fussy. She eats just about anything, except eggplant. She hates eggplant. But you don't have to cook. We can just get take-out. Plus you have yoga on Thursdays."

"Not this week. Our instructor is going away on vacation so I don't have class this week."

"Oh."

I pondered on that for a moment. "You really want to cook?"

Elle nodded. "And I'll make brownies too."

She was trying so hard. Was she doing it for me or to try to prove herself to my Mom?

I mentally shrugged. If she wanted to do it, why not? "Alright. Make something easy, like spaghetti. And garlic bread. You know I like your garlic bread."

"OK. That's no problem. Do you have any plans while she's here? What do you like to do when she visits?"

I shrugged. "This is the first time she is visiting me alone. She always comes with my dad and the visits are very brief. They usually visit during long layovers from their European vacations. We go out to dinner and they leave. I don't really know what to do with her for 4 days."

We sat there on the couch, both lost in thought. I closed my eyes as my brain scanned the list of possibilities, like museums or a play. Nothing sounded terribly appealing. I really didn't know what to do with Mom for 4 days.

Elle piped up: "You know, I have to play Saturday night. Would she want to come hear us? I mean, you wouldn't have to stay all night, but maybe one or two sets."

I thought about that for a moment. Mom in a bar? Well, why not? She loves music and the band was really good.

I nodded slowly. "Yeah, that sounds alright. I think Mom would like that."

"OK. Well, that's one thing."

Elle stood, gathered all of our dishes and set them back on the cart. Then she sat down next to me and put her head on my shoulder. I put my arm around her and drew her closer. We sat there quietly for a few minutes and then Elle piped up.

"Does she know any of your friends? We could have them over for dinner on Friday night."

"Have them over for dinner? You mean, you would cook again? Come on, sweetheart, I'm not having you slave over a stove the whole time my Mom is here."

Elle shrugged: "But I like to cook. Does she know Wilson?"

I nodded: "Yeah, she knows Wilson."

"So we could invite him and his wife."

"Well, Julie hates me. I don't think she would come, but we could invite them. Chances are Wilson will come alone."

"Anybody else?"

"She knows Cuddy. We could invite her too."

Elle looked at me, eyes wide: "Your Mom knows Dr Cuddy?"

"Sure, sweetheart. I told you Cuddy and I go back a long way. We were in med school at Michigan together. My parents have met her several times."

Slowly, she said: "OK. We could invite her too."

I frowned: "You seem hesitate about that. Would it bother you to invite her?"

"Well, it's just she's the boss of the whole hospital. And you did play that trick on her and Wilson."

I waved that off: "Don't worry about that. She's over it already. I had to do extra clinic hours to make amends, but it was SO worth it."

Elle nodded: "OK. And I'd like to invite Avi and Ricky. I owe them a dinner."

I mentally counted all the bodies. If Julie showed up, that would be 8 people total for dinner.

"That's a lot of people."

Elle waved her hand at me: "Naw, that's nothing. I'll make a brisket. That's easy and makes a lot."

"I don't want you to go to a lot of trouble."

She smirked: "You know, I think you said that already. Are you starting to repeat yourself, old man?"

"Who you calling old man?" I grabbed her and pulled her onto my good leg. I started tickling her ribs as payback. She laughed and tried to escape, but I held on tightly. After a few minutes, I stopped and let her calm down.

Still snorting with laughter, she said: "It's no big deal. Look, this way you have a bit of a plan. Thursday and Friday, I'll make dinner. Saturday, we'll go to the club. And then Sunday, you can take us out to eat. How's that sound?"

"Will I have to pay on Sunday? Maybe I can get Mom to buy us dinner."

"Oh, you're so bad! You're a doctor. You can afford to take your Mom and your GIRLFRIEND out to dinner."

I smirked: "My girlfriend? Like that title? Like being my girlfriend?"

She sat up on my lap, cupped my face in her hands and very seriously said: "Yes, I do like it. Except when you're being an ass."

"I'm always an ass, sweetheart. You better get used to it." I tried to distract her by razzing her belly. She giggled and squirmed as I planted several big raspberries on her. When I stopped, I laid her across my lap until her laughter died away.

Her hand caressed my chest as she looked up at me. My brain was on emotional overload. I didn't know how to handle all of this. 'Happy' was a strange and unfamiliar sensation for me. I wondered if I would get used to it in time.

I gently caressed her cheek with one finger. "How about a shower and then we go out and play for a while?"

"Sounds good to me."

We had walked a lot yesterday and my leg was feeling the effects. So I decided to go along with Wilson's idea and I took Elle on a carriage ride through Central Park. It was cheesy, but Elle liked it. We sat snuggled up next to each other, while the driver slowly wove his way through the park, lecturing us about the park's history. I could tell by the expression of Elle's face that she knew most of this, but we didn't bother to shut him up. We let him drone on while we kissed and caressed each other in the back of the carriage.

We had him drop us off at 91st Street and we walked over to Madison to have lunch at Jackson Hole. I was starving and they serve huge burgers. After a bacon cheddar cheeseburger for me and a mozzarella, mushroom burger for Elle, we digested by slowly walking down Madison. My leg tired around 84th Street so we walked over to 5th Ave and caught a cab back to the hotel.

We still had a few hours until checkout, so we went back to bed. We made love slowly and tenderly and then fell asleep. The desk woke us at 5PM, and we prepared to leave. Our preparations consisted of throwing all our stuff into our bags and calling the bellman. Elle carried Patrick down to the car since he absolutely would not fit in one of our bags. The valet brought the car around and they stowed the bags in the trunk. Meanwhile, Elle set Patrick in the back seat, sitting him up as if he were a real dog. It was definitely silly, but what the hell.

Elle drove as my leg was giving me a bit of grief. I had overexerted myself this weekend, and I was paying for it now. I popped two oxycodones and then reclined the seat back, closing my eyes and waiting for them to take effect.

I felt her hand on my thigh and I put my hand on top of hers.

"You doing OK, cowboy?"

"Yeah, just did a bit more walking than usual. I'll be OK when the pills kick in."

"You're seeing Chris tomorrow. Did you write in your pain journal at all this weekend?"

I groaned. She caught me. "No. I'll fill it in when we get back as much as I remember. And I'll tell him I was very distracted this weekend."

She giggled: "Just claim extenuating circumstances, huh? That'll work. You didn't seem to take very many oxycodones this weekend. This current dose of Oxycontin working for you?"

I nodded: "Yeah. If it had been a usual weekend, I think it would have been fine. He's right. If I increase my activity level, I'll probably have to bump up the dosage."

"Well, you'll discuss it with him tomorrow and figure it out. It does seem to be working pretty good for you though."

It was and I owed it all to her. Wilson would have never put me on oxy. I would still be trying to cope with the Vicodin and killing my liver if it wasn't for Elle.

I gently touched her cheek with one finger. She glanced at me, smiled and blew me a kiss. "Why don't you take a little nap and let the pills kick in?"

I smiled back, and my hand drifted down to rest on her thigh. I thought I would close my eyes for just a few minutes, but I must have been more exhausted than I realized because the next thing I knew, Elle was parallel parking in front of 221 Baker Street.

"Hey, I didn't mean to sleep all the way back."

"That's OK. You were tired. I guess I fucked you into a coma this weekend, huh?" She shot me a self-satisfied smirk.

I chuckled: "You were sleeping pretty deeply this morning as I recall."

I leaned over and gave her a kiss.

She cupped my cheek and said: "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For a wonderful weekend."

I shrugged: "It wasn't much."

She replied softly: "Yes. It was."

Elle planted a small kiss on my mouth and then said: "I'll grab the bags; you order dinner."

I kissed her back: "Sounds like a plan."


	31. Chapter 31

**The Elle Word Chapter 31**

**_HOUSE_**

I felt so good on Monday morning that I was whistling a tune as I walked through the hospital doors. The rest of our Sunday had been quiet: pizza, TV and then bed. I got an e-mail from Mom confirming that she would be arriving in Newark on Thursday at 5:20PM. I replied to let her know that I would be picking her up. Elle insisted that she wanted to cook, so I decided to go along with the plan and promised to invite Wilson and Cuddy for dinner on Friday. Tired from our weekend, we went to bed around 10, falling asleep quickly with our arms wrapped around each other.

Wilson and Cuddy were standing by the front desk as I strolled into the hospital. Wilson wore a smirk and the ugly mustard-colored tie that Julie had picked out for his last birthday. Cuddy just stared at me in open–mouthed surprise. Guess she is not used to seeing me roll in at 9AM.

Wilson started right in: "So, by the look on your face, I'm guessing that you had a good weekend."

I tapped my cane on the floor and scowled: "Define good."

He rolled his eyes at me: "You're vertical at 9AM and whistling! I'd say it was pretty damn good. I want details, dude."

I glanced pointedly at Cuddy and said in an affected Valley voice: "Later, dude. Not in front of Mom."

Cuddy finally managed to get her jaw muscles working and said: "House, you're here on time." She looked me up and down and then said: "And you look good. You look like you've gained a little weight. Your clothes aren't so baggy and your face doesn't have that haggard look to it." She smirked: "This woman must be very good for you. Don't screw it up."

I whined: "Why does everyone think I'm going to screw up? Have you no confidence in me?"

"We know you too well."

Cuddy slapped a file against my chest. I grabbed it before it could fall.

"You got a case. Happy Monday."

She turned and started to walk away. I figured that I might as well get it over with.

I said: "Wait."

Cuddy stopped and turned back towards me with a questioning look on her face.

I hesitated and then blurted out: "My Mom's coming for a visit."

They both look surprised and then Cuddy said: "That's nice. How long is she staying?"

Wilson piped in: "Just your Mom? Your dad isn't coming."

I shook my head: "Just Mom. She is coming for a long weekend. My dad is going fishing. So the thing is." My voice trailed off.

They both looked at me expectantly.

Finally I managed to say: "You probably wouldn't want to come to dinner Friday night, would you?"

Wilson choked. "What? Are you inviting us to your place?"

"Well, actually, I'm inviting you to Elle's since she has a dining room table and I don't."

"Does Elle know about this?"

I looked as offended as I could muster: "Yes. She _offered_ to cook and told me to invite the two of you and Julie too, of course."

They looked rather surprised, bordering on stunned. No one said anything for a minute, so I said: "So, I guess that's a 'no'? Already have plans? I understand and I'm sure Elle will too."

I started to limp away, but Cuddy grabbed my arm. I looked pointedly down at her hand and said loudly: "Grabbing me in front of the whole hospital, Dr Cuddy? Just how desperate are you?"

She quickly let go of me and gave me her best administrator frown.

"Oh, no, you're not getting rid of me that quickly. I'll be there. I want to see what you're like when you are on your best behavior in front of your _Mom."_

Wilson interjected: "Yeah, and I want Elle's food. She's a great cook. Did she say what she is making?"

I pulled myself up to my full height: "You know, James, it's rude to ask what's for dinner when you have been invited somewhere. Just accept or decline the invitation."

"Oh, I accept. I'll have to check and see if Julie can make it, but I will definitely be there."

I snarled: "Fine. Dinner's at 8:00. Casual attire. BYOB, cuz you're not drinking my liquor."

I headed off to the elevator before I could hear any more smart-ass comments from the two of them.

Wilson jumped into the elevator right before the doors closed. I groaned inwardly. Fortunately there were other people in the elevator, so he kept his mouth shut until we got to the 4th floor. But he started in as soon as we got off the elevator.

"So, seriously, how was your weekend?"

"There was nothing serious about it. It was all fun."

"How big was the suite? Did you do it in all the rooms?"

I smirked: "I think we missed the second bathroom. Oops, we'll have to go back and do it again."

He grinned: "The _second _bathroom? NICE! So you showed her a real good time, huh?"

"Yep. Just like I told you. Room service, Ben Benson's, FAO Schwartz and a jazz club. Lot of sex. And, oops, can't talk in front of the kids."

We had reached my office and the ducklings were sitting around the conference table. Heads spun when I walked in, but I headed off any possible comments about my early arrival by announcing: "We have a case. Make copies and look it over."

I tossed the file to Cameron and limped into my office, Wilson still on my heels.

I set my backpack on top of my desk, pulled out my I-Pod and my Gameboy, and then set the pack on the floor beside the desk. I was studiously ignoring Wilson all the while. He was as tenacious as fleas on a dog, however and parked himself in one of the chairs in front of my desk.

"Come on, spill it. You know you want to brag."

"And you want to live vicariously through me since you're aren't getting any."

I knew that remark hit home. I could tell by the look on his face.

"Yeah, fine. Rub it in that I'm not getting any. You are and I'm surprised that you aren't bragging about it. So either it wasn't very good."

"Pffft. That's what you think. It was fantastic."

"You didn't let me finish. You're not telling me cuz either it wasn't very good, which you just admitted that it was, OR because you're in love with her." He sat back in the chair with a very satisfied smirk on his face.

I closed my eyes and shook my head at his comment. Geez, I just started referring to her as my girlfriend yesterday. I knew I had feelings for her but the 'L' word had not been mentioned by either of us. And that was a subject that I was not discussing with Wilson.

Sighing with frustration, I said: "What do you want to hear, Jimmy, my boy? You want me to tell you how great she is in the sack? You want me to tell you how tight her pussy is or about the thing she does with her tongue when she blows me? You want me to describe the look on her face when I make her come? If that's what you want to hear, tough shit. I'm not giving you that."

Quietly he said: "That good, huh?"

I simply nodded.

"Wow."

We sat in silence for a moment, and then he changed the subject. "So how was Ben Benson's? I haven't been there in a while."

"Superb as always. Actually I do have a funny story about that." I went on to tell him about seeing Stacy and Mark there and our little 'show' in front of them.

He laughed: "Oh, my Gawd. That must have been quite amusing. Wonder if that means I'll get another phone call." In a mincing voice, he said: "James, you wouldn't believe what House and that little hussy were doing right in the middle of Ben Benson's!"

We both laughed and he said: "Good zing, House. Did ya do the carriage ride like I suggested?"

"Yeah, we did that on Sunday. It was cheesy, but she liked it and I didn't have to do any walking. Oh, I gotta show you what she got me at FAO Schwartz."

I pulled the remote controlled car out of my backpack and set it on the floor. I took the controls and sent it flying around the room. Wilson was suitably impressed. I had just sent it speeding down the hall when the ducklings returned from copying the file. Their reactions were typical: Foreman was blasé, Chase was amused and Cameron was shocked at 'grown men playing with toys in a hospital'. I rolled my eyes. After 2 years, doesn't she know me by now?

Wilson headed off to his office, saying he'd see me later. I directed the car back to my office and the ducklings headed into the conference room. After stowing the car, I limped into the white board and asked for symptoms. As they called them out, I wrote them on the board. He had fever, muscle aches, headache and loss of appetite. I shook my head; these were really vague symptoms. The patient had been sick for several weeks, had 2 courses of antibiotics and was no better. I sent them off to get a better history and some blood work. I sat down at my desk and filled out my pain journal for my afternoon appointment.

**_Cuddy_**

House's invitation to dinner stayed in the back of my mind all morning. Through multiple phone calls, e-mails and 2 or 3 unhappy clinic patients, the dinner invitation kept nudging me. Was it for real or was he playing a joke on us? I hadn't seen Elle since the incident with Dr Rivera. Perhaps it was time I paid a visit to her office.

It was just going on 1PM as I strode down the hall towards Elle's office. She was standing in front of the door, fumbling with her keys while trying to balance a stack of files and a can of diet coke. It looked like a losing battle so I hurried up to her and said: "Let me help you out here."

I grabbed the files just before they slid out of her arms.

"Oh, thanks Dr Cuddy. I'm such a klutz sometimes."

Without the files, Elle managed to get the door unlocked and we stepped inside. I set the files on her desk, noting that her appointment list was on top of the files.

"Well, I see you have a full schedule today. Things are going well?"

Elle nodded: "Yes, they are going very well. Thank you."

I glanced at the list again and frowned: "I thought 4:00 was your last appointment. You have someone down for 4:30."

She blushed and looked nervous. "Yeah, he's a special case. He can't get here until 4:30 because of his job. This is actually the last time I will be seeing him and then he will just see Chris for his meds. We needed to convert him to a different drug, that's why I was seeing him."

I glanced at the list again: Luke N. Laura. That was a strange name and yet, I thought I had heard it before. It was vaguely familiar. I shook my name; hopefully it would come to me later.

"Well, don't make a habit of it. I don't want the doctors abusing you by having you work extra hours."

She protested quickly: "Oh, no, really. It's not a problem. It was just a special thing for this one patient."

I nodded and then said: "The strangest thing happened this morning. House invited me to come to dinner at your place on Friday evening."

She looked relieved: "Oh, he did, good. I hope you can make it."

"So this is for real? It's a serious invitation and his Mom is really coming to visit?"

She nodded: "Yes."

I chuckled: "Well, this is a first. I don't know what you are doing to him, but keep it up. He is looking much better these days. Wilson says you're a good cook, so I guess you are feeding him well."

She blushed and shrugged modestly: "He likes my cooking."

She seemed so quiet and shy that I wondered what House saw in her. She just didn't seem like his type. But then again, I didn't know her very well and she was very out-spoken with that whole incident with Rivera. It was going to be really interesting to see how House acted on Friday night, in a more casual environment with Elle and his Mom present. I wasn't going to miss this dinner for anything.

"Well, I just dropped by to thank you for the invitation. I will be delighted to come to dinner. Can I bring anything?"

She gave me a small smile: "Oh, no, but thanks for asking. I have it all under control. I just hope his Mom, um, likes my cooking."

I gave Elle a sympathetic smile: "Are you nervous about meeting House's Mom?"

"Oh yeah, I am. I mean, we haven't been dating very long at all and now I'm meeting his Mom. She's going to be staying with him and, um," She trailed off.

I smiled and tried to put her at ease: "I know her and she's really nice. She's very easy to get along with. Try not to be too nervous."

She smiled in a genuine way: "Thanks for telling me that, Dr Cuddy. I'm afraid I'll be really nervous and get so klutzy that I drop the dinner."

"You'll be fine. I have to run; I have a meeting. Thank you again and I'll see you on Friday."

"Great. See you then."

I stepped out of Elle's office and headed back to the elevator. Dinner was going to be an interesting affair. I was looking forward to it. I pressed the elevator button and as I waited for it, I ran that name through my brain again. Luke N. Laura. I still couldn't place it and that was bothering me. I decided that I was going to come back at 4:30 and put a face to the name.

At 4:25, I was standing just around the corner from Elle's office. I had a good line of sight, but couldn't be seen from that angle. I had a stack of files in my arms and was rearranging them as I stood there, so it would seem like I had a reason to suddenly stop in that corner. I saw Chris Guskiewicz round the opposite corner and head towards Elle's office. The elevator pinged and I hoped it was her 4:30 appointment exiting that elevator. Strangely, I heard a familiar tap-step-step cadence. That was House's walk. Was he coming up to see Elle?

Guskiewicz had paused in front of the office door and seemed to be waiting for House. He and House shook hands and then entered the office together. This didn't make sense. Where was the patient? Where was Luke N. Laura?

The realization hit me so hard I staggered back against the wall. Luke N. Laura. Luke and Laura. They were characters on General Hospital, which happened to be House's favorite soap opera. I remember him watching that show when we were in med school.

I stared at the office door. House? House was 'Luke N. Laura'? It made sense that if he was seeing Guskiewicz that he would use an alias. House was an extremely private person and he would not want the whole hospital knowing his business. Elle had said this was a 'special patient' that just needed to be converted to a different drug. This could explain his new look of well-being. Guskiewicz was adjusting his pain meds. I wondered what he put him on. And I wondered _why_ he went to see him. Wilson had always written his Vicodin scripts. I knew Elle was old friends with Guskiewicz from her last job. Did she convince House to see him for help with his meds?

There was only one other person who might know the answers. I turned towards the elevator and headed down to Wilson's office.

**_HOUSE_**

It was almost 4:30 and we hadn't figured it out yet. I needed to get to my appointment, so I sent them off to do a few more tests, grabbed my backpack and headed up to Elle's office.

Gus was just approaching the door as I walked down the hall. He waited for me and we entered the office together. Elle had a stack of charts on her desk and she was hurriedly writing notes in one of them.

She looked up as we walked in and smiled. "Hi, guys. Have a seat and give me one sec."

As we took our seats, Elle quickly finished her notes and closed that file. She looked over at Gus and nodded for him to begin.

He began: "So, House, how are you feeling on this dosage? Did you need as much breakthrough meds as before?"

"Ah, well, I think this dosage would be fine for my usual activity level. However, I did increase my activity quite a bit this weekend, and I think that accounted for the, oh, let me consult my journal here." I stalled a bit by taking my time pulling the journal out of my backpack.

"Let's see. On Friday, I took 4 oxycodones, but 2 of them were after I drove all the way to New York. Long drives do make my leg ache. And then I needed another one after some strenuous bathroom sexual activity."

Elle blushed a deep shade of pink, and clapped her hand over her mouth. Her eyes were wide and she had that _'I can't believe you just said that'_ look on her face.

Gus just shook his head and said: "OK. That was Friday. How about Saturday?"

"Saturday we did a lot of walking around the city. You know, women. Take them to New York and they want to shop. And that night we went to a club and she made me dance with her. And then, of course, there was the sex when we got back to the hotel. So I took a total of 6 oxycodones that day."

Elle stage-whispered to me, in French: "_I didn't MAKE you dance. YOU asked ME to dance. And I was on top the second time."_

She seemed so embarrassed by my revelations. Hmm, strange, I thought I was supposed to be truthful in my little pain journal.

Gus was ducking his head and trying to hide his amusement behind his hand, but I could see the grin on his face. With a bit of difficulty, he managed to stammer out: "And how was Sunday?"

"Well, she chased me around the hotel room for sex, so that was tiring. Then she let me take her on a carriage ride and I was able to rest my leg. But then she insisted on walking to a restaurant and then back to the hotel for more sex. I tell you, if I hadn't begged her to drive back to Princeton, I would have been in a lot of pain. I think I took 5 that day, but my memory is a bit foggy from sheer sexual exhaustion."

Gus covered up his laughter by pretending to cough. Elle could not have looked more mortified. She folded her arms on the desk and buried her face in them. I smirked as I closed the pain journal and slipped it back into my backpack.

Almost fully recovered from his coughing/laughing fit, Gus said: "Interesting. I thought we were going to get your dose set before we tried to increase your activity level. But I see you two had other plans."

Elle raised her head, opened her mouth as if to say something, and then just closed her eyes and shook her head.

Gus went on: "So was this an exceptional weekend, or do you plan on keeping up with this new activity level?"

"Well, if I can't keep UP, there is always Viagra or Cialis."

Gus snorted in laughter as I heard a whispered _'Mon Dieu'_ from Elle.

After composing himself, Gus went on: "OK. Let's assume you are going to stay at this current activity level. I think we should bump you up to 50 mg twice a day. Do you think that would keep you at or below a '6' on the pain scale?"

I thumped my cane on the floor as I stared at my feet. Slowly I said: "If I stay at this current level, I think it would."

There was a pause, and then Gus said: "Why do I think that there is a 'but' coming?"

I started to make a snark about Cuddy's voluptuous butt, but I stayed focused. "You mentioned strengthening the thigh muscles that I have left. What exactly did you have in mind?"

"I think a couple of sessions with a physical therapist to teach you very specific exercises would be what you need, and then you would just do them on your own. And swimming would also be good especially if you could really concentrate on working the right leg and not letting the left leg do most of the work."

"I think I like the swimming idea better than seeing a physical therapist. Just standing around doing exercises is really boring."

Then in a low voice, I continued: "I didn't do so well with that after the infarction."

Gus nodded: "Yeah, just doing a bunch of reps is pretty boring. I think if you swim laps and rotate between the crawl, the sidestroke and maybe the backstroke, it would exercise all the remaining muscles. Aim for hitting the pool 3 times a week, but start slow. Just a couple of laps at the beginning and work your way up."

I nodded. Gus didn't say anything for a few minutes. He was making some notes in my chart. I leaned my forehead against the top of my cane and stared at the floor. Squeezing my eyes shut, I said: "What about the golf thing?"

Gus stopped writing. "I really think you can play golf again, but first I think you should strengthen your leg muscles by swimming. I think you'll need a couple of months before hitting the driving range. In the meantime, you should get a left-handed putter and practice with it. Then by the time you are ready to start teeing off, hitting left-handed won't seem quite as awkward."

That made sense to retrain my brain to hit left-handed. I looked up to see that he was writing out my new prescription.

"House, are you OK with trying this dose for a week? You can always call me if you need a dose adjustment."

I nodded: "Yeah, OK. I'll give it a week."

He handed me the new prescriptions. "This is for Oxycontin 50 mg twice a day for a week and enough oxycodone for breakthrough pain. Again, call me if you need more or if you are having any issues. Are you having any problems with constipation?"

"I take Senokot-S every other night. That works so far. And someone keeps trying to feed me vegetables, a not-so-subtle hint that fiber will help." I smirked at Elle. She stuck her tongue out at me.

Gus was getting better at ignoring our antics. "Well, good. Stick with what works. You know what to watch out for. Exercise will probably help with that also. So, is next Monday at the same time good for you?"

"Sure."

"OK. Starting next week, come to my office instead of coming here. I think Elle needs to step out of the loop. You two have a personal relationship and it's probably not a good idea to be her patient, especially considering narcotics are involved. We can always call her in for a consult if we need to, but I think in the future, you need to just come to me for your meds. Are you OK with that?"

I looked at Elle; she shrugged. "We don't want anyone to be able to suggest any kind of impropriety, that our relationship influences what I recommend for you. So now that you've converted from Vicodin to Oxycontin, Chris can work with you about the optimal dosage. But, of course, I'm here if you need me."

I didn't really like it. I would miss teasing her in front of Gus and making inappropriate comments, but they were right. If anything came down, I would want Elle out of the loop.

I snarked: "I'll just have to consult with you outside of the office."

With a smile, she said softly: "There is that."

I looked over at Gus and said: "OK. Next week, your office."

Gus stood up. "Great. I'll see you then. Glad you are doing so well, especially with your increased activity level. Keep UP the good work."

Elle groaned: "Oh Gawd, not you too."

Gus chuckled as he headed for the door.

I smirked. That guy was all right.

I limped over to the door and locked it. By the time I had turned around, Elle had come out from behind her desk and was walking towards me. I hooked my cane over the doorknob and opened my arms to her. We embraced and stood there kissing for several minutes. It felt wonderful and I didn't want to stop, but I needed to get back to my patient.

I planted a kiss on her forehead and then I said: "Sweetheart, I have a patient. I'll probably be here for a while. Don't wait up."

She burrowed her face into my chest and, in a muffled voice, said: "I'll leave you a plate in the refrigerator in case you're hungry when you get home."

"OK", I whispered into her mouth as I kissed her one more time. Then I grabbed my stuff and headed back down to my office.

**_CUDDY_**

As I hurried towards his office, I hoped that Wilson was not with a patient. I knocked on the door and waited for a reply. I heard him call out "Come in" and I opened the door. To my relief, he was alone. I stepped inside and shut the door behind me.

I got right to the point. "What do you know about House seeing Chris Guskiewicz up in Elle's office?"

His face blanched and he stammered: "Uh, he hasn't said anything to me about that."

I narrowed my eyes and looked at him sternly. "But you know something. I can tell by the look on your face."

He rubbed the back of his neck and said: "I only know what Elle told me."

I waited, but he did not go on. "Well? Spill it."

"I don't know if I should. She told me all of this in confidence."

"You two don't have doctor-patient confidentiality and you're not a priest hearing confession. What affects House directly affects the hospital and thus me. I need to know what is going on with him."

"Well, why don't you ask him? HE has not said anything to me about seeing another doctor for his pain meds. I used to write him a new Vicodin script about every 10 days. It's been more than 2 weeks now since the last time I gave him one."

"So he is doing something else."

"It would seem that way."

"And you're pissed off that he hasn't told you."

He gave me his most exasperated look. "House likes to know everything about everyone else, and he doesn't want anyone to know anything about him. I'm amazed that he has let Elle in as much as he has."

I thought for a moment. House hadn't gotten a new Vicodin script from Wilson in 2 weeks, longer than usual for him. He was looking better; he almost had a spring in his step today. That could mean that his pain was under control. And he shows up at Elle's office at 4:30, at the scheduled appointment time of this mysterious Luke N. Laura. Suddenly, I thought of something.

"Pull up a patient on your computer."

"O. K." He said hesitantly. He started tapping the keys. "Who?"

"Last name, Laura. First name, Luke."

"Strange name." He tapped the keys and then said: "Middle initial N?"

"Yes. Now, check the birthdate and the blood type."

Wilson frowned as he searched for the information. "Uh, his birthdate is June 11, 1959 and his blood type is AB positive."

I leaned back against the couch. "It's House. That's his birthdate and his blood type."

"You're right about that, but how do you know this is House?"

"I dropped by Elle's office this afternoon, to thank her for the dinner invitation. I also wanted to make sure House wasn't playing a trick on us. The dinner invitation is for real, by the way. I happened to glance at her appointment list and the name Luke N. Laura was slotted for 4:30. It seemed like an unusual name, but yet also familiar. And Elle's last appointment is supposed to be 4:00, so I was doubly curious. She seemed a bit nervous when I asked her about him. She said he was a special case and this would be the last time she would be seeing him. So I hid around the corner from her office so I could see who this guy was."

"You _hid_ by her office? Now _you've_ started to act like House."

"Save the smart remarks. At 4:30 Guskiewicz shows up and so does House. They shake hands and walk into Elle's office together. No one else showed up. So he has to be Luke N. Laura. And what is his favorite soap opera?"

He looked puzzled and said: "General Hospital, but what does that."

I interrupted him before he could say anything more: "And who are the two most famous characters on General Hospital?"

Slowly he said: "Luke and Laura. Oh, my Gawd, you're right. It's him."

He turned back to the computer and started tapping keys again.

"What are you doing now?"

"I'm looking to see if there are any labs on here."

I leaned forward: "Are there?"

"Yeah. Last Monday, he had a full work-up. His liver enzymes and his acetaminophen level were high. Those tests were repeated on Tuesday and the levels had dropped to just above normal. The acetaminophen in the Vicodin was overloading his liver. He must have stopped taking the Vicodin on Monday night for such a dramatic turn-around."

I nodded slowly: "Yeah, he must have. Is there anything else in his file?"

Wilson tapped a few more keys: "Guskiewicz has some progress notes in here, dated Monday and Thursday of last week."

"So he has seen House 3 times now including today. What do the notes say? What did he put him on?"

Wilson threw his hands up in the air. "No. I'm not going there. I'm not reading the notes."

"Why not? You know House would do it if the situation were reversed."

"And that makes it right? It's OK for me to do it because House would do it? No. I'm not lowering my ethical standards. If and when House wants to tell me about it, I'll listen. I'm done with snooping. If you want to read it, go right ahead."

He stood up from his desk and moved away, motioning me to his chair. I started to get up and then sat back against the couch. "You're right. It's not ethical to look. Close the file and get the temptation out of my face."

Wilson sat back down and with a few keystrokes closed out the file. We sat silently for a few minutes and then Wilson said softly: "I guess I just want him to tell me himself what is going on. I thought I was his best friend and I'm completely out of the loop here."

"You know how private he is about his personal life. I mean, has he ever told you why he dislikes his dad so much?"

"No. After all these years, I don't know exactly why. I have a few reasonable hypotheses, but I don't know for sure."

"That's what I mean. He keeps it all bottled up inside."

Wilson nodded: "Yeah, he does, but I think he might be opening up to Elle. I'm telling you, he's someone else around her. You just won't believe it when you see them together outside of the hospital. He is so affectionate with her. He was never like that with Stacy. But with Elle." He got quiet for a minute and then he chuckled. "I guess he didn't tell you about his weekend, did he?"

I shook my head.

Wilson gave me what was probably the abbreviated version of their weekend in New York. I smiled to think that House did seem to have a bit of a romantic touch about him. And then I gasped in surprise when he relayed the incident in Ben Benson's to me.

"So in a crowded restaurant, he French-kisses Elle and grabs her ass to make a point in front of his ex-girlfriend and her husband?"

Wilson nodded.

I laughed. I could just imagine the look on Stacy's face when she saw them kissing. "Oh, I am so looking forward to dinner on Friday night."

He nodded: "Me too. This will be very interesting."

**_ELLE_**

I closed up my office and headed out to the grocery store. I had menus planned for the rest of the week and I wanted to get all of my shopping done.

That took about an hour. I lugged everything in and put it all away. I made a simple dinner of chicken with rice and broccoli and ate it in front of the TV. It was lonely eating without Greg especially so soon after we had made up, but at least I knew he would be crawling into bed with me later. I'd probably be asleep when he got home, but I would wake up in his arms and that made me happy. He didn't have these late nights very often; maybe a couple of times a month, but I longed for some time alone with him before his Mom arrived on Thursday.

I made up a plate for Greg, wondering if I should even bother putting broccoli on it. He'd make a face and probably not eat it. Smirking, I put it there anyway. Maybe he'd eat his veggies for once. After all, he knows he needs the fiber.

Since I had dinner guests coming on Friday, I decided to go ahead and clean the apartment tonight. As I dusted and vacuumed, I realized that my table was not large enough for 8 people. I was going to need something else. Avi and Ricky had a folding table with extra chairs that they used for big dinner parties and I figured they would loan it to me. I had to call them to invite them to dinner anyway. We chatted for about 20 minutes, and when I hung up the phone, I had agreed to pick up the table and chairs tomorrow night after work and they promised to bring the challah for Friday dinner.

It suddenly dawned on me that this was the first Shabbat dinner I was throwing since December when my world was tilted on its axis. That made the dinner double in significance over and above having Greg's Mom and Dr Cuddy here. I suddenly wanted to make it extra, extra nice.

I dug around in my linens and found my long white tablecloth. It needed to be laundered, so I left in on the futon to deal with tomorrow. Since the boys were bringing the challah, I dug out my challah plate and the accompanying knife. My one and only pair of nice candlesticks were in a box on the top shelf of the closet. As I took them out, I noticed that they were only slightly tarnished and would easily polish up. I went ahead and took care of that job. I had trouble remembering where my challah cover was, but finally found it mixed in with some pillowcases at the bottom of a dresser drawer. Weird place for it, but at least I had found it. I left it with the tablecloth to be laundered.

Tired from all my hard work, I sat down with my laptop for a bit. I read my e-mail and surfed around on the Internet for a while. I was searching for something for Greg, and I finally found what I was looking for. It was only 69.99 and had free shipping, so I went ahead and ordered it. I was a little nervous about it, but I really hoped he would like it.

It was almost bedtime, so I changed into a cami and some boxers. I took my pill and brushed my teeth. I went over to Greg's apartment; put his dinner in the refrigerator and set up the coffee pot for the morning. I left a short note on the butcher-block table in the kitchen, reminding him that there was a plate in the refrigerator for him.

At 10:05, my cell phone rang; it was Greg. Smiling, I snapped open the phone and simply said: "Hey."

In a husky voice, he said: "Are your panties wet?"

I giggled: "They would be if you were here."

He growled: "Wish I were, instead of being here with my morons, uh, I mean, my ducklings. I'll probably be here until midnight." I could hear the regret in his voice.

"Shall I keep your side of the bed warm?"

He said softly: "As long as you're in MY bed, you can have whichever side you want."

"I kinda like the middle."

"Quite the bed hog for such a little girl. Crap, they're back. I gotta go. Leave a couple of inches of space for me, OK?"

His phone clicked off before I could even reply to that. I smiled; Greg was not much for phone conversations and typical good-byes were not his style.

I finished getting ready for bed. I left on the kitchen light and a lamp in the living room. I told myself that was for Greg so he wouldn't come home and stumble around in the dark trying not to wake me. I also left the bathroom light on but there was no possibility of reasoning that one away. It was on for me, to keep the boogieman away. I still had a lot of uneasiness about sleeping alone. As I lay there, I reminded myself again and again that Greg would be coming home shortly. I tried to stay on my side of the bed, but I wound up in the middle of the bed hugging his pillow as I finally dozed off.

**_HOUSE_**

I got rid of the ducklings long enough to take my Oxycontin and make a quick call to Elle. They came back with the lab results rather quickly, so I ended my call more abruptly than I would have liked. Since they had already been at work for 13 hours, I'm sure they were hoping that this last batch of lab results would be enough for the night and we could all go home.

I scanned the pages that Cameron handed to me. The results showed leukopenia and anemia, plus elevation of AST and ALT. Hmm, his liver enzymes are through the roof and his white blood count and red blood count are low. Something about it was tickling my brain but I guess I was too tired to figure it out.

"Differential, people?"

The kids threw out a few lame ideas, but we were all too tired to think much. I harangued them for about an hour, but then gave up. He seemed fairly stable so I left Foreman to baby-sit and sent the others home. I spent some time in my office searching for a journal, but couldn't find it. I thought it might be in that stack on my desk at home, so I decided to call it a night and head home.

The apartment was quiet when I entered, but I knew Elle was asleep in my bed. I could understand leaving the lamp on for me so I wouldn't stumble in the dark, but leaving the bathroom light on was a dead give-away. I didn't mind; whatever it took for her to feel safe here was OK with me. I wandered into the kitchen and saw her note. Grabbing the plate from the refrigerator, I stuck it in the microwave to warm up my dinner. While it was heating up, I searched for the journal. Happily, it was in the pile on my desk. I grabbed the plate and settled on the couch to eat and read.

The journal article was not as helpful as I thought it might be, so I tossed it aside and channel-surfed while finishing dinner. Then I had a better idea of what to watch.

I had planned to upload those photos of Elle onto my work computer, but I hadn't had time today. The more I thought about it, the better it seemed to not put them on my work computer. As much as I would like to look at them in my office, someone could hack in and find them, and that would be bad. So I uploaded them onto my home computer. They were so much better on my 14-inch monitor than on my little cell phone screen. I grinned as I flipped through them. She was so beautiful and so sexy and she was mine. If I believed in a god, I would have thanked him or her. Since I didn't, I just considered myself one lucky guy to have this sexy woman sleeping in my bed. And since it was past midnight, I decided it was a good idea to go and join her there.

I took my plate to the sink and wrote a note to Elle. I propped it next to the coffeepot where I was sure she would see it. I limped down to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. In the bedroom, I quietly stripped off my clothes and tossed them on the chair. Elle was right in the middle of the bed, hugging my pillow, exactly where I expected to find her. I crawled into bed and nudged her over. I managed to extract the pillow from her arms and placed it under my head. She whimpered a bit when I did that, so I took her hand and placed it on my cheek.

I whispered to her: "It's Greg, sweetheart. I'm home. Your cowboy's home."

She hummed and her hand caressed my cheek. Her body relaxed against mine and I wrapped my arm around her. She was wearing a cami and some boxers, and although I wished she were naked, I understood why. I pulled her closer, buried my nose in her hair and fell asleep.


	32. Chapter 32

**_Elle_**

The alarm was ringing but I didn't want to move. It felt so good being in Greg's arms. Finally, groaning softly, I wiggled out of his embrace and turned the alarm off. I staggered off to the kitchen for some much-needed coffee. His note made me laugh out loud.

_Elle_

_Chicken and rice—good_

_What was that green stuff?_

_It looked like rotten little trees--ICK!!_

_Wake me before you leave._

_G_

So he didn't eat the broccoli, not a surprise. But he wanted me to wake him up? That was a strange request. He never wanted to be awakened this early. I showered, dressed and had breakfast. At 7:30, I walked back down the hall with a cup of coffee for him and tried to gently wake him up. I shook him and called his name. Nothing was working. Finally, I started whispering in his ear all the things I wanted to do to him tonight as I stroked his woody. That worked.

He mumbled: "Really? You'll do that tonight?"

"Umm, hmm, if you get home early."

"I'll be home, very early if you'll do that."

I gently nipped his earlobe and sat back up. "I brought you a cup of coffee. Why did you want me to wake you so early? It must have been late when you got in last night."

"Yeah, it was. But I wanted to do this before you left."

Before I knew it, his lips were on mine and his tongue was in my mouth. My arms reached up to snake around his neck and he pulled me as close as he could. We kissed deeply for several minutes before we finally broke apart for air. He murmured: "That was worth waking up early for."

I smiled against his mouth and kissed him again. He cupped my breast and whispered: "You have too many clothes on."

"I know. I have to go to work, although I would much rather stay here with you. And I really gotta go, or I'll be late."

"OK. See you later and thanks for the wake-up call. Much more personalized service than the Ritz."

I smiled and gave him one more quick kiss before I headed out the door. As I turned out of the bedroom, I could see Greg already swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He really was getting up. I couldn't imagine why he was getting up so early for work. Patient or no patient, he never got up this early. I was very curious, but I didn't have time to ask him now. I had to get to work.

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I ran into Wilson in the parking garage.

He grinned as he said: "I heard you had a nice weekend."

Nervously I said: "Yes, we did. What all did he tell you?" _Gawd, I hope Greg doesn't brag to Wilson all about our bedroom activities. _

He smirked: "I heard about Ben Benson's. That was good. Wish I could have been there for that."

I almost sighed with relief: "Yeah, that was fun. We both enjoyed that."

He studied my face for a moment, and then smiled: "Don't worry. He doesn't tell me any details. I do get to hear how great it is, or how many times you did it, but no specifics. House used to brag and tell me all about his 'conquests', but not anymore. You're not just a 'lay' to him; you are something much more. I told you that all that meshugass would blow over, remember?"

I was surprised by his forthrightness and pleased that Greg didn't share the details of our sex life. I didn't know quite what to say to that.

"Yeah, you were right, but I sure couldn't see it at the time. Thanks, Jimmy. I know you had a helping hand in resolving that. We really had a good time in New York. We got room service and he got them to deliver Junior's cheesecake for me. He took me on a carriage ride and he bought me a big stuffed dog at FAO Schwartz."

He looked surprised: "Really? Wow! I didn't know the big jerk had a romantic bone in his body. I thought he missed the day that they were handing those out."

I didn't want to tell him any more details about our romantic life, so I changed the subject. "So, umm, did he tell you that his Mom is coming? He invited you and Julie to dinner on Friday, right?"

He nodded: "Yes, he did. I'm afraid that Julie won't be able to make it, but I'll be there. Can I bring anything?"

I shook my head: "No, but thank you. I have everything under control. Um. You've met Greg's Mom, right?"

"Yes, several times."

"What's she like?"

"Oh, you'll like her. She's really nice. Are you nervous about meeting her?"

I nodded my head. "I get the feeling that his Dad is kinda harsh, but only his Mom is coming."

"Yeah, that's good. He gets along well with his Mom, not so good with his Dad. His Mom is really sweet; I think you two will get along nicely."

"That's what Dr Cuddy told me too. She's invited also. And Avi and Ricky are coming too."

"Wow, that's a lot of people. Are you really up for cooking for that many? House shouldn't make you do all this work."

I shrugged: "I offered to cook. And it's not a big deal. I like to cook. I used to people over for Friday night dinners all the time before, well, you know, before. I'm making brisket, by the way. I heard that you asked." I smiled at him.

"Yeah, House told me I was rude for asking. He also said we should bring our own booze cuz we weren't going to drink his."

I rolled my eyes: "That sounds like something he would say. Ignore that. You do not need to bring anything."

He smiled at me: "It's Friday night. What about challah?"

"Avi's bringing it, but thanks. If you really want to bring something, how about a bottle of merlot or shiraz?"

"Kosher?"

"No, it's not necessary. We're eating meat, and there will be brownies and ice cream for dessert. So you know I don't keep kosher."

We parted ways once we were inside the hospital. He headed off to the coffee cart and I dashed to the elevator. It was 2 minutes to 8. I was just going to make it on time.

**_HOUSE_**

I wasn't ready to tell Elle why I wanted her to wake me up early. I wanted to try it out first before I said anything. I got dressed, threw a change of clothes in my backpack along with my usual things and headed off to the hospital.

I hoped that I wouldn't run into anyone as I headed to the gym. I didn't want to explain my early appearance at the hospital. I figured that the gym wouldn't be so crowded at this time; the before-work grunts would have already done their workout and headed to their jobs by now. My instincts were correct. There were only a couple of people there. I headed to the locker room and changed into my swim trunks. Grabbing a couple of towels, I limped over to the pool. I pulled a chair close to the edge and left the towels on it and my cane propped up next to it. I carefully eased myself into the pool. It was nicely heated and felt rather good. I took a lane and started off very slowly. I did 2 laps of the crawl and then switched to the sidestroke. The crawl kick was easier for my leg than the sidestroke kick. The muscles needed for that stroke were definitely ones that I had not been using. I managed 2 laps of that and decided that was enough exercise for my first day. I floated on my back for a few minutes, just enjoying the warm water, and then I carefully climbed out of the pool. I toweled off and headed off to the locker room for a shower.

Thirty minutes later, I was in my office. The kids were surprised to see me so early, but I ignored their reactions. Foreman stated that the patient was still having fevers and muscle pain, but was really no worse than he had been last night. I told him to go home to get some sleep, but he insisted he wasn't that tired. He said he would catch a nap in the locker room and be back in a few hours. I instructed Chase and Cameron to question the patient some more and then head to his home for a search mission.

Once alone, I grabbed a cup of coffee and took it into my office. I swallowed my morning dose of Oxycontin and leaned back in my chair to think. My leg felt a little tired about the morning exertion, but not too bad. I'd decided to take it a bit easy the rest of the day, and see how it felt. I read through the patient's chart again, hoping to come up with an idea. I still had that nagging tickle in the back of my brain, but it wouldn't come to fruition. I picked up my coffee cup and headed out to the balcony to get some fresh air and hopefully clear my mind.

**_WILSON_**

I grabbed coffee and headed up to my office. I had patients scheduled at 9 and at 10. I busied myself reviewing their charts before they arrived. After the last one left, I had a decent block of time before my next appointment at 2PM. I had a stack of charts to sign off on, so I started on that task. After a half hour or so of boring charting, I noticed House out on the balcony, so I decided to join him.

"How's your patient?"

"About the same. There's something missing, something he is not telling us. I sent the kids to the home to snoop around."

We stood in silence for a few minutes. I debated how to ask him, and then just decided to come out with it.

"You haven't asked me for any Vicodin in over 2 weeks. You got a secret, secret stash, or do you have a new prescriber?"

He smirked: "Ah, Jimmy. You miss writing my scripts? Usually I have to beg you for them."

"I didn't say I missed it. Just surprised that you haven't been hounding me for more."

He didn't answer me right away, and as the silence stretched out, I wondered if he was going to say anything or not.

Quietly he said: "I'm off the Vicodin now."

"What?!"

He just shrugged: "I'm not taking it any more."

"But you're not going through withdrawal. You look great, like your leg isn't bothering you that much."

"It's not bad right now."

"So spill it already. What are you taking, and who's prescribing it for you?"

"Don't make a big deal out of it. I'm seeing Guskiewicz."

So it was true. He was seeing the pain management doctor. I couldn't wait to tell Cuddy that she was right.

Casually I said: "Elle knows him from her other job. Did she talk you into seeing him?"

He grimaced: "Sort of. I was having side effects from the Vicodin. The acetaminophen was doing bad things to my liver so she convinced me to see him. She thought I needed something else, something stronger and without acetaminophen. Guskiewicz agreed. He put me on Oxycontin with oxycodone for breakthrough pain."

I wasn't surprised that Guskiewicz did that, but I would not have felt comfortable doing so.

"So you are off the Vicodin, taking Oxy and he is writing your scripts for you?"

House nodded.

"How's it working?"

He grinned: "Good enough that I could spend the weekend running around New York City and romping in bed with a hot woman 12 years younger than me."

He thumped his cane against the floor a few times and then said: "It's much more tolerable. I'm hovering around a 5 – 6 now, instead of 8 – 9."

I was stunned, but tried to keep it casual: "Hey, that's great."

He shrugged: "It sucks less than before. So is your _darling_ wife coming to dinner on Friday or not?"

I guess he was done talking about his personal stuff and time to get back to mine. "No, she's not. She has a meeting and sends her regrets. I will be coming solo. I already told Elle."

His head spun around to face me: "When did you see Elle?"

"In the parking garage this morning. I heard about your romantic carriage ride."

I thought I saw a ghost of a smile cross his face, but it passed quickly.

"She seems a bit nervous about meeting your Mom."

He frowned: "Yeah, she does. I don't see why."

"Wouldn't you be nervous if you were meeting hers?"

"Shit, yeah, I'd be nervous, cuz they're dead! It would scare the crap outta me."

I rolled my eyes: "I meant hypothetically. If they were alive and you were going to meet them, would you be nervous?"

"I don't see why. Just people."

"You wouldn't be concerned about whether or not they liked you or approved of you? Oh, what am I saying? You're House. Of course you don't care what others think."

He frowned and tapped his cane against the floor. "My Mom is easy to get along with. Elle will see that when she meets her. She's just nervous for no reason."

I sighed: "It's your **MOM**. Of course she wants your Mom's approval. It's just normal."

He shrugged: "My Mom will like her. She's worrying for nothing. C'mon, it's lunchtime. Got your wallet? It's your turn to buy."

I grumbled: "Why should today be different than any other day?"

Shaking my head, I went back into my office to get my wallet. He just doesn't understand why Elle would be nervous. I hoped for Elle's sake that the visit would go OK.

**_HOUSE_**

It was late afternoon and I was frustrated beyond belief. Chase and Cameron had not come back yet and I didn't want to spend another late night here. I wanted to be home with Elle tonight. Mom would be here in 2 days, and I wanted some time alone with Elle before she got here.

I pulled out my cell and was punching in Chase's number when the two of them walked into the conference room. _'About damn time'_, I mumbled to myself as I strode into the room.

As they set plastic bags onto the table, I asked: "What took you so long? Find anything?"

Chase gave a succinct reply: "It was a very large house and there were 2 outbuildings. The house is very clean, but we sampled the usual places for molds and toxins. The wife is a vegetarian and won't allow meat in the house. She uses only non-toxic green cleaners, but we brought samples of them anyway. One outbuilding houses the lawn mower and other garden equipment. The other one was padlocked and when I asked his wife for a key, she said she didn't have one. She explained it was her husband's office and she never went in there."

Foreman strolled in during Chase's report. His clothes were slightly rumpled, but he looked a bit more rested.

Chase went on: "So I asked if she would mind if we would break the lock, assuring her that it could be important, that his life might depend on it. So she agreed."

I snarked: "What did you find, his porn stash?"

Chase chuckled: "No, it would have been better if we had. What we found really pissed off the wife. Apparently he hunts and she is quite opposed to that, being a vegetarian and all. He promised when they got married that he wouldn't do it any more. Well, we found several rifles and other hunting equipment. There were photos of him standing next to dead deer. I thought the wife was going to be sick. She had to leave the room."

That tickling sensation in the back of my brain got stronger: "Has he been hunting recently?"

"Possibly. According to the wife, he went away 2 weeks ago, supposedly to a conference. However, there was a freezer in this building and we found some frozen packages in there that quite possibly could be deer meat. Cameron checked and it is deer hunting season in Maine right now, so he could have easily gone up there for the weekend. We brought one back with us to check it out."

Chase pulled an aluminum foiled wrapped package out of one of the plastic bags and dumped it on the table.

"Hmmm, dinner. What do you say Cameron? Wanna cook us up some nice venison?"

She made a face at me. "Gross."

"Don't want to eat Bambi, huh? You and the wife have something in common. He lied to his wife about hunting. So what do we get when we throw this into the DDX?" I turned to the whiteboard and added 'deer hunting' to the list of symptoms.

Chase said: "He could have picked up any number of things while out in the woods. If he got a bite from a deer tick, it could be Lyme disease. And even though we didn't see the bulls-eye rash, one in 4 patients don't get that symptom."

Foreman piped in: "I just came from checking on the patient and we have a new symptom."

"What is it?"

He chuckled: "You need to come see this one for yourself."

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There was something about the way Foreman said those words, that convinced me it was finally time to see the patient. I hoped that the wife was there and was giving him hell about the hunting. I should have stopped for popcorn to eat while watching the fight, but I did have a lollipop in my pocket. That would suffice.

We walked into the patient's room. Foreman closed the curtain around his bed and said: "Mr. Reynolds, this is Dr. House. He is the one in charge of your case. Please show Dr House what you showed me earlier."

The patient hesitated; he looked embarrassed.

I said impatiently: "Come on, I haven't got all day. I'm a doctor; I've seen it all."

The patient pushed down the blanket and hiked up his hospital gown. OOOO, KAY. I have seen it all, but not necessarily that big. He has an extremely bad case of orchitis. His testicles were swollen to the size of grapefruits. Good thing he wasn't up walking around; he would be extremely bow-legged.

"Wow, check out the set of balls on this guy. You must be one tough dude. When did this happen?"

He said slowly: They were a little swollen last night, but this morning they got really big."

"And you're sweating."

I turned to the ducklings and said: "Why didn't you tell me he was sweating?"

Cameron said: "Well, he has a fever. We figured it was from that."

I sighed: "Not everyone with a fever sweats and this is a very distinctive odor. Take a sniff."

Chase bent down and took a good sniff. "It is different, but I can't quite place it."

I motioned to the other two and they also took a sniff. They both shook their heads unable to name the odor. _Hmm, name that odor; that would be a good game show._

"You morons. His sweat smells like wet hay. He also has a fever, muscle aches, headache, loss of appetite and hugely swollen gonads. What does that add up to?"

Their expressions were blank. I shook my head and addressed the patient: "You've been hunting recently, haven't you? Bag a nice big deer?"

He looked around nervously: "Don't tell my wife. She doesn't want me to go hunting. She doesn't believe in killing or eating anything with a face. You know how boring it is to eat vegetables all the time?"

"No, cuz I'm not that big an idiot to marry a vegetarian. How long ago did you shoot the deer?"

"We went two weeks ago."

"You clean the deer yourself?"

"Yeah, we always do."

I turned to the ducklings: "Draw some more blood. Test for Bengal Rose and Huddleson reactions. If they are positive, let's get a liver biopsy. You need to contact all his hunting buddies and get them in here for tests too."

The patient said: "You know what's wrong with me? What is it?"

"We'll know for sure when the blood work comes back. It looks like brucellosis. You picked it up from the deer carcass."

"Oh my Gawd, I got sick from hunting? My wife is going to kill me. Don't tell her, OK? Tell her it's from something else."

A voice piped up from the doorway: "It's a little late for that, Larry."

I turned to look at the voice. A tall thin blonde was standing in the doorway and I assumed it was Mrs. Patient. She looked really mad. As much as I would like to stay for the fireworks, I decided that going home to Elle would be a lot more fun.

I limped to the door, calling over my shoulder: "Run the tests, call the friends, and start the treatment."

**_ELLE_**

After work, I stopped off to pick up the table and chairs. Ricky was home, but Avi was still at work. Ricky sympathized with me about my nervousness at meeting Greg's Mom, but like everyone else, he told me that it would be OK and she would like me. I wish I felt that confident about it.

When I arrived home, I lugged the table and chairs inside and set them up. Now I had plenty of room for everyone. It made the apartment a bit cramped, but it would be fine. As I was struggling to set up the table, my cell phone rang, but I couldn't get to it in time. When I finished setting up, I grabbed it to check my messages. Greg had left me a text. He was on his way home and expected me to fulfill my morning promise to him. I grinned; it was only 6PM. We would have lots of time together tonight.

I went into the kitchen and started preparing dinner. After 15 minutes, I heard him arrive home. I knew he would go into his apartment, toss down his stuff and then head over here. If he had figured out what was wrong with the patient, he would be on a big high and really horny. Since he texted me that he wanted what I had promised him this morning, I was guessing that was the case.

In less than 5 minutes, he stomped through my door.

"Where's my woman?" he bellowed rather caveman-like.

Sing-songy, I replied: "I'm in the kitchen."

He let out a loud stagy grunt and came after me. I was standing at the stove working on dinner and then next thing I knew he was right behind me. He can move really quietly for a big guy with a cane. He tossed my hair to the side to expose my neck, and then he wrapped his arms around me. With his mouth on my neck, one hand on my breast, the other hand between my thighs and his pelvis grinding into my ass, it wasn't too difficult to figure out exactly what he wanted.

I leaned back against him. I lifted one hand to stroke his hair.

"Solve the case?"

"Yes," he said breathlessly as he continued to nibble on my neck.

I sighed as I sagged against him. His hands and his mouth were touching all the right places. My desire for him grew by the second.

"Would you like dinner first or?" I didn't get to finish the sentence as he crashed his lips on mine.

He kissed me passionately for a minute, then pulled back long enough to say "Or," before his lips found mine again.

I managed to turn off the burners and set the pan aside before he pulled me into the bedroom.

When Greg was on a post-case horny high, he was impatient with clothes and location. He wanted me right then and there. Tonight, he did manage to take the time to pull me into the bedroom, but that was probably because there was absolutely no counter space to use for his desired purpose. He started tugging off my clothes as we walked, lip-locked, to the bedroom. By the time he backed me up to the bed, my shirt was up around my neck and my jeans unzipped and pushed halfway down my hips. He pulled back long enough to take my shirt and bra off, and then he pushed me back onto the bed. He tugged at my jeans and I raised my hips to aid him. My panties came off with my jeans and I lay there before him completely naked while he was still dressed.

Desire evident in his eyes, he quickly pulled his shirt off while toeing off his shoes. I leaned forward and undid his belt. Then I unzipped his jeans and pushed them down far enough that Mt Gregory sprang out right in my face. I took him in my mouth and I heard Greg moan. I knew he liked it, but it wasn't what he wanted. When he was in these moods, he only wanted to be inside and on top of me. I pressed my tongue against that really sensitive spot just below the head and he hissed. His hand fisted in my hair and he said softly: "Lie back, little minx. I need a home run."

I ran my tongue around his head, licking up his pre-cum and then I did as he requested. I scooted further on up the bed as I watched him drop his jeans and boxers to the floor. His need was quite evident as he climbed on top on me. His mouth went right to my breast while his hand checked for wetness between my thighs. He had me so turned on that I was dripping wet. He removed his damp fingers and stroked his cock for a moment while studying my face. I knew he wanted to be sure I was ready, so I smiled at him and lifted my hips up. I rubbed my sopping center against the head of his cock. He smiled at me and rubbed the head against my entrance for a minute, and then plunged inside.

When he was fully inside of me, his eyes closed for a brief moment, the look of pleasure evident on his face and he stilled his movements as if the sensation was just too overwhelming. Then his eyes opened and that lascivious grin took over his face as he started thrusting his cock in and out of me. His mouth moved to my neck and he sucked hard as he pumped me.

He didn't last long when he was in these moods. It was over in just a couple of minutes of hard thrusting, calling out "Oh Gawd, Elle!" as he came. He collapsed on top of me. I held him as tightly as I could, my arms wrapped around his back, my walls squeezing his softening member until he chuckled and rolled us on our sides.

"Your pussy's got quite a grip. Been doing those kegels, again?"

I giggled: "Only when you're inside of me." With our arms wrapped around each other, we kissed passionately for several minutes and then Greg's hand started wandering down south. His kisses grew slower and more tender as he gently caressed my ass. As his hand slowly moved across my hip and tangled in my short hairs, my legs slowly spread wider allowing him greater access. His thumb gently brushed my clit and I moaned, throwing my head back and exposing my neck to him. Greg took that opportunity to start a fresh assault on my neck, while slipping his fingers inside my wet core. He started off slowly, gradually picking up the pace as my moans increased in volume and frequency. Every few thrusts, he would brush my clit with his thumb and threaten to send me over the edge. The teasing was maddening, yet delicious.

I was getting close and pushed my pelvis against his hand. He chuckled, whispered: "Horny little minx," before he engulfed my nipple with his mouth. His thumb found my clit again and this time stayed right on top of it. With his fingers thrusting inside of me and the pressure of his thumb on my clit, it didn't take much longer. I cried out in pleasure as I fell over the edge.

Greg rubbed me until I stilled his hand when the sensations got too overwhelming. He slowly removed his hand and then smeared the juices on my nipples, tenderly licking them clean afterwards. I lay in a post-coital bliss and let him kiss and caress me all he wanted. Finally his mouth found mine again and our kisses were slow and sweet. Finally we simply lay contentedly in each other's arms with our lips mere centimeters apart while breathing each other's air.

After a few minutes, Greg propped himself up on his elbow and said: "Guess what was wrong with this guy?"

Managing to keep a straight face despite my inner amusement, I asked: "Symptoms?"

This was also part of his post-case high. First there was the passionate sex, then the recap of the case. Both parts were fantastic in their own way. The sex was fabulous as always and the rehash just demonstrated to me once again the brilliance of my lover's mind. I loved the way that he could take all the mixed-up puzzle pieces and complete the picture that no one else had been able to solve.

"OK. This guy comes in with muscle pain, headache, loss of appetite and fever. Sounded really ordinary, like the flu, but it's not flu season. He had already been on antibiotics and they didn't help."

His face was animated as he spoke. His hand wandered up and down my body, caressing me gently. I snuggled into the crook of his arm, playing with his chest hair and contentedly watching his face as he spoke.

"So I sent the ducklings off to do the usual. History reveals nada; bloodwork shows leukopenia, anemia and elevated liver enzymes, but it is still not coming together. So today, I sent Chase and Cameron out to the house to snoop around. They discover that he hunts, much to wifey's disapproval. She's a vegetarian."

He made a face and shuddered as he said that word, and I giggled at his reaction. He tickled my ribs for a minute: "You laughing at me?"

"No, No," I gasped. "At the silly vegetarian."

Satisfied with my answer, his tickles changed back to caresses, and he continued the story. "So we find out he was out of town two weeks ago supposedly at a conference, but it was also deer hunting season in Maine. The kids found a freezer with frozen meat in his locked office along with some rifles and photos of the guy standing next to dead Bambis. Apparently the wife almost lost her lunch when she saw that. Then Foreman walks in and tells us we have to go _**see**_ the patient's newest symptom. We all traipse up there and you won't believe what the guy had."

I was totally fascinated with his story and couldn't wait for him to go on.

"What?"

He guffawed and said: "The guy's balls were the size of grapefruits!"

I sputtered: "What?"

He nodded, still chuckling.

I took his package gently in my hand and said: "Do you mean the whole sac was a big as a grapefruit or each individual ball was that big?"

"Each. Individual. Ball. Grapefruit. Two of them."

I gently caressed his own sac as he spoke. His eyes started to flutter close; he really liked it when I played with his balls.

I continued to pleasure him as I said softly: "They'd be too big to suck on."

Dreamily he said: "That's true." I could see the question in his eyes. I smiled, knowing what he wanted and I slid down his body to do just that.

"Tell me the rest," I said, before I gently took one of his balls in my mouth.

"Ah, ah, oh yeah. The rest. Oh, that's good. Yeah, so, the kids are running confirmation tests, but I'm sure he has brucellosis from the deer carcass. He'll need long-term antibiotics and we need to test his friends. OH, baby. Ah, oh yeah." He moaned with pleasure.

I had laved both of his balls with my tongue and worked my way up to his cock. I glanced at his face; his eyes were closed and his expression was completely relaxed. I loved seeing him this way and knowing that I did this to him.

I licked and gently sucked his cock as if it were an all-day sucker. He only grew half-hard under my ministrations so I knew he was really tired. But I loved doing this to him and he certainly enjoyed it, even if this were as far as it went.

His stomach rumbled noisily and he sighed. "Come up here, baby." He patted his shoulder and I moved up to lay my head there. He stroked my cheek with his thumb as he gently kissed my lips. "Your old man's a bit tired."

"Naw, I think he's hungry. He needs some fuel to keep the fires burning."

"Umm, OK. I'm not opposed to food as long as it's not green stuff. Got any venison?"

"How about a steak and some fried potatoes?"

"Hmm, that sounds excellent." His eyes were fluttering closed. He was really tired.

"Why don't you take a little nap and I'll wake you when dinner's ready."

Sleepily he said: "OK. But don't forget what you promised me."

I whispered: "I won't. Shh, sleep now."

His eyes closed completely and his breathing evened out. I watched him for a minute, and then quietly got out of bed. I grabbed a clean t-shirt and thong out of the drawer, put them on and went to the kitchen to make dinner.

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I tossed a small salad, mainly for me. I fried the potatoes and onions and put the steak under the broiler. I figured a 30-minute nap would revive him, so I took my time preparing the food.

I was bending over to take the steak out of the oven, when I heard his footsteps. I set the steak down on the hot pads and turned to look at him. He was barefoot and wearing just his jeans and a smile.

"That was a nice view to wake up to."

"Glad you liked it. Hungry?"

He nodded.

"Go sit down, and I'll bring it to the table."

He looked sternly at me: "You promised."

I laughed: "And I will. I needed the shirt for cooking, though. You didn't want me to get splatter burns on my boobies, did you?"

He looked amused: "No, of course not. Just uphold your end of the bargain. I came home early."

"And I will. Go sit down."

He limped off to the table and sat heavily. He was still tired. The nap was a very brief respite for him. I still wondered why he got up so early.

I plated the food and then slipped off my t-shirt. When I woke him this morning, I promised him if he came home early, I would serve him dinner in just a thong. So I proceeded to do just that.

He had a shit-eating grin on his face when I walked into the room and set his plate in front of him.

"Now, this is the life. I come home from a hard day's work to sex, a nap and dinner served by a naked woman. It just doesn't get much better than that."

I set the plate down and he wrapped his arm around my waist. "You know, I always tip my waitresses well. Where am I going to put your tip? Down here?" He stuck his fingers down the front of my thong and brushed against my hair.

"You can put your _tip_ in there right after dinner, when you have your stamina back."

I kissed the top of his head, sashayed back into the kitchen and returned with my plate and bowl of salad. I sat and we started eating. He actually stole a couple of forkfuls of my salad. I was amused, but didn't let on. He finished his entire plate, snatched a few forkfuls of mine and then sat back with a contented sigh. "That was excellent, Elle."

"I'm glad you liked it, cowboy."

He stretched his arm across the table and wiggled his fingers at me. I took his hand and we just sat for a while, without saying a word.

**_HOUSE_**

We just sat for a bit, our arms stretched across the table and her hand in mine. I was sated and sleepy from the food and the sex.

Elle broke the silence by asking: "You have your poker game tomorrow night?"

I nodded: "Yeah, the usual."

"I thought I might tidy up your bedroom tomorrow night. You know, clean sheets for your Mom and stuff."

I squeezed her hand: "You know, you don't have to do that."

She looked amused: "Are _**you**_ going to change the sheets or are you going to let your Mom sleep on the ones that we had sex on?"

I grimaced. I did need to tidy up a bit for Mom. No way was I letting Mom sleep on our dirty sheets, but I hated cleaning and laundry. I really didn't want Elle doing all the work, but she seemed so willing to help. Maybe if I whined enough, she would do it.

"Geez, I don't know if I'll have time between work and the poker game."

She smirked: "You could do it now and just sleep here until after she leaves."

I sighed dramatically: "Just like a woman. You feed me, fuck me, totally tire me out and then expect me to work around the house."

"Well, it is YOUR Mom. And you're not completely tired out. I bet there is some life in you, yet."

"I'm an old man, sweetheart. I'm barely hanging on."

"Yeah, right."

Elle got up from her seat and walked over to me. She tried to pull my chair away from the table but my weight was too much for her. I chuckled and she narrowed her eyes at me. She solved her problem by shoving the table away from me. That took me by surprise. She quickly straddled my lap and wrapped her arms around my neck. She planted languid little kisses all over my face as she slowly ground her pelvis against mine.

Her breasts rubbed against my bare chest. Her mouth would find mine, teasingly kiss and lick my lips and then move on to kiss my neck or nibble my earlobe. And all the while, she continued her lap dance, her tiny thong grinding against my jeans.

I couldn't help but respond. My arms went around her and started caressing her back and ass. It didn't take long before my flag was flying at full staff.

She whispered in my ear: "Old man, huh? Barely hanging on, huh? You feel like a young stud muffin to me."

I felt her hands unbuttoning my jeans. As she started to pull the zipper down, she teasingly said: "OH, but you're tired, aren't you? You want me to stop?"

In a low voice, I growled: "Don't you dare."

She giggled as she finished pulling down my zipper. She slipped her hand inside my jeans and teased the head just a little bit.

Elle whispered: "Lift up."

I lifted my hips so she could pull my jeans down. She pushed them down to my ankles and left them there. She straddled me again and then whispered in my ear: "Don't you want to know if my panties are wet?"

I was sure I knew the answer, but I also knew that she wanted me to check for myself. I dipped my hand under the thong and she was indeed wet. She trembled at my touch on her most personal spot.

"Hmmm, you feel very hot, I think I need to take your temperature."

She whispered: "Whatever you say, Dr. House."

"Fortunately I have a big thermometer for your needs. Let me put it in and see just how hot you are."

"You're the doctor. You know best."

I moved the thong's small scrap of fabric to one side and guided Elle's hips as she slid down my 'thermometer'.

Elle moaned: "Oh, Dr. House, your thermometer is just the right size."

I murmured: "Yes, Ms Kaplan, it is. And you have a high fever. I believe it's about 105 degrees."

"Oh my Gawd, that sounds bad. Can you cure me, Dr. House?"

As I pressed my lips on hers, I said: "Yes, I know just the right treatment for you. And it won't hurt a bit."


	33. Chapter 33

**House**

Chase called about an hour later to confirm the diagnosis of brucellosis. The Bengal Rose and Huddleson reactions were positive. The patient's hunting buddies were coming in tomorrow to get tested. The ducklings started the patient on the appropriate antibiotics. Chase didn't know if the wife was starting divorce proceedings or not, but there had been a loud argument.

I chuckled at the idiocy of a hunter marrying a vegetarian and hung up the phone.

We never did change the sheets. I wanted to sleep at my place, cuz I knew the next 5 nights we would be at Elle's apartment. And I really prefer my pad and my bed. I secretly hoped that Elle would end up doing it for me but if she didn't, I would just change them on Thursday morning before I left for work.

As we went to bed, Elle set her alarm on her cell phone as usual. She asked me if I needed to be awakened in the morning. I told her 'no'. I could see the question in her eyes, wondering why I had gotten up early today, but thankfully, she didn't ask. I wasn't ready to tell her yet. I wanted her to wake me up early on Thursday, though, but hopefully she would think I just needed to get up early because of Mom's arrival.

As we snuggled together in bed, I felt amazingly good. I had solved another case. I had gotten laid twice and been fed a delicious meal. The pain in my leg was down to a '4' at the moment. And a beautiful naked woman was in my arms. If this feeling was happiness, I was beginning to think that I could get used to it.

**ELLE**

I got busy as soon as I got home from work. I stripped Greg's bed and threw it all in the washer with my tablecloth and challah cover. Then I tidied up his room, making sure that there were none of my underclothes lying around. He has a habit of tossing them across the room when he undresses me and I didn't want his Mom to find a bra in some inappropriate place. I did a quick vacuum and considered the room finished.  
The bathroom looked OK. There were plenty of clean towels. I did a quick wipe-down of the sink and mirror and that was enough.

The kitchen looked fine since we really only used it for making coffee and microwaving leftovers. I took the coffee pot back to my place, since we would be sleeping there for the next several nights.

I put on some Stevie Ray Vaughan and started chopping onions and garlic for the spaghetti sauce. By the time I got everything chopped and ready to go into the pot, it was time to move the laundry to the dryer. That accomplished, I started the sauce cooking. First I sautéed the onion and garlic until they were just the right shade of brown. Then I tossed in a couple of cans of tomato paste and stirred that around. I added the big cans of plum tomatoes with basil next and stirred some more. Then I added the oregano, basil, red pepper, sugar, salt, and a bay leaf. I stirred it some more and left it to simmer.

I pre-heated the oven and started mixing up a double batch of brownies. I stuck them in the oven and headed back to the laundry room. Everything was dry so I took it all back to my place first. I left the tablecloth and challah cover neatly folded on the table and then I headed over to Greg's to remake the bed. My chores were almost done and then I could enjoy the rest of my evening.

I was in his bedroom making the bed when I heard the door open. His backpack thudded onto the sofa and then I heard the familiar tap-step-step of his cadence heading down the hall. He paused in the doorway, watching me.

"I thought you were leaving that particular chore for me."

"I was, but I got home before you, so I took care of it. You gotta set up for your poker game anyway."

His expression didn't change, but I could see the smirk in his eyes.

Hands planted on my hips, I said: "You planned it this way, didn't you? You figured if you procrastinated long enough that I would take care of it for you. You're a bad boy."

He slowly walked towards me: "Yeah, but you like bad boys, don't you?"

He put his hands on my hips and pulled my body against his. His scruff tickled as he nibbled my neck.

"Not usually, but there is one in particular that I'm rather fond of."

His hands slid down and squeezed my ass as he said: "Oh, yeah. Who's this guy? Do I know him?"

My arms snaked around his neck as I said: "You might have seen him around. He's got a really big cane."

He chuckled as he pulled me closer. I could feel some stirrings in his jeans and he had that look on his face.

"Oh, no. Forget it. These are CLEAN sheets. I'm not redoing the bed."

He murmured in my ear: "It doesn't have to be on the bed. There's a comfy chair right over there. Come sit in my lap, little girl, and Santa will give you something on your wish list."

He started backing me up towards the chair and then we heard the front door slam. A familiar voice called out: "House. I got the beer. Hey! You haven't even set up the table yet. What are you doing? The guys will be here any minute."

I giggled as Greg groaned: "Wilson has the most spectacular timing."

He called over his shoulder: "I'll be right there."

With his eyes closed, he stepped back from me. I knew he was trying to calm things down, but I couldn't resist. After all, I did HIS laundry; he needed a bit of torture. I put my hand on top of the bulge in his jeans and said softly: "Later, cowboy, if I'm still awake when the game is over."

He moaned: "Oh, you little minx." He grabbed my face with both hands and crashed his lips on mine. We were kissing passionately with my hand still on his crotch when Jimmy discovered us.

"Oh, Gawd, you two! Don't you ever get enough?"

Greg broke our kiss, looked directly at Jimmy and said in a most serious voice: "No."

I removed my hand from Greg's bulge and wrapped my arms around his waist. I leaned my head against his chest, looked at Jimmy and said: "No."

Jimmy waved his hands at us as if we were annoying flies or something. "Whatever. I'm going to set up the table. Are you playing poker tonight, or are you just going to poke her instead?" We could hear him mumbling as he stomped down the hall.

Greg stroked my cheek: "Poor Jimmy. He seriously needs to get some. I better go help him before he decides to leave and takes the beer with him." He planted a little kiss on the top of my head and walked down the hall.

I finished making the bed, taking my time so that the two of them would cool off a little bit. By then, they had set up the table and put out the cards and poker chips. Jimmy still seemed a bit miffed, but Greg was whistling while pouring some potato chips into a large bowl.

"Are you guys getting pizza tonight?"

Greg nodded: "Yeah."

"Will you knock on my door when it arrives so I can have some? I'll bring brownies."

"For me, or for everyone?"

"For everyone."

I saw his frown, and quickly said: "Don't worry; I made a lot. There's a whole 'nother batch for your Mom for tomorrow."

Jimmy asked: "Are you making sauce? I thought I smelled in when I came in the foyer."

"Yes, I am. We're having spaghetti tomorrow night."

"Wow, House, your girlfriend's doing all this cooking for your Mom. Pretty sweet deal you got."

Greg snarled: "Yes, it is sweet and you're jealous."

I groaned: "And I'm getting out of here before you two start sniping at each other. It's probably time for the brownies to come out anyway."

I walked out of the apartment before I had to listen to more of their remarks.

About an hour later, there was a knock at my door and I heard Jimmy call out: "Pizza's here." I grabbed a plate of brownies and went across the hall.

"Hey, guys," I said as I walked into the room.

There was a chorus of greetings from the poker guys: "Hey, Elle, nice to see you." "Sit down, have some pizza." "Want a beer?"

Greg groaned despite the big bite of pizza in his mouth. He chewed quickly, swallowed and said: "This is not a pajama party. We will not be braiding hair or painting toenails. This is a poker game. Eat fast so I can get back to winning your money."

I set the plate of brownies down on the table. "Hey, I'm not here to interrupt your game. I'll just grab some pizza and get back to my place."

Stan, the bus-stop guy, moaned: "Aw, do you have to leave so fast?"

It seemed like a good idea to leave. Greg was really serious about his poker and I didn't want to interfere with his game. I slid 2 slices of pizza on a paper plate and headed towards the door: "Yeah, there's too much testosterone in here. I gotta go paint my toenails and do some girly stuff to counteract it. Nice to see you guys."

I went back to my place, eating my pizza on the futon in front of the TV. When the rest of the brownies cooled off, I covered them with Saran wrap and put them away. The sauce had simmered long enough; I would add the hamburger to it tomorrow. I set the pot in the refrigerator and then cleaned up the kitchen.

At 10PM, I got ready for bed as usual. I left the kitchen light on for Greg and headed to the bedroom. Tonight I wore just a long t-shirt to bed. I hoped the game would break up earlier than usual, so we could have some time together. I was still nervous about meeting his Mom, and felt more reassured in his arms. I tried to stay awake and wait for Greg, but I dozed off before he came over.

**HOUSE**

I only won 300 bucks tonight, but that wasn't so bad. The guys raved about Elle's brownies and I felt weirdly proud of her. The game wound down around 11PM. The 3 guys left right away and Wilson stayed long enough to help me break down the table. As soon as he left, I headed over to Elle's place. She had left the kitchen light on for me, but that was the only one. The bathroom light wasn't on, and that was unusual for her when she was sleeping alone. Perhaps she felt more comfortable tonight, in her own place. I found a piece of paper and left her a note by the coffee pot. I needed her to wake me up early tomorrow. I wanted to get in another swim before starting work. I hoped she would just think that I needed to get up early because of Mom's arrival.

I walked quietly into the bedroom and saw her sleeping mostly on her side of the bed but she had one arm stretched across the other side. I undressed quietly and slipped into bed. I gently picked up her hand and brought it to my chest so I could move closer to her. Tonight she was wearing a long t-shirt for pajamas. I put my arm around her and gently stroked her back. She stirred a bit, so I whispered to her: "It's me, Elle."

Elle hummed: "Cowboy." She snuggled closer to me and then murmured: "Win much?"

I kissed her gently: "300 bucks."

She sighed: "Good boy."

I felt her fingers playing with my chest hair. I ran my hand down her back and up under her shirt. I was pleasantly surprised to find her naked under the shirt. I softly caressed her ass and then I felt her lips kiss my chest.

"Are you awake?"

"Kinda. Think I promised you something if I was awake when you got here, didn't I?" I felt her hand slid down and wrap around my shaft.

"Yes, you did, my little minx." I gently kissed her mouth and ran my hands up under her shirt. She reached up and grabbed the top of her shirt and pulled it up over her head. Once naked, she snuggled up next to me and resumed caressing me.

I tangled my fingers in her soft hair and said: "I guess it's OK if we get these sheets dirty, huh?"

Elle giggled and rolled me onto my back. As she climbed on top of me, she said: "Yes, cowboy. Let's get 'em dirty."

(Thursday)

**HOUSE**

Elle woke me at 7:30 with a cup of her coffee. She didn't ask why I wanted to be awakened and I didn't tell her. We kissed for a few minutes and then she left. I got up and put my jeans on. Carrying the rest of my clothes, I hobbled back to my place. I threw everything I needed for the day into my backpack and then took a good look around. I wouldn't be back until later tonight and then Mom would be with me. The place looked decent. Elle had done a nice job of straightening up. I grabbed a few changes of clothes and took them over to Elle's place, leaving them on top of her dresser. That way, I wouldn't have to come back to my place every time I needed to get dressed. That task accomplished, I left for the hospital. I took my car today, since I was going to head straight to the airport from work. I wondered how big a suitcase Mom was bringing and if I'd be able to throw it in my trunk without looking like a total cripple.

I headed right to the gym and changed in the locker room. Again, the gym was fairly empty and I was glad of that. I did 3 laps of the crawl stroke and it wasn't too bad. Then I started on the sidestroke. Like Tuesday, I found it to be more difficult than the crawl. I managed 2 laps and started a third, but felt a cramp starting in my thigh so I eased right off. I floated on my back for a bit, and then the cramp seemed to subside. But I wasn't pressing my luck. When I tired of floating around, I swam to the side using mostly my arms and some easy kicking.

As I dried off, I realized that it was going to take a while to build up the strength in my thigh. That was a bit discouraging, but as least swimming wasn't as boring as those stupid exercises that the P.T. wanted me to do. And the thought of playing golf again was a definite motivation. I felt determined to keep it up and, after Mom's departure, I would bump up my sessions to 3 times a week.

I showered, dressed and headed up to my office. After dropping off my backpack, I headed into the conference room for a cup of coffee. The ducklings were absent and I relished the silence for a few minutes. I wasn't in a hurry to find them. They would just be curious why I was early for the second time this week. I was either going to have to swim a bit later or find somewhere to hide for an hour before coming to the office. I sat down at my desk and sipped my coffee while I turned on my computer. I double-checked Mom's flight, confirmed her arrival time and settled back to play some Minesweeper for a while.

As I played, I wondered how I was going to entertain Mom tomorrow. I had taken the day off from work, but Elle had no vacation time so she wouldn't be able to join us. It had been years since I spent a day with Mom. When I was a kid, we would go to a movie or the zoo or a museum. When I bombed out at my current game of Minesweeper, I did a google search for museums in Princeton. I found one I thought she would like. It was called the Morven Museum and Garden. It was close-by, right off of Nassau Street, near Princeton University. The Morven Museum is located in the former governor's mansion and apparently had a decent art collection. In addition, the gardens were supposed to be stunning. Mom was always out poking around in her flower garden so I thought she might like to see the gardens. We could have a late breakfast and then head off to the Morven for art and flowers. It seemed a tolerable way to spend the day. Elle would get off work at 4:30. We could be back by then and Mom could help her set up for the dinner party while I took a nap.

Tomorrow was settled. I was just about to start another game of Minesweeper when the ducklings walked in. They stood in front of my desk as Chase gave the report.

"He went hunting with 4 other guys. They bagged 3 deer between them. The deer were cleaned by all of the men, however all the other guys wore gloves while cleaning the deer. Our patient didn't. He had forgotten to bring them. None of the other guys had any symptoms at all, but we tested them anyway. They were all negative. We started Mr. Reynolds on doxycycline 100 mg orally twice a day and told him he would need to continue it for 45 days. Streptomycin is in short supply at the moment, so we went with gentamicin 5mg/kg IM once a day for the next 7 days. He should be well enough to be discharged over the weekend, so he can just come back to the clinic once a day for his injection until the 7 days are up."

I nodded: "Did you test the wife?"

Foreman frowned: "Uh, the wife didn't go hunting, remember?"

I rolled my eyes: "DUH. I do remember Mrs. Vegetarian scowling at Mr. Hunter. Did YOU know that brucellosis could be transmitted through sexual contact? Admittedly, it is rare, but it has happened."

Cameron piped in: "She isn't showing any symptoms. She hasn't been sick at all."

"Test her anyway. We have to report the case to the CDC and I want to make sure all our T's are crossed, so it doesn't come back to haunt us later. If she is positive, get back to me about it. If she is negative, then the case is over. Finish the charting and sign off on it. If we don't have any new cases, do your clinic hours. I'm taking tomorrow off; so don't page me unless it's an extremely interesting case."

Cameron's eyes got big: "You're taking tomorrow off? You never take time off."

"Hmm, maybe that's why I have so much accrued vacation time. So I'm using a day tomorrow. But Wilson will be here in case you need coddling."

Cameron continued: "What are you doing tomorrow?"

I smirked: "I have a big day planned. First I'm off to the track for the trifecta and then I have a threesome with my favorite hookers. It might turn into a foursome if Brandi gets back from Atlantic City tonight."

Predictably Foreman and Cameron rolled their eyes in disgust. Chase smirked, met my eyes briefly, and then lost the grin. He knew I was messing with them, but he was smart enough not to say anything. Since he knew about Elle, I'm sure he figured that the hooker part was a total bluff. So far he has been smart enough not to say anything about Elle to the others, and he better keep it that way. I didn't want my personal life broadcast all over the hospital.

I silently glared at the ducklings until they got the message and left my office. I went back to playing Minesweeper until Wilson came to get me for lunch.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

I decided to leave work at 4PM. Mom's flight got in at 5:40PM. It was only 40 miles to Newark, but with rush hour traffic, it could be slow going.

I didn't do too badly. I found a fairly close handicapped spot and managed to make my way to her gate by 5:40PM. About 15 minutes later, the passengers finally started emerging. Mom was right in the middle of the crowd. I felt myself smiling when I saw her. She looked just the same; the woman never aged. She was wearing a maroon knit top, black slacks and sensible black flats. Her hair looked a little different; I thought I detected a bit of blonde highlighting although the cut was the same style. She had a black shoulder bag over one arm and was pulling a rolling suitcase with the other. I could see that she was scanning the crowd looking for me, so I held up my cane and waggled it in the air. She saw it, and headed towards me with a big smile on her face.

"Hello, Greg." She reached up to hug my neck.

"Hi, Mom." I bent down and let her hug me, hugging her back with my left arm.

"You look wonderful, dear." She squeezed me tightly and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Then she laughed as she rubbed her lipstick off my cheek.

"I don't think your lady friend will want to see you with some other woman's lipstick on your cheek."

I smiled and said: "Oh, I think she'll know it's yours, Mom. How was your flight?"

"Rather long and tiring, but I had a book to read and I managed to take a short nap, so all in all it wasn't too bad."

"Shall we go get your luggage?"

"It's all right here, dear." She indicated the rolling bag with her hand.

I was surprised: "That's all your luggage?"

Mom looked amused: "I'm only going to be here for 4 days. How much stuff do I need? And all the times that we moved, I learned to travel light."

I nodded, happy that I wasn't going to have to heft a large bag into the trunk. I could easily lift this small suitcase.

"OK, Mom. Let's head home."

**ELLE**

I hurried home from work, anxious to get dinner going. While the hamburger was frying, I changed into one of my better pair of jeans and a red top. Instead of my usual flip-flops, I put on a pair of Teva sandals. Once the hamburger was browned, I added it to the spaghetti sauce and left it to simmer. I made a tossed salad and prepared the garlic bread. Now I would just have to slip it in the oven right before it was time to eat. I decided to wait to boil the pasta until they got home. It wouldn't be polite to just jump right into dinner. His Mom may want to rest or freshen up first. I still had a lot of nervous energy, so I went ahead and set the table and then puttered around straightening things that were already perfectly fine.

I glanced at the clock and groaned. It was only 6:15 PM. If the flight had been on time, they would just be leaving the airport now, and with traffic, it would probably take them an hour to get home. I needed to do something. I looked around my apartment. Everything looked fine. The sauce was simmering nicely, so I turned it down just a little bit. There really was nothing for me to do. I figured that I had a good 45 minutes, so I went over to Greg's place. I sorted through the sheet music until I found some Mozart and then I sat down to play for a while.

**HOUSE**

The ride home was amusing. Mom was gently trying to grill me about Elle and I was deftly deflecting her questions. I gave her the basics, like how we met and all that, but I wanted her to form her own opinion of Elle.

The traffic was much smoother on the ride home. We made it by 7PM and I even scored a good parking spot only 2 doors down from our building. We made our way into the foyer and I heard the music right away. Elle was playing the piano.

Mom looked at me puzzled: "Is that music coming from your apartment?"

I nodded: "Yes, it's Elle. Let's listen for a few minutes. Elle doesn't usually play classical in front of an audience. She seems to reserve it for her quiet times."

Leaning against the doorpost, Mom closed her eyes as she listened: "I recognize that piece. That's Mozart's Rondo No.1 in D Major. She's really good."

I nodded my head in agreement. She was good and I loved listening to her play. She really threw her whole self into her music.

We stood in the hallway until Elle finished that piece and started another one. I quietly unlocked the door and we slipped in. Elle was so into her music that she didn't notice us at first. Finally she raised her head as she turned the page of sheet music and then she saw us. Her eyes widened and her mouth formed the shape of an 'O'. One hand froze on the keys and the other on the page. Needless to say the music stopped.

Elle blushed profusely and stammered: "Oh, I didn't know you were back yet. Oh, my, and I'm just sitting here, playing around." She stood up and nervously started shuffling the pages together. She seemed completely flustered as if we had caught her doing something naughty instead of just playing the piano.

Mom has a sensitive nature and picked up on Elle's nervousness immediately. "Well, my dear, if that's just 'playing around', I'd love to hear what you could do when you play seriously."

Elle stopped shuffling papers and looked first at Mom and then at me, as if she were waiting for a cue as to what to do next. I held out my hand and beckoned her to come closer. She set the sheet music down and walked shyly towards us.

As she approached, I could tell she was working hard to fight off her nervousness. She stuck her hand out, as she got closer and said: "I'm Elle Kaplan. It's really nice to meet you, Mrs. House."

Mom grabbed Elle's outstretched hand with both of hers and smiled warmly at her. "I'm very happy to meet you, dear. And please, call me Blythe."

Elle smiled shyly at Mom: "Yes, m'am, I mean, Blythe."

I put my arm around Elle's shoulder, gave her a squeeze and a loud smack on the cheek and asked: "When's dinner? Starving man here."

I felt her arm wrap around my waist and she gave me a return squeeze. "Just hold on. I thought we could get your Mom settled in first."

Turning back to Mom, Elle said: "Um, Blythe, may I show you to your room? If you want to freshen up, there are clean towels in the bathroom. Then I'm going to head across the hall and finish making dinner before your son starves!"

I smiled inwardly; Elle was already starting to relax around Mom.

Mom chuckled: "Greg always did have a hearty appetite. He always wanted seconds at dinner. And starting in the second grade, I had to pack TWO sandwiches in his lunch pail."

"Really?"

Elle grabbed Mom's suitcase and the two of them started down the hall.

"Oh yes, dear. One time he ate half of a chocolate cake that I had baked for a church social. Oh, was he sick after eating that! He was only 8 at the time. Oh, and I brought a photo album to show you. I thought you might want to see what Greg looked like as a baby."

They turned into the bedroom and their voices faded away.

_Photo album? Stories about my childhood? Oh Gawd. _

Elle and Mom were starting to bond. And now I wasn't sure that it was such a good idea after all.

After a few minutes, Elle came back down the hall. She was smiling, which was nice, but I wondered what else Mom had told her.

She walked up to me and gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek.

"You were right."

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer. "Of course I was. Which particular time are we talking about?"

"I shouldn't have been nervous about meeting your Mom. She is really nice. I worried for nothing."

"Now would be the perfect time for me to tell you I-told-you-so, but since I'm such a great guy, I won't."

I had said that in a very sarcastic tone, but Elle took me completely seriously.

She murmured: "Yes, you are." Then she planted a sweet kiss on my lips.

My body started responding to her. It was as if I hadn't touched her in days. Sometimes I couldn't believe the intense physical response that I had to her touch. My hand slid down to her ass and pushed her closer to me. I wanted her to feel what she did to me. She pressed against me as we kissed, our tongues roaming leisurely in each other's mouths. As we stood there, in the throes of our passion, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mom walk out of the bedroom. She paused at the bathroom door, looking at us. She gave me a smile and a wink, and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

I tried to suppress a chuckle and couldn't do it.

Elle asked: "What?"

In a stage whisper, I said: "My Mom just caught us kissing!"

Elle sighed: "More than that. Your Mom just saw your hand on my ass!"

I wiggled my eyebrows at her: "Don't worry, Mom is cool. She won't tell Dad."

Elle stroked my cheek and said: "Good, cuz I don't want to get _grounded_. I'm going to go start the water boiling for the pasta. Come over whenever your Mom is ready."

She gave me a quick peck on the lips and walked out of my apartment.

Twenty minutes later, we were sitting down to eat. Elle's spaghetti and garlic bread were fabulous as always. Mom praised her cooking and Elle blushed at the complement.

Mom asked: "Was this your mother's recipe?"

"The garlic bread is hers; I was preparing that by the time I was 8 years old. I learned to make the sauce from my first boyfriend. He's Italian, and he wanted me to be able to make sauce just like Mama. We argued over the garlic bread though. He claimed it wasn't authentic, but it is the only way I'll make it."

"Well, you cook very well, dear. Now, Greg tells me that you are a pharmacist. Do you enjoy your work?"

Her job was something that Elle was very comfortable talking about. She told Mom about her pain patients and how she felt that she was making a difference in their lives. When she mentioned working with Wilson, Mom's face lit up.

"And how is James? He is such a nice young man."

I smirked: "He's fine, Mom. I won 100 bucks off of him playing poker last night. You'll see him tomorrow. He will be coming for dinner and so will Cuddy."

"Oh, how nice! It will be wonderful to see the two of them again. But you didn't have to go to so much trouble, dear, and invite people over. We could have just gone out to a nice restaurant."

"I tried, Mom, but this one wanted to cook and I couldn't talk her out of it."

Elle made a face at me: "It's not any trouble. I like to cook."

I snarked: "And I like to eat, so it works out well."

I held up my plate and gave her my best puppy dog eyes: "Is there any more spaghetti? I'm still hungry."

Mom laughed: "Still wanting seconds, huh?"

Elle said: "Yes, he has a very good appetite. He is usually stealing the food off of my plate too."

"Oh, Greg, you shouldn't do that. Elle is so thin; she needs to eat."

I pouted: "I don't steal all of her food, just a little bit."

Elle stood up and took my plate: "How much? Half, three-quarters?"

"Half a plate would be good."

While Elle was in the kitchen, I stole a piece of garlic bread off of her plate.

Mom tsked at me: "Gregory. There is a basket of bread here. You don't have to steal Elle's."

I whined: "But MOM, hers tastes better."

Elle walked back in the room as I said that and she giggled. She set the plate down in front of me and started to walk around me to sit back down. I stopped her forward movement by putting my arm around her waist. I didn't want her to think that I didn't appreciate her and I also felt compelled to show better manners since Mom was around.

I looked up into her blue eyes and simply said: "Thank you."

The smile on her lips matched the light in her eyes. She bent down and, right in front of Mom, gave me a quick kiss and replied: "You're welcome."

I looked at her for a moment, still marveling that this woman wanted me. I could see Mom watching us, with a little smile on her face. I shook myself from my reverie and dug into the spaghetti.

Elle grabbed herself a fresh piece of garlic bread and took a bite. Then she asked: "So what are your plans for tomorrow?"

I swallowed my mouthful of spaghetti and said: "Well, I thought I would take Mom to breakfast at Yankee Doodle Tap Room."

Elle interjected: "Ooooo, that's nice. You'll like that place, Blythe."

I frowned: "I've never taken you there."

She sighed: "No, YOU haven't. But I have been there. I wasn't a hermit before I met you."

I found that it bugged me that she had been there without me. It was irrational, but there ya go. I made a mental note to take Elle there soon.

I rolled my eyes upward, pretending to be thinking deeply: "Where was I before I was so rudely interrupted? Oh, yes, tomorrow's plans. After breakfast, I thought we could go to the Morven Museum. It has a nice art gallery and some stunning gardens. _Have you been there too?_" I directed that last comment at Elle.

She shook her head: "No, I haven't. You'll have to tell me all about it."

Mom piped up: "Oh, dear, can't you come with us?"

Elle shook her head sadly: "No, I have to work. I haven't been at this job long enough to have vacation days yet."

"Well, my dear, if you have to work, when are you going to have time to cook for guests? Surely this is too much for you to do on a workday. Why don't you have the dinner on Saturday?"

Elle answered: "Oh, the dinner won't be any trouble at all. I'm going to make a brisket in the crockpot. I'll get it all ready tonight and just plug it in tomorrow morning before work. When I get home, it will be done. And I'm playing on Saturday night, so I can't do the dinner then."

Mom looked puzzled: "Playing?"

"Oh. Didn't Greg tell you I was in a band?"

"No, he didn't. Tell me about this band."

"Um, OK. We're called _Orion_. We've been playing together now for about 8 years. I play mostly keyboards, some guitar and I sing. We play every other Saturday night at a local club called Satchel's. Actually you'll get to meet the drummer tomorrow night at dinner, because he and his partner will be joining us. We play mostly classic rock. It would be great if you want to come on Saturday night and sit through a set or two."

Mom looked delighted: "Oh, I'd love to hear your band. That would be fun."

Elle looked pleased: "OK. Cool. Well, that's Saturday night's plan."

"We usually go early and eat at the bar. They have great burgers, Mom. And Elle LOVES their potato skins."

Elle nodded: "Yeah, they're really good."

Mom chuckled: "Well, Greg, I see you are eating well these days. You were too thin the last time I saw you. Now if you stop stealing Elle's food, maybe she can put on a few pounds."

"I don't steal all her food, Mom. Elle eats. She's just thin."

Elle appeared uncomfortable with this subject; her eyes sent me a pleading look. I knew she didn't want me to tell Mom why she had lost so much weight and I wasn't planning on it.

Her body had physically healed, but she still had a small appetite. I could still feel all of her ribs. I guess she had grown used to eating small meals while she was recuperating and her body had adapted to that.

Elle quickly interjected: "I have brownies and ice cream for dessert. Would you like it now, or do you want to wait a bit?"

Mom said: "Oh, dear, I'm stuffed right now. I'd like to digest a little first."

I nodded: "I'll wait."

"OK. Why don't you two hang out while I clean up the kitchen and start the brisket? Then we can have dessert."

"Oh, I'll help you in the kitchen, dear, and I'm not taking no for an answer."

Elle quickly caved: "OK, Blythe. Thank you."

"I'll help by telling you what you are missing on TV while you are in the kitchen."

I settled myself on the futon and channel surfed while Mom and Elle cleared the table and did the dishes. I could hear them chatting away as they worked. Elle had been so nervous about meeting Mom, but she seemed to have gotten over that rather quickly. Mom must have told a particularly funny story because Elle was laughing rather loudly. I was pleased that they were getting along, but I wasn't sure I wanted Elle to know some of the things about my childhood. I did some really embarrassing stuff in my youth. Maybe I shouldn't leave them alone. I turned off the TV and limped into the kitchen.

Elle was slicing onions and Mom was peeling some carrots. Elle was giggling as Mom was apparently winding up a story: "And thank goodness, Greg's father wasn't home to see that. He would have hit the ceiling."

I sighed: "Which time was that, Mom?"

Elle had her lips pressed together with suppressed laughter. Mom was smiling broadly and said: "Oh, just one of those funny things you did as a child."

"I got that. Which one?"

Elle started giggling so hard, that she had to put the knife down. "The time you fell asleep inside the refrigerator!"

Elle started laughing harder and Mom was giggling too.

"MOM! What are you talking about? I never went to sleep inside a refrigerator. I would have suffocated."

"Oh, you weren't completely inside of it, dear. It was when you were 3 and we had just moved to Texas. It was so hot and the air conditioning was broken. In the middle of the night, you took your pillow to the refrigerator, opened the door and propped your pillow up against the bottom of the 'frig. You went to sleep like that, with the door open and the cool air blowing on you. Thank goodness your father was on maneuvers and didn't see that. He would have blown a gasket about the wasted electricity. But I took a picture of you sleeping there. I just never showed it to him. But I brought it with me so I can show it to Elle. It's such a cute picture."

I groaned and covered my eyes with my hand. Now that she mentioned it, I vaguely remembered that incident. And Mom had brought the picture to prove it. _Great, just great._

"This isn't fair. My Mom is telling you all this humiliating stuff about me. When am I going to hear about all the embarrassing things that you did as a child?"

Elle stopped laughing and just stared at me. _Oh, shit._ Too late, I realized what I had just said.

Mom tsked at me: "Oh, Greg. I'm sure Elle's parents will tell you some stories one day when you meet them."

Elle stiffened. She didn't look at either one of us; she just went back to slicing the onions.

I wanted to kick myself: "Elle,"

Softly, she said: "It's OK."

My Mom looked back and forth between us, obviously puzzled at our strange conversation.

Still not looking at us, Elle said: "Actually, Blythe, Greg won't be able to hear any cute little stories about me. My parents are dead. My whole family is gone. There is no one left who remembers me as a child and can tell embarrassing stories about me. So Greg is out of luck on that."

"Oh, my dear, I'm so sorry."

Elle said quickly: "No need. They've been gone a long time. I do want to see those pictures of Greg, though. Can we look at them while we have dessert?"

"Of course, dear. Let me go across the hall and get them."

Mom gave me a sharp look as she passed by me and I took it to mean that I had better do something.

I walked up behind Elle almost close enough to touch her and said: "I'd put my arms around you, but you're holding a knife."

Elle laughed and set the knife down. She turned around and put her hands on my upper arms. "Are you scared of little ol' me?"

"When you're holding a knife, yes."

Elle smiled and tiptoed up to kiss my cheek. "I wouldn't hurt my cowboy. But I might lasso you, tie you to the bed and have my wicked way with you."

"Well, OK, but not while Mom's here. That would be SO embarrassing if she walked in on that scene."

Elle giggled and turned back to the counter. She went back to slicing the onions and asked me to take the ice cream out of the freezer to soften for a bit before we had dessert. Mom came back with the photo album. The two of them finished the brisket preparations and set the pot inside the refrigerator. Elle nuked the brownies a little bit, put a scoop of ice cream on the top of each, and we settled on the couch to eat and look at the photo album.

I tried to ignore the photos and focus on my dessert, but it was difficult with the 2 women sitting next to me, cooing over every pic. Of course, there was the obligatory naked picture of me and Elle commented about my cute butt. But I think Elle's favorite was the one of me sleeping in the 'frig. There I was, all of 3 years old, with a pillow propped up against the bottom of the 'frig, sleeping with my bunny hugged tightly in my arms.

She turned to look at me and grinned: "Nice bunny."

I replied in a haughty tone: "I thought so. My Oma made it for me."

Mom explained to Elle that Oma was Dutch for Grandmother and that's what I called her mother.

Elle gently touched the picture with one finger as if she were stroking the bunny's fur. "That's nice. Do you still have it?"

My mood darkened and I said harshly: "No. When I was 4, my father decided I was too old for stuffed animals and gave my toys away."

I was surprised at the depth of emotion that swam to the surface as I thought about that. My bunny had been special and I cried when he took it away. He had called me a crybaby and told me to shut up or he would really give me something to cry about.

Elle looked stunned and hurt. She leaned her head against my arm as if to give me some comfort.

"That was mean. He shouldn't have done that. You were only 4. You were still little. Besides, you're never too old for toys. I'm 35 and I have 2 stuffed dogs."

I said flatly: "You're a girl. That's different."

"Well it shouldn't be."

Mom cleared her throat and then said softly: "John had very definite ideas of how a boy should be raised. I didn't always agree with him and I couldn't stop some of the things that he did. I thought if I let him win the small arguments, maybe he would listen to me on the big stuff, but that didn't always work out either." She looked at me with such sadness in her eyes.

I remembered the times that she tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen. Sometimes he would hit her too and that was so awful to see that I learned to man up and take my punishment just so that wouldn't happen again.

I propped my head on top of Elle's and leaned into her comforting body. I took my left hand and reached across Elle to squeeze Mom's shoulder.

For once I managed to lie to my Mom without getting caught. "It's OK, Mom. It was a long time ago. It's not a big deal."

We were a slightly more subdued trio as we looked at the rest of the photos. There were pictures of me standing in front of the pyramids in Egypt and in front of Mt. Fuji in Japan. I had played lacrosse in high school and there were a few pictures of me in my uniform and on the playing field. And of course there were family pictures at Christmas and at my high school graduation.

Finally we finished the album and the slightly painful trip down my childhood memory lane. Elle thanked Mom for bringing the album.

"It was nice to see what Greg looked like as a kid. He was very cute."

"I'm not cute."

"You're not cute now. But you were when you were a kid."

I started wondering if I should be insulted that my girlfriend just said I wasn't cute anymore and then she said: "You're handsome now."

I raised one eyebrow as I looked at the shit-eating grin on her face. Then I turned to Mom and said: "She's buttering me up for something; I just know it."

"Elle's right, dear. You grew out of cute right into handsome."

I shook my head: "You both need glasses. Are there any more brownies?"

Elle replied: "Sure. More ice cream too?"

"Naw, just another brownie."

Mom declined any more dessert and Elle wandered into the kitchen to fetch my brownie.

As she walked back into the room, Mom asked: "Elle, do you have any baby pictures? I'd love to see them if you do."

Elle nodded and said shyly: "I have one album. You really want to see it?"

"I'd love to, if you don't mind."

She glanced at me and I nodded encouragingly.

Elle handed me my brownie and said: "OK. I'll just go get it. Be right back."

While she was out of the room, Mom asked: "Was this a bad idea? Is it hard for her to talk about her parents?"

I shrugged: "They died when she was 10. Sometimes she's a little hesitant to talk about them."

"Oh, so young. That's terrible."

Before I could respond to that, Elle walked back into the room carrying her photo album. It was the very same album that I had secretly looked at before. She returned to her same spot on the couch, between Mom and me, and opened the album.

As we flipped through the pages, Elle described what we were looking at. She pointed out her parents and her Aunt Dani and Uncle Andy.

Mom commented: "You were a cute baby. And you look just like your Mom."

Elle produced a small smile and thanked Mom. She went on to describe more of the photos. They spent a lot of time at Daytona Beach, swimming and playing games at the arcade.

We got to the end of the album and the photos I had been curious about. Elle and her obviously pregnant Mom were lighting Hanukkah candles on one page, and on the next page, her Mom was thin and tired-looking at Elle's 10th birthday party.

Mom picked up on it right away. "Elle, your Mom looks pregnant in this photo. But I thought you were an only child?"

Elle nodded: "Yes, she was pregnant. She lost the baby right after New Year's. It was really sad. I remember feeling the baby kicking and everything."

"Oh, that's so sad to lose a baby, especially so far along in the pregnancy."

"Yeah, I was really looking forward to having a sibling. We were all very excited about it. One night, she was cooking dinner and suddenly screamed. My dad and I ran to the kitchen and she was bent over, clutching her stomach. He put her in the car and rushed her to the hospital. Uncle Andy came over to stay with me while Aunt Dani met them at the hospital. Then Daddy came home and told me that she had lost the baby. It was the 5th time."

I remembered seeing her birth certificate and knew that her Mom had 2 miscarriages prior to Elle's birth. "How do you know how many miscarriages she had? They discussed it with you?"

Elle shook her head: "After Daddy told me what happened, he put me to bed. Then he and Uncle Andy sat in the kitchen drinking and talking. Well, I snuck out of bed to listen to them. I heard Daddy say that this was the last time. He wasn't going to let her try again. It was just too hard on her. _Five miscarriages was more than enough for any woman. We have Elle and she is a beautiful wonderful child. We can't do any better than that."_

She choked up as she said that last sentence. I could see the tears brimming in her eyes, before she squeezed them tightly shut. I put my arm around her and she leaned into me.

Mom squeezed Elle's hand and said: "Now normally, I don't approve of children sneaking out of bed, but in this case, I think it's very nice that you heard your dad say those things about you."

Elle took a deep breath and answered in a very tiny voice: "Yes, m'am." She quickly swiped her eyes and flipped the page. She went on to describe Uncle Andy's birthday party and one last trip to Daytona Beach and that was the end of the album.

I teased her: "That's the end? I was enjoying the show, seeing what 'little Elle' looked like. Why weren't there any naked pictures of you? I wanted to see your naked baby butt."

She teased back: "Yeah, and there is no pictures of me sleeping in a refrigerator either."

"Yeah, and you didn't have a stuffed bunny either."

"No, but I had a stuffed dog named Pookie."

"Pookie? What a dumb name!"

"It wasn't a dumb name! Take that back!"

"No." I started tickling her ribs and she screeched in my ear. Despite my newfound deafness, I continued tickling her until my Mom piped in: "Children! Stop fighting!"

"Yes, m'am."

"Yes, Mom." Well, I stopped tickling, but I kept my fingers next to her ribs and poked her a little bit. Elle retaliated by pinching my leg.

"Ow! Mom, she pinched me."

"Well, he's poking me."

Mom just laughed and shook her head. "Oh, my goodness, children. Stop it."

"She started it."

"Argh! You started it. You tickled me first."

"I don't care who started it. Cut it out or I'll send you to your room."

We stopped, looked at each other and then at Mom.

Finally, I just had to ask: "Together?"

Mom gave us a beatific smile and said: "Of course, dear."

A grin spread slowly across my face. The chuckle started deep in my chest and worked its way up until it escaped my lips. I pulled Elle closer to me, kissed her on the temple and then whispered in her ear: "Told ya my Mom was cool."


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

**_ELLE_**

After our little photo viewing session, Blythe said she was tired and ready for bed. Greg and I walked her across the hall and helped her get settled in. Our cell phone numbers were next to the phone so she could reach us and Greg gave her a set of keys to both apartments. I told her the coffee would be ready at my place by 7AM and she could just come over and help herself to coffee and anything in the refrigerator.

"Elle, dear, you are such a wonderful hostess. You have made me feel so welcome. You shouldn't have gone to so much trouble."

I protested: "Oh, no, it hasn't been any trouble at all. It's really nice having you here."

I realized I wasn't just being polite; it _was_ really nice having her here. I liked hearing the stories about Greg's childhood and he seemed rather happy that she was here despite his protests about the embarrassing stories. She gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. I tentatively hugged her back. She was so motherly and I wasn't used to that.

As I watched Greg hug her goodnight, I actually felt a pang of jealousy. He was 12 years older than me, and he still had his Mom. I wonder if he knew how lucky he was. He hardly ever saw his parents and only spoke to them on the phone once or twice a month. Seeing how he was with his Mom, I knew that the distance he kept between them was because of his Dad. My parents had both been so loving that it was hard for me to imagine that a parent could be so cruel to their child, yet Greg's dad had punished him harshly. Knowing Greg, I was sure that he did a lot of things in his youth that warranted some kind of punishment, but not to the extent that his Dad had laid it out on him.

I turned away to give them some privacy, but I was more afraid that my emotions would show on my face and that wasn't fair to either of them.

We walked back to my apartment and got ready for bed. It was just after 10 and I was tired. Greg was quiet and I remembered that he had gotten up early again today. Between the early rising, work and the round-trip drive to Newark, I assumed he was just tired and ready for some shut-eye.

We crawled into bed and lay on our sides facing each other, my head on his shoulder. He tucked a wayward strand of my hair behind my ear and then stroked my cheek with his thumb.

"I think Mom likes you."

"Oh, yeah? She just met me. What makes you say that?"

"She showed you my baby pictures."

"Yeah? Is there a big significance to that?"

"I would say so. She schlepped a photo album in her suitcase. You've must have impressed her over the phone for her to do that. And she never showed my baby pictures to Stacy and we were together for 5 years. Mom never liked Stacy. Thought she was stuck-up and considered herself better than most people."

"You think you're better than most people."

He smirked: "Yeah, but in my case it's true."

I smiled at him. He was certainly smarter and had a bigger ego than most people.

"I think your Mom is really sweet and nice. I was really surprised that she wanted to see my photo album. I've never had anyone request to see my family pictures before."

"Seeing pictures of you with your family gives her a better idea of who you are. And I agree with her. You were a cute baby, and you do look just like your Mom."

We lay together quietly for a few minutes and I found myself starting to doze off. I started to reach over him to turn off the lamp but he grabbed my hand and pulled me closer to him.

In a quiet voice, he asked: "So, what you told my Mom about your Mom, that's the 'family history' as to why you think you can't have kids?"

_Holy Crap!_ He remembered that conversation from a few weeks back.

I nodded: "Yeah, although I didn't mention that my Aunt Dani must have had the same problem as my Mom, cuz she had multiple miscarriages too."

He frowned: "How many did she have?"

I shrugged: "I don't know. She was pregnant at the time of the accident. She had a baby bump so she must have been 4 or 5 months along. And I overheard a conversation between my parents that this was the furthest along Aunt Dani ever got in a pregnancy."

"So it looks like the two sisters had a similar problem sustaining a pregnancy?"

"It would seem."

"And you have no idea what was the cause of the problem?"

"Nope."

"And you think you have inherited this problem? Is that what you meant by 'personal history'? Why would you suspect you have this problem unless you have had a miscarriage?"

Images flashed through my head. I felt a shiver course through my body as I remembered everything that had happened during those 4 weeks. I closed my eyes so that he couldn't read them. I wasn't sure I was ready to tell him about this yet. But I knew it was a puzzle to him, and he wouldn't rest until he solved it.

His hand cupped my cheek. I felt his lips brush against my forehead and he said in a low voice: "You had one, didn't you?"

In the softest of whispers, I replied: "Yes."

His thumb gently caressed my cheek. He kissed my forehead again and then pulled back a little so he could look in my eyes.

Very softly, he said: "Tell me what happened."

"It's ancient history. Boring. You don't want to know."

He continued to stare at me with those gorgeous blue eyes. "Yes, I do."

_Why did he want to know? Was it just the puzzle or was it something more?_ I wasn't sure that I wanted the answer to that. I burrowed my face into his chest and tried to get my emotions under control. It was just as hard for me to talk about this, as it was to talk about my parents' death. It hurt; I had no family and I had lost a baby, perhaps my only chance to have one.

"It was Tony, wasn't it?"

_Well, he figured that part out._ It was late, we both needed to sleep, but I knew he would not rest until I told him about it, so I decided to just get it over with.

"Yes, it was Tony. We used condoms, but as you know, they are only 85 effective. It was November, during our last year of pharmacy school. When the test came up positive, I was upset and scared, but he was really calm about it. The baby wouldn't be born until summer; I'd be able to finish school and graduate with our class. He told me that he loved me and wanted to marry me. He said he hadn't asked me yet cuz he thought we should finish school first. Now that I was pregnant, he wanted to push it up. We decided that we would come to New Jersey over Christmas break, tell his family and have a quiet wedding. Four weeks later, during finals, I miscarried."

"So because you had one first trimester miscarriage, you think you've inherited whatever problem your Mom and your aunt had."

"OK. I don't know for sure, but I have to wonder." My voice trailed off at the end.

"Lots and lots of women have first trimester miscarriages and go on to have successful pregnancies. So you miscarried and then what? You weren't pregnant so he didn't want to marry you anymore."

"It wasn't like that. We came up to New Jersey and I met his family over Christmas break. He has 6 older sisters, by the way. For an orphaned only child, that was a bit overwhelming. We just decided to finish school first before we get married. I went on the pill, so we wouldn't have a repeat issue until we were ready."

"But you never did get married."

"No, we didn't."

"Why did you break up with him?"

"I told you before, it was a mutual decision."

"No, it wasn't. Tony didn't want to end it. It was you. So I'm asking you again: why did you break up with him?"

I rolled over onto my back and draped my arm over my eyes. "Why do you need to know? Again, this is ancient history between me and another man. You have a lot of nerve questioning me endlessly about this, when you haven't told me anything about Stacy."

I knew that stung him, but I was tired and getting pissed off. I told him about the miscarriage. Wasn't that enough? How the hell did he pick up on my falsehood that the break-up wasn't mutual? I'm sure Tony didn't say anything to him, and no one else knows the truth.

"You won't tell me about this, cuz I haven't told you about Stacy?"

"Yeah, that's right. I've told you a lot of personal stuff and you haven't shared with me. I only know the details about the infarction cuz you told Chris about it in front of me. You could share a little bit, ya know."

Reluctantly he said: "It's hard for me to talk about it."

"OH, and you think this is easy for me?"

He gently stroked my belly. "No, I don't."

Then his hand stopped moving and just lay flat on my belly. I looked over at him. His eyes were closed and his face was contorted in pain.

"I want to tell you, but I can't make the words come out. If I speak them, I have to live through it all over again. It was hard enough the first time."

"Sometimes speaking the words makes the pain ease off."

"If you believe that, why won't you tell me the real reason that you broke up with Tony?"

Greg truly has a twisted sense of logic. It's OK for me to talk and ease my pain, but not for him. I sighed loudly. Should I continue this fight and try to convince him to open up to me or just give it up for now, so we can get some sleep? I thought for a few minutes and then decided that since his Mom was here, I didn't really want to fight. It was so rare for him to see her without his Dad and I really wanted him to have a nice time. I decided to bury the hatchet, for now.

"We moved up here after graduation. Tony became more and more enmeshed with his family. Things that we never talked about before suddenly became important. He had said it was OK if I didn't convert to Catholicism, but his spoken words didn't match what his eyes said. And his mother kept dropping hints about wanting her only son to have a church wedding. I didn't want a big fancy Italian wedding; I actually thought it would be cool to get married on the beach, barefoot, at sunset. That comment caused a lot of raised eyebrows."

"I met the boys and wanted to sing in the band, but I ran into resistance. Tony didn't come out and forbid me from doing it, but he discouraged it. His mother was much more open about her feelings that a 'good woman' would not ever sing in a bar. His family had definite ideas about what a wife should and should not do, and I don't think that I would have been able to toe the line. I had been on my own for too long and I wasn't at all used to having parental figures telling me what to do."

I took a deep breath and scrubbed my hands over my face. This was hard to say, but I needed to get this last part out.

"But the real reason that I broke up with him is that I didn't want to disappoint him."

Greg frowned: "Why did you think that you would disappoint him?"

I sighed and continued: "Tony is the only son of an only son. Having kids is really important to him. He wanted to pass on the family name. He felt an obligation to do so. I was afraid that if I married him and couldn't produce the son he wanted, that he would regret marrying me. And I didn't think I could live with that. I didn't want him to look at me 10 years down the road and be sorry that he married me."

"So you sacrificed your love for him so that he could find someone else who would definitely give him a heir?"

I nodded.

"And I guess it had to be a biological heir; adoption would not have been good enough for his family, huh?"

I shook my head: "No, not good enough."

A tear leaked out of my eye; I couldn't help it. I had never told anyone about this and it was hard to talk about. I had truly loved Tony and I left him because I couldn't bear to be a disappointment to him. Greg and I had not known each other long enough to discuss marriage and kids, but I thought maybe now is the time to throw this out there. If, in the future, he wanted to have kids, he should know his chances are slim with me.

I rolled over on my side and looked in his eyes. "Greg, if you eventually want to have kids, you probably need to find yourself another girlfriend."

He snorted: "I don't want another girlfriend. And I certainly don't want kids. I'd be a terrible dad."

"Why would you say that? I think you would be a great dad."

He smirked: "Why? Cuz I like to go to toy stores? It takes more than that."

"_Duh_, I know that. And I think you have it. I think you would be a good dad."

He snorted. "No way. C'mon, I've told you some stuff about my old man. That was my example of being a dad. There is no way I'm going to subject a kid to the chance that I might perpetuate the pattern."

I stroked his cheek: "You would never do that. You would never hit your kid or do those other things."

His facial expression was so sad. "You don't know that. Who knows what I would do if I became angry with the kid? I can't take that chance. I don't know what it's like to have a loving dad, so how could I be one?"

"I think you would treat the kid the way you wished your dad had treated you. The way your Mom loved and cared for you. You would give the child love and guidance, not harsh discipline."

He shook his head: "You don't know that."

"Well, I think you could do it, but you don't seem to think so. I guess we will disagree on this matter. Selfishly, it's better for me if you don't, cuz then you would be looking for a new girlfriend."

"Do you want to have kids?"

"I try not to want what I believe I can't have."

"That's not an answer. A person can still want something, like winning the lottery, even though logically they know it will never happen."

"I don't buy lottery tickets. And I'm on the pill for a reason. I don't think I'm as strong as my mother was and I don't think I could handle multiple disappointments."

"So basically you don't want to try, cuz you're afraid of failure."

I nodded: "Yes."

"And that's why you were getting cold feet with David before the assault happened. He wanted kids, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he did and I was nervous about that. But I also thought that if I failed to sustain a pregnancy, he might be more accepting of adoption than Tony. I had planned to talk about it before we got married, but I was nervous and kept putting it off. Then I got raped and it didn't matter any more."

He pulled me close and I snuggled into his chest. He kissed the top of my head and said: "I think we've talked about this enough for one night. You need to get some sleep."

"Yeah, _I've_ talked enough for one night. _You're_ the one who needed to know about my history. Next time, _it's your turn_ to tell me about yours."

Greg reached over and turned out the light. We huddled together as if we needed the warmth. I was upset with him, but his touch and his smell were so comforting to me that I felt my annoyance with him fading away. I knew the parts about Stacy that Wilson had told me, but I hoped that one day Greg would let down his walls and tell me himself. His walls had been built to protect his heart and he wasn't going to let them down until he was sure he could trust the other person. I could only hope, that over time, he would learn to trust me.

I kissed his chest, right over his heart, and whispered: "Good night, cowboy."

He squeezed me tighter, bussed the top of my head and whispered back: "Good night, sweetheart."

I was just about to doze off when I heard him softly say: "I know that was hard for you. Thanks for telling me."

I kissed his chest again in reply and fell asleep.

**_House_**

She dozed off in my arms. I lay there, holding her, thinking about everything that she had just told me. Now I understood the deep connection between her and Tony. They had lost a baby together. He had loved her deeply enough to want to marry her, but she had pushed him away assuming his family issues were more important to him than their love. She had loved Tony enough to sacrifice her happiness for his. And he had moved on and married someone else, but I felt sure that he still loved her.

_What a wuss_. If he really loved her, he should have stood his ground, told his family off and married her anyway. If they had kids, great. If they didn't, so what? What was the big deal about continuing the family name anyway? I have male cousins with the House name, so I guess the name was continuing on through them, but it certainly wasn't going to from me. And if the name fell off the face of the earth, what difference would it make anyway? It's just a name.

Ah well, much better for me that Tony was a wuss. If he hadn't been, Elle wouldn't be sleeping in my arms right now. I looked down at her beautiful face. Elle thinks that she can't have kids and I don't want any. This is truly the perfect relationship. She won't be hounding me in a year or so to get married and reproduce. She seems happy with me at the moment. Maybe this would last longer than I thought. I wonder how long I can get away with not telling her about Stacy. I don't want to drag all that to the surface after I spent so much time stuffing it down and walling it off in the bottom of my heart. I know most of Elle's mysteries now; we don't need to have any more of these tit-for-tat exchanges. There was only one more thing that I was curious about and I would definitely have to cough up my own personal crap to find that out. How the hell did she get those cuts on her otherwise perfect ass?

(Friday morning)

I heard the alarm clock go off, but I couldn't move fast enough to capture Elle before she got out of bed. I heard the squeak of the faucet as she turned on the shower and imagined her wet and naked in there. That woke up Mt. Gregory rather quickly. The rest of my body was slow to respond. I just don't move fast in the morning. Despite the new pain meds, my leg always ached in the mornings and generally felt better once I was up and moving around. I managed to throw back the sheet and sit on the edge of the bed, but I wasn't quite ready to stand up yet. As I sat there, willing my leg to cooperate, I heard the water shut off and knew I'd missed my opportunity for shower fun.

Elle walked back into the bedroom wearing just a towel. By the look on her face she seemed rather surprised to see me awake.

"Wow, you're,"

I waggled Mt. Gregory at her.

She grinned and cocked one eyebrow: "UP early."

I held out my hand and beckoned her: "Lose the towel and c'mere."

"Greg, I can't, I gotta go to work."

"Just for a minute. He didn't have any playtime last night, and he needs a kiss to make up for it."

"Does he now?"

To my utter surprise, she dropped the towel on the edge of the bed and walked over to me. She bent down, planted a soft gentle kiss on my lips and then dropped to her knees between my spread legs.

I hissed as she wrapped her small hand around my shaft. Her thumb started rubbing the underside with a nice rhythm.

She planted a small kiss right on the head and then asked: "Does he need a little kiss or a big kiss?"

She took the entire head in her mouth and swirled her tongue around the opening.

I groaned: "Big kiss. He needs a big kiss."

She chuckled and the vibration felt exquisite against my hardened member. She gradually took more and more of me into her mouth as her tongue danced around the underside of my cock. My hand fisted in her soft hair. My original intention had been to get her naked and in bed where we could have a little playtime before she scooted off to work. But this felt so good I didn't want her to stop.

Her lips were tightly clamped around me as she moved up and down on my shaft. Watching the action was extremely erotic and I felt that familiar tingling in my balls that indicated that I was getting close.

"Elle, if you keep that up, I'm gonna,"

The look she gave me was pure sex kitten. It was such a turn-on watching my cock move in and out of her mouth. Elle hummed and the vibrations felt so incredible. I reached down and squeezed her breast. Her lips gripped tighter as she slid up and down my cock. When she cupped my balls, I fell over the edge. She deep throated me as I came and swallowed all of it.

I fell back onto the bed, my breathing labored. As I recovered, Elle gently licked and kissed my softening member.

She stood up and leaned over to kiss my lips. "Big enough kiss for you?"

I groaned: "Yes."

My hands moved down her body as we kissed until I reached her most sensitive spot. I smiled against her mouth as I felt how wet she was.

"Someone's ready to go."

"Yeah, me. I gotta go to work."

"Hey, what about your turn?"

"I gotta take my turn tonight. I really have to get to work. You owe me one, cowboy."

One last kiss and she moved away from me. I watched, as she got dressed.

"You're going to have wet panties all day."

She smiled seductively at me. "I know. I'll be thinking of you all day and what you're going to do to me tonight."

"We have a dinner party tonight."

"I know. Afterwards. I'm willing to wait for the good stuff."

I chuckled: "Am I the good stuff?"

She bent down and kissed me again: "Oh, yes. And you're worth waiting for."

One last kiss and she walked out of the room.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

I crawled back under the covers and went back to sleep. It was 9:30AM when some noises in the kitchen woke me up. I figured Mom was getting some coffee, so I pulled on my jeans and went out to join her.

"Good morning, dear. I hope I didn't wake you up."

"Naw, this is my normal wake-up time. Sleep OK?"

"Yes, I did. Thank you. Your bed is very comfortable."

I smirked: "We like it."

She gave me a knowing smile: "Are you sure I'm not inconveniencing you by staying here? You know I can go to a hotel."

"Absolutely not. You're staying put. Elle's bed is fine as long as she's in it with me."

I poured myself a cup of coffee, added the sugar and we sat down at the table.

We sat in silence for a while. Mom was just looking at me with a little smile on her face. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore.

"What is it? You have this silly smile on your face."

"Do I? I was just thinking how well you are looking. The last time I saw you, it was November. We were on our way back from Europe. Your face looked so thin and you seemed so tired and worn out. You were working so hard that you didn't have time to eat dinner with us, remember?"

I nodded, remembering that day. I had a complicated case. The boy ended up dying and there was nothing we could do to save him. My leg had been giving me a lot of pain. But of course, the main reason I didn't want to spend much time with them was because Dad was there.

I teased Mom: "So I'm not too thin anymore? I've pudged up?"

"No, you're not pudgy. You're perfect. And you look relaxed and happy."

I smiled, but didn't say anything.

Mom continued: "Having a lovely woman like Elle around could do that."

"If you wanted to fish, you could have gone on the trip with Dad."

"Blah, I hate fishing."

"Then why do I feel like I have a hook in my mouth now?"

She made a little pout with her mouth and didn't say anything else.

After a few minutes, I caved. "What do you want to know? Where this relationship is going? I don't know. We haven't known each other very long. Don't start dropping any hints about weddings and such."

"You seem happy together, much happier than you were with Stacy. And so much happier than you have been for the last 6 years."

"Stacy and I had our good moments, Mom, otherwise we wouldn't have lasted for 5 years. It's just the end was pretty bad. And you're right; the last 6 years have mostly sucked."

"Things are better now." It was question, not a statement.

I rubbed my thumb against the coffee mug. Life was better. My pain was much more tolerable. Elle was amazing. And I was exercising again, hoping to build up my leg strength so that I could golf again. Happiness always seemed so fleeting, here one moment and gone the next. But there had been some great moments in the last 6 weeks, and I wanted more of them.

I finally answered: "Yeah, Mom. It's better now. In fact, it ain't half bad."

Mom smiled: "I'm glad. I just want you to be happy, son."

"I don't want to aim that high, Mom. I'll settle for sucking less."

After I showered and got dressed, we went to the Yankee Doodle Tap Room for breakfast. It's a nice place to eat at any time of the day and it has a great bar. The atmosphere is cozy; there are dark paneled walls and a large brick fireplace, which naturally was not burning in August. It was mostly empty when we got there. It was kind of in between breakfast and lunch, but we decided on the breakfast menu. I had the Benedictine Eggs, with a side order of breakfast potatoes and silver dollar pancakes. Mom had an omelet with mushrooms, peppers and tomatoes with breakfast potatoes and whole-wheat toast. The food was excellent and we were tucking in nicely when my cell phone beeped. I had a new text message.

It was from Chase, informing me that the wife was negative for brucellosis. Too bad, it would have been more interesting if she had been positive. It was so rare to contact the disease through sexual contact. This last test tied up all of our loose ends so I sent a return message telling him to finish the charting and do his clinic hours.

After an enjoyable breakfast, Mom and I headed off to the Morven Museum. It was a pretty spiffy mansion and the art collection was decent enough. After wandering around the galleries for a while, we headed out to the gardens. Mom was definitely enthralled with this part of our visit. She kept pointing out all the different flowers to me. I recognized the dahlias and phlox, but there were lots of others that I didn't recognize. Mom explained that they were heirloom annuals from the 18th and 19th centuries. Apparently heirloom varieties were becoming quite popular and Mom had really gotten into planting some heirloom roses recently. I chuckled: it sounded like the antiques of the plant world and Mom said that was exactly right. I just smiled and walked around with her, letting her point out all the plants to me. It was like being a kid again, wandering around museums and zoos with Mom.

They kicked us out at 3:00. Mom didn't mind; she was pleased with our day and thanked me for bringing her here. I didn't realize that they closed early on Fridays and I was at a loss of what to do next. I longed for a nap, but I didn't want to leave Mom alone. Elle wouldn't be home until around 5 and then she needed to finish preparing dinner. I knew Mom would help her and I figured I would grab a nap then. So I just needed to fill the time until Elle got home.

As we walked towards the car, Mom asked me if there was a plant shop on the way home.

"I'm sure we can find one, but why? You don't want to schlep a plant all the way home on the plane, do you?"

"No, dear. I wanted to get a little something for Elle. She's so sweet and going to so much trouble to throw this dinner party for me. I saw her little violets on the windowsill and just wanted to get her a little plant."

I smiled: "That's nice of you, Mom. Sure, we'll find a plant shop on the way home."

It wasn't quite on the way home, but we did find one. Mom wandered around talking to the saleswoman about the best type of plant for a window with northern exposure. I leaned against the counter, waiting for her. She finally decided on something called a peace lily. It had a bunch of green leaves and some white oval-shaped flowers. The saleswoman said it would grow well in low-light areas. Mom seemed pleased with it. As Mom was paying for the plant, I noticed another saleswoman placing some more flower vases in the cooler behind the counter. One of them caught my eye. It was a square-shaped glass vase with sunflowers and some kind of purple flowers in it. I knew Elle would love it. I pointed it out to the saleswoman and she brought it over to the counter. Mom tried to pay for it too, but I gallantly refused. I wanted to buy them for my girl. I did, however, let Mom hold the vase on the way home so it wouldn't topple over.

We set the plant and the flowers on the coffee table when we got back to Elle's place. The brisket smelled delicious and I started to lift the lid on the crockpot to nab a bite, but Mom slapped my hand away.

"Stop that. It's not ready yet. I'm sure there is some leftover spaghetti if you're hungry."

I foraged in the refrigerator until I found it. The dish went into the microwave for a few minutes and then I plopped on Elle's futon to eat and watch General Hospital. Mom sat and watched with me. We were deeply engrossed in the show when Elle walked in.

I glanced at my watch; it was only 4:30. I shot a questioningly look at her.

"It was quiet, so I snuck out early."

"Excellent. Sit. General Hospital is on."

"Just for a minute. I need to start on dinner. These flowers are beautiful. Where did they come from?"

I set the plate on the coffee table, grabbed Elle's arm and pulled her down next to me. I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and pressed her up close to me.

"Shh, I'll tell you at the commercial."

Mom interjected: "Greg! Tell her now. Don't make her wait for the commercial."

"It's OK, Blythe. I can wait."

Elle pressed her cheek against mine. My hand casually stroked her shoulder as I stared at the TV. Sonny had agreed to let Carly take the boys to Africa and that was quite a shocker. Elle rubbed her cheek against mine and then started planting little kisses all over my cheek. She licked the shell of my ear and then nipped my earlobe. I stifled a groan. The little minx, trying to get me turned on with Mom sitting right next to me.

Fortunately the commercial came on just then. I turned, cupped her cheek and kissed her full on the mouth. Her lips parted for me and my tongue dominated her mouth into submission. She was rather flushed when we came up for air.

I whispered to her in French: "_Naughty girl. Doing that in front of my Mom."_

Innocently she said: _"Moi?"_ Her eyes shone with mischief and desire. _"I just gave you little pecks on the cheek. You were the one using your tongue."_

"_You'll be punished later. All through dinner, you'll be thinking about what I am going to do to punish you."_

The desire in her eyes kicked up a few notches. If Mom wasn't here, we would have been naked in 10 seconds flat.

Just then, Mom cleared her throat to remind us that she was right there on the futon next to us. What incredible timing.

Elle gave me a very sexy smile and then said: "So who are the flowers from?"

"The flowers are from _moi_ and the plant is a little gift from Mom."

Elle pulled me into a hug. Over my shoulder, she thanked Mom for the plant. "It's a peace lily, right?"

"Yes, it is. The saleswoman said it would do well in low light like your front window where the violets are."

Elle squeezed me as she said: "Thanks, Blythe. You didn't have to do that."

I just wanted to get you a little something, dear. The gardens were lovely. You'll have to get Greg to take you there."

Elle nodded at Mom and then pulled back to look at me. "The flowers are exquisite. You remembered what I like. I'm impressed. Thank you."

She gave me a gentle kiss on the lips and then stood up. "I'm going to start getting ready. You finish your soap."

I nodded. The commercial was over now. Patrick was telling Robin that he was going to remain celibate until his next HIV test because he didn't want to put her at risk. Elle grabbed my empty plate and took it to the kitchen. Mom got up and followed her.

When GH was over, I went into the kitchen to check on them. They were busy with the preparations, so I went to take a short nap. I kicked off my shoes, dropped my jeans and crawled under the sheets for a little shut-eye.

Elle kissed me awake. Softly she said: "Hey, it's 6:30. Thought you might want to wake up and get dressed."

I frowned: "Can't we just stay in bed? Mom could entertain them."

Elle giggled: "No, that would be rude. Come on, you'll like the food."

I grumbled: "OK, but they are not drinking my liquor."

"I don't think you have to worry about them drinking your liquor. Wilson's bringing some wine and I have some scotch and Grand Marnier for after dinner."

Elle kissed me again and then walked over to the closet. She changed into a pair of black jeans and a blue blouse, which was the same shade as her eyes.

She slipped some black flats on her feet and walked over to the dresser. She brushed her hair and secured the front locks at the back of her head with a silver barrette.

"You look beautiful."

The smile she gave me only made her more beautiful.

Softly, she said: "Thank you."

Elle walked back to the bed, and squeezed my foot through the sheet. "Your Mom went across the hall to freshen up. She'll be right back. I need to get back in the kitchen."

I nodded and Elle walked out of the room.

I climbed out of bed and stripped off my shirt. I pulled out a clean button-down from the pile on the dresser and put it on. I even tucked it in. I put my sneakers on, ran my fingers through my hair to smooth it down a bit and headed out to the kitchen to join Elle.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

**_HOUSE_**

During the short time that I napped, Elle had transformed the apartment. The table was adorned with a nice white tablecloth and a pair of silver candlesticks that held 2 long white tapers. The flowers were centered on the coffee table and 2 plates of hors d'oeuvres surrounded them. One plate held some cut-up veggies with a bowl of dip in the middle and the other plate held cheese and crackers. I grabbed a cracker and a piece of cheese and wandered into the kitchen.

"Hey, looks pretty fancy around here. You didn't have to do so much."

"It's not a big deal. I used to have Friday night dinners all the time. Plus your Mom helped."

Elle handed me a stack of napkins and asked: "Could you set these on the coffee table next to one of the platters? And could you put on some nice soft dinner music for us?"

I took the napkins from her, bent down and quickly kissed her lips and then limped into the living room. I tossed the napkins down next to the cheese and crackers platter and then went over to the CD rack. I pulled out several CD's of classical music and put them in the player on shuffle. I adjusted the volume and then sat on the futon. I was munching on more cheese and crackers when Mom walked in. Wilson was right behind her.

"Look who I found in the foyer."

I snarked: "Well, just because he followed you home, doesn't mean you can keep him."

Wilson chuckled: "Funny. Where's your much better half?"

"Right here."

Elle walked over to Wilson, kissed him on both cheeks and said: "Shabbat Shalom."

He answered with the same greeting. "Shabbat Shalom. I hope this wine is OK."

Elle took the proffered bag from him and examined the contents. "Oh, you got some Israeli merlot. Cool, I haven't tried these. Let's pop the cork so it can breathe a bit."

Wilson followed Elle into the kitchen and after a few minutes, we heard 2 pops. He walked out of the kitchen with a bottle in each hand and set them down on the table. He came over to us, grabbed a couple of pieces of cheese and said: "So Blythe, how have you been? It's been, oh, since November, right?"

"Yes, James, it was November when we were last here. You have a good memory. We have been doing well. John is off on a fishing trip, but I guess you know that. I have been spending a lot of time in my garden. I've started growing heirloom roses now. It's quite enjoyable."

"That's great. I guess the weather in San Diego is amenable to growing roses year-round."

"Well, I just put them out in the spring, but they are supposed to winter well in our climate. And what about you? I do hope work is not keeping you as busy as it seems to keep Greg. And how's Julie? I'm so sorry that she was unable to join us tonight."

Fortunately for Wilson he was saved from answering that question by some loud knocking on the door. Since Wilson was already standing, he opened the door. Avi burst into the room with Ricky right behind him.

Avi called: "Shabbat shalom y'all! Where's my little sister? Ah, there you are." Elle was walking towards him with a big smile on her face. Avi grabbed her and spun her around, making her squeal. He set her down and grabbed her face with both hands.

In a much quieter voice, Avi said: "Shabbat shalom, Elle."

"Shabbat shalom, Avi."

He kissed her. She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug.

Then she gave him a kiss on the cheek and looked down at his empty hands: "So where's the challah?"

He sighed dramatically: "Like I would forget it?"

Ricky interjected: "Uh, yeah, you would. But I didn't." He held up the transparent plastic bag with the loaf of bread inside. "Got us an apple crumb pie from the Main Street Bakery too."

"Oh, Ricky, you're so sweet."

Elle walked over to him and kissed both cheeks. "Shabbat shalom."

"Shabbat shalom, sweetie, now, where can I put this?"

"I'll take it."

Elle took the bread and the pie from Ricky. "Come and meet someone."

They moved over to the futon. Elle said: "Blythe, I'd like you to meet my dear friends Avi Friedman and Ricky Schwartz. Guys, this is Greg's Mom, Blythe House."

Mom held out her hand and shook first Avi's and then Ricky's hand. "It's so nice to meet you both. I'm confused. I thought Elle was an only child, but you called her 'your little sister'."

Avi laughed: "Elle is like a sister to me. I only have brothers and she has no siblings so we have adopted each other."

"So which one of you is the drummer?"

Avi answered: "That's me. Elle told you about our band, huh?"

"Yes, she did and I'm coming to hear you play tomorrow night."

"Oh, cool. You'll get to meet all the other guys, including my twin brother."

I eased away from the futon at that point. Avi and Ricky had engaged Mom in an animated conversation and since she was occupied, I didn't need to keep her company. I wandered into the kitchen and watched as Elle finish the dinner preparations. Wilson was helping out by slicing tomatoes and onions for the salad.

Wilson glanced my way and said: "You could help."

"I am helping. I'm staying out of the way."

He smirked and went back to his chopping.

I watched as Elle laid the brisket on a serving platter. It smelled really good and my stomach started growling. She surrounded the roast with baby potatoes and carrots and laid some onions on top of the meat.

From the living room, Avi called out: "Hey, Elle. It's after 7. Light the candles, already."

Elle yelled back: "I'm just waiting for our last guest."

"Who else is coming?"

I snarked: "The wicked witch of PPTH."

Mom frowned at me: "Greg, that's no way to talk about your boss."

"But, MOOOOOM. She's so mean to me. She makes me work in the clinic. I have to see runny noses, barf and crotch infections."

Ricky grimaced: "Ooooo, thanks for sharing that."

Wilson smirked: "Hmm, funny that you didn't realize you would have to deal with those things when you were in medical school. Maybe you would have chosen another profession."

"Aren't we clever tonight?"

Elle just smiled through our whole exchange. She took the challah to the table, placed in on a platter and covered it with a cloth. Then she went to the front closet and started rummaging around for something. From the depths of the closet, she called out: "Avi, do you have a _kippah_? I want you to say _Kiddush_ and the _motzi_."

"I have one, sweetie."

"OK." Elle emerged from the closet with a small white cloth.

Wilson asked: "Do you want all of us to wear _kippahs_?"

"Oh, no. You don't have to. Avi does if he says the blessings; I just wanted to make sure he had one."

I raised one eyebrow: "The blessings?"

Elle smiled at me: "Yeah, it's Friday night. We're Jews. There are certain rituals that we do. You'll see. It won't hurt."

Before I could ask any more, there was a knock at the door. I sighed with relief. Cuddy was here and at long last we could eat.

I limped to the door to let her in. Cuddy looked nice, wearing a conservative navy blue dress and her pearls. Sadly the twins were not peeking out at me. However, she was carrying a bag that looked like it contained a bottle.

I snarked: "Shabbat shalom."

The look of surprise on her face was so worth it.

Slowly she said: "Shabbat shalom. Wow, I've never heard you say that before. Am I in the twilight zone?"

"It's seems to be the Jewish twilight zone. Was Rod Serling Jewish?"

Elle rolled her eyes. "Actually, he was, but he converted to Unitarianism. Dr Cuddy, it's nice to see you. Shabbat shalom."

"Shabbat shalom, Elle. And please call me Lisa. We are not at work. Thank you for inviting me. This is for you." Cuddy handed her the bag.

"Oh, thank you. But you certainly didn't have to bring anything."

"My mother would kill me if she knew I went to someone's house for Shabbat dinner and didn't bring anything."

Elle smiled and then pulled the bottle out of the bag. It turned out to be a bottle of 15-year-old Laphroaig single-malt scotch.

I grabbed the bottle from Elle's hand and took a good look at it. This was a very expensive bottle of scotch.

I moaned: "Oh, Cuddy, you are my new bestest friend."

She slapped my shoulder: "Smart ass. Where's your Mom?"

The open door had hidden the view of the rest of the room so she didn't see Mom on the futon with the boys.

Elle said: "Blythe is over here. And let me introduce you to my friends."

Lisa and Mom had a nice reunion hug and then Elle introduced the boys to her. Avi looked pointedly at his watch and then at Elle.

She threw up her hands: "I'm lighting them. Keep your shirt on."

Elle walked over to the table, draped the white cloth over her head and lit a match. She lit both candles, waved her hands around the flames 3 times and then covered her face with her hands. In a loud clear voice, she chanted: "_Barukh atta Adonai eloheinu melekh ha-olam, asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner shel Shabbat."_

After a moment of silence, Mom piped up: "That was lovely, dear. What does that mean?"

"It's just the blessing that you say when you light the Sabbath candles. I can't translate it exactly, but Avi can."

I groaned: "Can we have the Hebrew lesson later? Let's eat now."

Elle giggled as she walked towards me while removing the cloth from her head. "Are you hungry?" She had a saucy look on her face.

I grabbed her around the waist and said: "Yes, but for food this time. The other hunger is satisfied for the moment."

She blushed slightly and bit her bottom lip. She always looked incredibly sexy when she did that.

What was it about her that made me forget that there were other people in the room? I bent and kissed her lips, pulling that pouty lower lip between mine.

I whispered in French: "_Feed me now or your punishment will be even bigger than I originally planned."_

She gave me a smile that lit up her whole face and I was again stunned that this amazing woman was voluntarily in my arms.

Looking over her shoulder at our guests, Elle asked: "Are y'all ready to eat?"

There was a chorus of affirmative answers.

Elle looked back at me: "Why don't you pour everyone some wine and I'll get the food."

She draped the cloth over the back of the chair at the end of the table. Addressing the group, Elle said: "Sit wherever you like. Just leave this one for me, so I can get in and out of the kitchen easier."

Elle headed into the kitchen and Wilson followed her.

I took one bottle, Avi took the other and we filled the wineglasses. Elle and Wilson came back and set the platters on the table. Elle sat at one end of the table flanked by Ricky and Avi. I took the other end and Wilson and Cuddy flanked me. Mom sat in between Wilson and Ricky.

When we were all seated, Avi stood up and pulled a kippah out of his pocket. He set it on his head and raised his wineglass. We all followed suit. In a harmonious voice, he chanted: _"Barukh atta Adonai eloheinu melekh ha-olam, bo-re p'ri ha-gafen."_

Everyone, except for Mom and I, intoned "Amen". Following Avi's lead, we all took a gulp of wine. It has a nice flavor; I definitely wanted more of that.

Then Avi uncovered the challah and held it aloft while he chanted: _"Barukh atta Adonai eloheinu melekh ha-olam, ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz."_

Again, everyone else intoned "Amen"; Mom included this time. Avi tore off pieces of the bread and passed one to each person. Everyone munched on their piece of bread while Elle took the large platter of meat and walked around the table serving everyone. Meanwhile, we all passed around the salad bowl. Finally Elle sat down and served herself. Once she was settled, we all dug in.

The brisket was melt-in-your-mouth tender. It was so delicious that it was all I could do not to moan out loud. Everyone else seemed to be enjoying their food also, even Cuddy who rarely ate meat. There were a few minutes of initial quiet while everyone started their dinner, and then slowly the conversations picked up again. I could hear Ricky and Mom talking about the Morven Gardens. Avi and Elle were talking about music. Wilson and I were having one of our endless discussions concerning the Eagles versus the Jets. Cuddy was quiet. She looked around the table as she nibbled on her dinner. She seemed relaxed, yet her eyes were far away.

Elle noticed, of course. "Lisa, can I get you anything else? Some more wine, perhaps?"

"Some more wine would be great, thank you."

Cuddy held her glass up while Avi topped it off for her. She thanked him, took a sip and then said: "You know I was just thinking. This is just like Friday night dinners when I was growing up. The relatives would come over and we'd light the candles. And we'd sing '_Shalom Aleikhem_' before we said _Kiddush_. It was nice. I was just reminiscing about that. I haven't thought of that in a while."

Avi poured himself some more wine and said: "Friday night dinners were big for us too. I grew up Modern Orthodox. My aunt and uncle had 6 kids and they would all come over just about every Friday night. Imagine nine kids at one table. It was wild. The _zemirot_ might go on for 2 hours. Sometimes we would thump the table so hard that the glasses would fall off."

Elle giggled: "I would have liked to have seen that. How did your mother put up with all of that?"

He shrugged: "She always bought dime-store wine glasses. Who cares if they break when they are inexpensive? The good stuff only came out for Passover and Rosh Hashanah. We were better behaved on those occasions."

Mom piped in: "Avi, what is _zemirot_?"

"Those are special Shabbat songs. When you finish eating, first you chant _Birkat ha-Mazon,_ which are the blessings after the meal. Then you can sing _zemirot_ and that can go on as long as you want. And the more wine you drink, the longer it can go on."

Elle tittered: "Although these days, it's more like Barry Manilow after dinner than _zemirot_."

Ricky laughed while Avi shushed them both.

I grinned inwardly. _Barry Manilow?_ That was way too stereotypical. I had to run with this one.

I addressed Elle: "Avi sings Barry Manilow?"

Elle chortled: "Yes. Avi has a great singing voice, which you don't get to hear very often since drummers don't sing lead much. He also plays a mean guitar."

Wilson asked: "How did you end up becoming the drummer for the band?"

"We needed one. All the guys we knew played guitar and no one played the drums. Mom wasn't really happy when I took them up, but she got over it. And it's fun. I love pounding the shit out of them. It's more fun breaking drumsticks than guitar strings anyway. And Adam is a much better guitarist than I will ever be."

Elle squeezed his arm: "You're too modest. Let's play after dinner. Come on, like we used to."

Ricky joined in: "Yeah, Avi, do it. We haven't heard any Barry in a long time."

"I'm sure your guests are not exactly fans of Barry Manilow."

There was a chorus of voices expressing love for Barry's songs, including mine, mainly because I just wanted to hear Avi sing.

In a wheedling tone, Elle said: "Piano's across the hall. You can use my guitar. Come on, pleeeeease?"

Everyone joined in on the begging and finally Avi caved. "OK, OK. After dinner, but there had better be brownies afterwards."

Elle clapped her hands: "There are brownies, Mike's vanilla ice cream, apple crumb pie and of course, after-dinner drinks."

Avi sighed: "Yeah, I'll need a bunch of those."

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Conversation was fairly lively as we finished dinner. I didn't say much, I mostly watched Elle. She was really animated and it was obvious that she was having a good time. Finally everyone had eaten their fill and sat back with stuffed bellies.

Cuddy spoke up: "Elle, that was wonderful. You're a great cook."

Elle smiled shyly and said: "Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

Wilson said: "I second that. And, Cuddy, you should taste her spaghetti sauce. Elle makes it from scratch and it is fabulous."

Mom piped in with: "I can vouch for that. You are an excellent cook, dear."

I smirked: "Of course, she is. As much as I like to eat, would I keep a woman around who can't cook?"

Cuddy shot me a smug look: "Stacy didn't cook. And you kept her around for a while."

I gave her an evil look: "Yeah, well, she was good at ordering take-out."

Wilson made a noise like he was going to choke.

I glanced at Elle to see if this line of conversation was bothering her, but she just looked amused.

I jerked my chin towards her and said: "This one swings both ways. She can cook _and _order take-out."

Cuddy gasped at my comment and Elle stuck her tongue out at me.

"Hey, I told you not to stick that out unless you are prepared to use it."

Elle grinned and said: "Not in front of an audience, sweetheart. Maybe later if you're a good boy."

Our eyes locked and I said slowly: "Oh, I'm very, very good."

The corners of her eyes crinkled, as her smile got bigger.

Wilson groaned and Cuddy slapped my arm. "You should be ashamed of yourself, talking like that in front of your Mom."

Mom waved her hand in Cuddy's direction: "Oh, it doesn't bother me, dear. I'm happy that my son has a great sex life."

Every mouth at the table hung open from Mom's comment. Elle blushed quite red that time. She looked at me and mouthed: "Oh my Gawd."

I chuckled and just shook my head.

Avi pushed his chair back from the table and stood up. "OK. Who's ready for some Barry Manilow?"

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Elle told everyone to leave the dishes and she quickly wrapped up the leftovers. Avi fetched her guitar from the bedroom and we trooped across the hall to my apartment. The rest of the wine accompanied us.

Elle sat down at the piano and warmed up by playing some scales.

Mom, Cuddy and I shared the couch while Wilson perched on the arm. Ricky pulled the straight-back chair over from the desk to sit on. Avi stood, tuning the guitar for a moment, before he joined Elle on the piano bench.

Scowling, he addressed us: "Are you sure you want to hear Barry Manilow? We could just get Elle to sing; I'm sure you'd enjoy that a lot more."

We all protested and assured him that we wanted to hear him sing Barry. He glanced at Elle; she had a goofy smile on her face.

"Come on, let's do it. For Auld Lang Syne, bro."

Elle started playing; it turned out to be the opening bars of "Weekend in New England". At the appropriate time, Avi started singing. Once he started singing, he really got into it and he did have a great voice. Too bad he was hidden back with his drums; he should definitely solo more often with the band. We applauded at the end of the song and Avi looked quite sheepish.

He kissed Elle on the cheek and said: "I can't do this without you."

Elle began the opening bars of "Can't Smile Without You".

Avi groaned: "You cheesy bitch."

Elle laughed, started singing the song and Avi joined in. They harmonized well together on the chorus and Avi sang solo on the verses. You could tell that they were having fun. I found myself smiling as I watched them. When Elle was happy, it was incredibly infectious. Elle was a born entertainer. She loved playing for an audience, whether it was a barroom full at Satchel's or a gang of 5 in my living room.

When we applauded at the end of that song, Avi joked and said: "Please folks. Hold your applause until the end of the night."

We all laughed.

Mom piped up: "Avi, do you know "Mandy"?

Ricky laughed: "Oh, yeah, he knows "Mandy". He sings that in the shower all the time with the bottle of shampoo as a microphone."

Avi snarled: "You know, there are some things that you shouldn't mention in front of company, and that would be one of them."

Elle covered her mouth to keep from laughing. Ricky had no qualms about laughing cuz he did. "Oh, stop being a drama queen and sing it already. The lady has requested it."

Avi rolled his eyes, but Elle started the opening bars and he started singing at the right place. To my surprise, Ricky stood up, came over to Mom and said: "May I have the honor of a dance with you?"

Mom nodded, took his hand and they went behind the couch to a more open floor space to dance. Ricky was a very good dancer; I wondered if he had taken ballroom lessons. He was that good. He even spun Mom around and dipped her. Wilson, Cuddy and I sat there, watching, slack-jawed.

From "Mandy", they went right into "This One's for you". Wilson took Cuddy's hand and led her behind the sofa. Now there were two couples dancing in that space. Wilson's dance technique was not nearly as good as Ricky's but he made up for it by holding Cuddy really close. Her head rested on his shoulder, eyes closed, with a blissful look on her face. I just shook my head. This had to be one of the strangest nights I had ever spent in my apartment.

They danced through 2 more songs and then they all sat down. Mom looked flushed, but happy.

I squeezed her shoulder: "Have fun?"

"Oh, yes. Goodness, me. I can't remember the last time I went dancing. And Ricky can really cut a rug."

"Yeah, you two looked good together."

Pointing towards the piano, Mom said: "Those two are really good. Elle is just fabulous on the piano. She knows so many songs by heart."

"Oh, you ain't seen nothing yet, Mom. Wait until tomorrow night. She will amaze you."

Avi and Elle were arguing; he was tired of singing and wanted her to take over. She claimed he hadn't finished his repertoire of Barry songs and wanted him to finish.

"No. They've heard enough of Barry. You sing something."

"No, you sing one more, and then I'll sing."

They had a whispered conference and then Elle started playing. It turned out to be "Your Song" by Elton John. Avi looked at Ricky as he sang it. The slight smile on his face and the quirk of an eyebrow as he sang, spoke volumes of his feelings for Ricky.

When they finished, we all applauded. Ricky walked over and gave Avi a kiss. "That was fabulous. Now, Elle, darling, sing _my_ favorite."

Elle groaned: "If you insist."

"I insist."

Ricky and Avi flopped together on the floor next to the piano. Avi put his arm around Ricky's shoulders and they leaned against each other as they watched Elle. Her fingers flew across the keys banging out a tune that I didn't recognize. It was a complicated allegro and then suddenly the tune slowed down and she started singing: "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."

My mouth dropped. I had never heard her sing this song before. Each word passed over her lips like a caress as she poured so much emotion into the song. She sang so beautifully that I think everyone was stunned because the room was completely silent when she finished.

Finally the silence was broken when Ricky sighed: "I know it's gay, but I just love Judy."

Mom gushed: "Oh Elle, you sang that so beautifully that I could just close my eyes and imagine that it was Dorothy singing it from Kansas."

Elle laughed: "I've watched that movie a hundred times. I love all the songs in it. However, I need a drink after that."

Wilson poured the remainder of the wine into her glass and she took a big sip. Everyone started chatting. Still holding her wineglass, Elle walked over to me. She knelt in front of me and placed her hand on the back of my neck, urging me forward. I leaned towards her and felt her lips on my cheek.

She whispered in my ear: "How're you doing with all this commotion in your home? You holding up OK?"

I turned my head so I could look in her eyes. They were sparkling; she seemed so happy that it was worth putting up with it all for that look.

I touched her cheek. "I could listen to you sing all night."

Her smile grew wider. Softly, she said: "Thank you".

"It is a little bit more company than I'm used to, but Mom seems to be having a good time and you are glowing. Are you having a good time, my little minx?"

Elle nodded: "Yes, I am. It's fun. I like having our friends over."

I stroked her cheek with my thumb. "Just remember one thing. When everyone is gone, and we're alone in bed, I am going to punish you for your earlier mischief. There's no escape for you."

I could see the lust building in her eyes. "I don't want to escape from you."

She leaned closer so that her lips just barely brushed mine. My hand slipped around to the back of her head and pulled her closer. I deepened the kiss, my tongue slipping into her mouth. I could taste the wine that she had just drunk. She was delicious and I reluctantly stopped only because Avi called out: "Hey, can you stop sucking face with your boyfriend long enough so that we can have dessert?"

We trooped back over to Elle's place and had brownies, pie and ice cream. Elle offered coffee, tea or Grand Marnier to accompany the sweets. Everyone ate, drank, talked and seemed to be having a good time. The boys were sitting on the futon with Mom and keeping her occupied. She seemed to really enjoy their company. Wilson and Cuddy were strolling around the room, looking at Elle's photographs and seemed to be in deep conversation. I was sitting at the table, working on a big slice of pie with ice cream on top and a brownie on the side. Now that everyone was settled with dessert and drinks, Elle brought her plate over and sat next to me. Her plate contained a small piece of pie covered with a rather large scoop of ice cream.

"Like a little pie with your ice cream?"

She just grinned and put a big bite in her mouth.

I looked around; no one was paying any attention to us. I put a small amount of ice cream on my spoon, acted like I was going to feed it to her and then smeared it on her cheek near the corner of her mouth.

"What did you do that for?" She stuck her tongue out trying to lick it off, but she couldn't reach all of it.

"So I could watch you try to lick it off. I like watching your tongue in action."

She looked at me and I swear I could see the lust building in her eyes. "Bet you can't wait for everyone to leave, huh?"

"You know it. I have plans for you tonight. You've been a very naughty girl and you have made me wait hours to punish you. That's going to make your punishment that much worse."

"Really? Should I be scared?"

I snickered, leaned forward and licked the rest of the ice cream off of her face. I heard a soft sigh and I smiled.

"Are your panties wet?"

She breathed the answer in my ear: "A little."

My hand stroked her jean-clad thigh as I said: "Hmmm, only a little? I know you are wondering what I'm going to do to you when I get you alone and naked. How many times can I bring you right up to the edge and then back off again before you are _begging_ me to make you come?"

I hear a hitch in her breath and I knew her excitement was escalating.

"My tongue will be licking you all over except on that swollen little nub that wants the most attention. You'll be thrusting yourself at me, begging me to lick it and I'll touch you everywhere else but there. My fingers will penetrate you just a little, not enough for satisfaction, but enough to make you buck for more. I'll stick my cock in your mouth and have you suck me off. And _maybe_, if you're a good girl and give me a mouth-blowing orgasm, _maybe _I'll let you come."

She whispered: "Oh my Gawd. My panties are wet now. Hope you're happy."

Her face was flushed with excitement. Her nipples were so erect that I could see them poking through her clothes. My lips brushed hers and I captured them in a slow gentle kiss. As I sat back, I noticed Cuddy out of the corner of my eye. She was still over by the wall, talking to Wilson, but she was watching us. I gave her an evil smile; she smirked and turned to face Wilson again. I picked up my spoon and stuck it into my dessert again.

"Eat up, sweetheart. The sooner everyone finishes eating, the sooner we can get them to leave and the sooner the fun can begin."

**CUDDY**

Wilson had been right about House. I saw the PDA's between him and Elle tonight. At first, the displays had been small; a quick kiss, his hand on her hip for just a minute, his arm draped over her shoulders for a longer moment. But they got more demonstrative as the night wore on and more alcohol was consumed. There were the looks that passed between them as Avi sang those Barry Manilow love songs. After the singing stopped, there was a long kiss between them that Avi broke up with a goofy comment about dessert. And now, as I stood here talking to Wilson, I watched them over at the table. He had smeared ice cream on her cheek and _licked_ it off, with his mother in the room! I couldn't believe it. House _was_ different with her. He had never been this openly affectionate with Stacy, even in the beginning of their relationship. He had always belittled the PDA's he saw between other couples and Stacy used to complain to me that he wouldn't even hold her hand in public.

He caught me looking at him and gave me an evil grin. I smirked and turned my back to them.

"You were right."

"About what?"

"House and Elle and the PDA's. He was just licking ice cream off of her face over at the table."

Wilson chuckled: "I told you. He's different with her. He won't admit it, but believe me, he's happier. He's been in a better mood these last few weeks than he has been in years."

"I'm sure he's getting laid a lot, that would account for it." I tried to keep the note of jealousy out of my voice.

"Oh, there's no question about that. He kinda likes to rub that in my face."

"I take it you and Julie are still having problems."

He nodded: "Yeah. And I don't know what's wrong. She won't go to counseling; she says everything is fine. Yet she is never home and she doesn't want sex. I make a nice dinner and she gets irritated with me for using the good china and making a mess. Everything I do seems to irritate her these days. I can't get her to go out to dinner; she always has an excuse with all these damn committee meetings."

I wondered what kind of committee met on a Friday night, but I kept my mouth shut. He seemed to need to vent, but I wasn't sure that he really wanted any advice or not.

"I'm sorry."

He nodded and quickly changed the subject. "I bet Elle surprised you with her piano playing. She's really good, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is. I don't know her very well, but sometimes she seems so shy that I wondered why House took up with her. But she really isn't like that."

"No, she really isn't. You should see her at Satchel's. She absolutely rules that stage when she's up there. Hey, why don't you come tomorrow night? Blythe will be there and you can hang out with all of us and watch them play. I'll pick you up if you want."

I realized that I didn't have any plans for Saturday night. Tonight had been really nice, hanging out with this group. Elle's friends were a lot of fun. And why sit home alone on a Saturday night when I had an invitation?

"Yeah, I think I will. I'd like to see them play. But you don't have to pick me up; I'll drive myself."

"Great. And there's more room to dance there." He gave me a silly grin.

I smiled back at him: "Sounds like fun."

We glanced over at House and Elle. They were sitting so close that she was almost in his lap. His arm was around her shoulders and they were kissing.

"It's nice to see him with someone again."

Wilson agreed: "Yeah, it's about time he came out of hibernation. He's been in that self-imposed cocoon for six years."

"Maybe he was just waiting for the right girl."

**HOUSE**

Finally the party broke up. Mom insisted on helping Elle with the dishes despite Elle's protests that she was just going to leave them for tomorrow. That was another half hour delay. I kept shooting meaningful glances at Elle; the longer this took, the worse her punishment would be. Suddenly I thought of exactly what I wanted to do and it required something from my place.

"I'll be right back. I need some more boxers for tomorrow."

Elle shot me a puzzled look; she knew I had a whole pile of clothes on her dresser. I gave her an evil grin as I limped out of the kitchen. I went into my closet, grabbed what I needed and then grabbed a couple of pairs of boxers out of the drawer. I put the necessary items inside the boxers and headed back to Elle's. I slipped into the bedroom while they were still preoccupied with the dishes and placed the items under my pillow.

Finally they were finished with the cleanup. We walked Mom across the hall and said goodnight to her. Mom gave us both a big hug and thanked us for throwing such a nice dinner party for her. Elle insisted that it was her pleasure and was glad that Mom enjoyed it.

When I bent down to give Mom her hug, she whispered in my ear: "She's a real keeper, son. Don't let her get away."

I whispered back: "OK. I'll tie her to the bed if I have to."

Mom feigned a shocked look and then giggled.

Elle and I said goodnight. I took her hand and led her back to her place. Once inside, I closed and locked the door. Leaning my back against it, I gave Elle an evil grin. "Ready for your punishment?"

Elle looked both excited and a little anxious. I knew she was wondering what I was going to do to her; she had been thinking about it for hours.

"Yeah, but this morning, I didn't get a turn and you'd said I was going to get my turn tonight, remember? Then earlier, you said I was being punished and wasn't going to get a turn. So am I getting a turn or not?"

"Well, you need to be punished. You were a very naughty girl. You tried to get me all excited right in front of my Mom. You stuck your tongue out at me at the dinner table in front of everyone. And you didn't disagree with Wilson when he called you 'my much better half'.

She gulped: "I guess I was a very bad girl today."

Her lower lip pouted out in that really sexy way that I loved. "What are you going to do to me?"

"You'll find out. You better go in the bathroom and pee now, cuz I'm not letting you out of bed for hours. Then strip and come into the bedroom. No, wait; just keep your panties on. Take everything else off."

She nodded and headed into the bathroom. While she was in there, I pulled back the top sheet and lay 2 large towels across the bed. No point in having to sleep in sticky sheets after this fun was over. By the time I had stripped to my boxers, Elle was strolling into the room. She was wearing just those little red lacy panties that I loved so much. The tenting of my boxers made it obvious that I was pleased with her appearance.

She glanced at the bed: "What's with the towels?"

"So the sheets don't get too messy. Come here."

Elle walked over to me; I stuck my hand between her legs and rubbed the crotch of her panties. They were indeed wet.

"Nice and juicy. Good girl. Go lay in the middle of the bed, on your back."

Elle complied with my request. Once she was settled, I quickly removed the items from under my pillow and showed them to her.

She gasped: "What are the neckties for?"

I smiled evilly: "What do you think? Now scootch closer to the headboard."

I arranged her pillow exactly where I wanted her to lie. Then I took one wrist and tied one end of a necktie to it. The other end of the tie was knotted around the headboard. I repeated the process with the other wrist. I stepped back to survey my work. She looked lovely, laying there completely at my mercy. Elle, on the other hand, looked more than a bit anxious.

Tugging at the neckties, Elle said: "Um, Greg, I don't know." Her lower lip started to tremble.

It had not occurred to me that she wouldn't like this; that she might actually be afraid of being restrained. I sat on the bed, stroking her cheek to comfort her. "Sweetheart, you know I won't hurt you. I'm just playing with you. You know what a safe word is?"

She nodded.

"So the safe word is 'apple pie'. If you say 'apple pie', I'll stop and untie you. But only say it if you're scared and you really want me to stop. If you say: 'no, no, stop', I'm going to keep going. Only the safe word will stop me."

"Will you really stop if I say 'apple pie'?"

"Of course I will. You trust me, don't you?"

She nodded. I continued to stroke her cheek. She had a lot of fear in her eyes and that made me a bit uncomfortable. Her hands were clutching the ties so tightly that her knuckles were white. I had planned on blindfolding her, but decided that she was scared enough and blindfolding might push her over the edge. I would take this even slower than I had planned and make sure that she was OK.

I started by planting little kisses all over her face. I licked the shell of her ear and then whispered: "Close your eyes."

Elle obeyed and I kissed each eyelid gently. I ran my tongue down the length of her nose and kissed the tip. My lips brushed against her, once and then again. Her lips parted as if in anticipation of a deeper kiss. Instead, I kissed her chin and nibbled on it a little bit with my teeth. She giggled a little and seemed a bit more relaxed. I checked her hands; she was still gripping the ties but her knuckles were no longer white. Good, she was relaxing and getting into it.

I moved down to her neck and started kissing and nibbling on it. Elle arched her head back as far as the pillow would allow. I chuckled inwardly at her response; she did really love having her neck kissed. I spent a few minutes there until her hands relaxed and were no longer gripping the ties at all.

"You doing OK?"

Her answer came out in a whisper: "Yes."

"Good girl. Now keep your eyes closed, don't move and I'll be right back."

Again, a whispered response: "OK."

I hurried to the kitchen, grabbed a spoon and the tub of ice cream from the freezer. I returned to the bedroom as quickly as I could.

"I'm baaaaaaack. Were you a good girl?"

Elle nodded: "I kept my eyes closed and I didn't move."

I studied her. Her hands were not gripping the ties any more and she seemed relaxed. Her lip wasn't trembling and when she answered my questions, her voice had been steady. I wanted to check one more thing before I proceeded.

"Open your eyes, sweetheart."

Ah, much better. There was a trace of anxiety but not as much as there had been.

"Shall I continue with your punishment?"

She nodded and I was pleased to note the level of excitement rising in her eyes.

"I'm still hungry, so I thought I would have some more ice cream."

I dipped out a small spoonful and showed it to her. She watched as I pretended to bring the spoon to my mouth and then dropped the ice cream on her left nipple.

Her response was immediate. "OH, Wow, cold, cold!"

I rubbed the ice cream into her nipple for a minute, and then latched on. I sucked the cold sweetness into my mouth and then laved her nipple with my tongue. Her nipple was completely erect as I withdrew my mouth.

Elle gasped: "Oh my Gawd, that was amazing."

I chuckled as I put more ice cream on the spoon. This time I went for the right nipple. I rubbed the ice cream on it, got it nice and cold and then warmed it up with my tongue. I repeated this over and over, rather quickly, so that Elle became overwhelmed with the cold/hot sensations. She started to thrash a little bit, but I knew it was from excitement, not from fear.

"Having fun?"

"Hmmmm, but I want to touch you."

"Nuh-uh, not yet. You're still being punished."

I slowly kissed my way down her belly. I particularly focused on her ticklish spots. She was giggling and squirming as much as she could to get away from my tongue. I made my way to her belly button and dropped more ice cream in there. She gasped from the shock of the cold hitting such a delicate spot. I greedily licked it up. Amazing how much better plain old vanilla tastes when it is licked off of a gorgeous woman's skin.

I looked up at her to check that she was still doing OK. Her face was flushed with excitement and her eyes were lust-filled. However, she had squirmed so much that her arms were completely hyper extended and if she moved the wrong way she could pop her shoulder out. I put my hands on her ass and gave her a little push. "Scootch up, baby. Your arms are over extended. I don't want you to hurt yourself."

Elle dug her heels into the bed and moved herself up towards the headboard. When she was back in her original spot, I climbed on top of her. She spread her legs wider to accommodate me. I briefly let her feel the weight of my body against hers and then propped myself up on knees and elbows. She moaned and lifted her hips up towards me. My lips brushed against hers and I whispered: "Already bucking towards me? I haven't touched you anywhere below your belly bottom yet."

"I know, but I want you. I want to kiss you. I want to touch you. I want to fuck you."

"Punishment isn't over yet. But I'll give you one little kiss." I held her face between my hands and crashed my lips onto hers. I kissed her hard, pushing my tongue into her mouth and tangling with hers. Elle moaned and bucked her hips up towards me. She managed to angle her body so that her lace-clad core was rubbing up against my dangling cock. I let her tease herself for a minute, and then I rolled away from her. She howled in frustration, her fists clutching the restraints and her mouth red from my hard kiss.

"Greggggggg,"

I didn't say anything; I just picked up the spoon, dipped it in the ice cream and then I swiftly pulled her panties off. I made sure that she was watching and her eyes got really big when she realized where the ice cream was going next. She squealed when the coldness hit her clit. I rubbed the ice cream in for a minute and then quickly licked it off.

"Oh, Gawd, oh Gawd, that was intense."

I let my warm tongue just lay on top of her clit to help her recover from the cold shock. When Elle started wiggling against it, I knew she had recovered enough to do it again.

"Close your eyes."

I waited until she complied and then I put a spoonful of ice cream on her clit again. She cried out and bucked her hips up from the sensation.

"Oh, Jesus, it's cold. Please, Greg, please lick it off."

Satisfied with her begging, I proceeded to do just that. At the same time, I penetrated her with two fingers. The licking and the finger fucking threatened to send her over the edge, but I stopped before that happened.

"No, don't stop. Please, don't stop. Please, Greg, fuck me."

"Ummmm, I like it when you beg me to fuck you."

I took my dick, and rubbed the head around her opening and over her clit. She moaned and thrust her pelvis up, trying to make more contact, but I only allowed a teasing touch. Elle was breathing hard and whimpering from frustration. I moved up her body again until I reached her mouth. Her kiss was hungry and needy, but I noticed that her lips were also dry from all the panting that she was doing. That gave me an idea.

I spooned up some more ice cream and positioned myself so that I was kneeling over her. I fed her the spoonful.

"Taste good?"

She nodded.

"OK. This time, don't swallow, just hold the ice cream in your mouth and let me slip my dick in."

I wanted to experience the same fun that she just had. I fed her the spoonful and maneuvered myself so that she could take my dick in her mouth.

Ah, that cold was so intense that I slammed my hand against the wall above the bed. Elle sucked and caressed me with her tongue and eventually the ice cream melted and was replaced by the warmth of her mouth. I looked down and watched as my dick slipped in and out of her mouth. It was an extremely erotic sight and it threatened to send me over the edge. Despite what I had said earlier, I didn't want to come in her mouth. She had given me a spectacular BJ this morning and I did want her to have her turn, after a bit more torture.

"You look so hot, so sexy with my dick in your mouth. Shall I let my cream slide down your throat to follow the ice cream? That would be tasty, huh?"

Elle murmured in agreement and the sensations were overwhelming. I put my hand on her jaw and ordered her to open up. I slid out of her mouth and moved down until I lay on top of her. My body rested against hers as I planted kisses all over her face and neck. She was passionately kissing me back while trying to rub her pelvis against me.

"Tell me what you want."

"Oh, Greg, I want you to fuck me. I want you to untie me so I can touch you and hold you. I want to reach down and guide your big hard cock into my hot, wet pussy. I want to feel your entire length slide into me. I want you to pump me so hard that your balls slap against me as you thrust. I want to you to pull my leg up so you can fuck me as deeply as you can. I want you to make me come so hard that I see stars and I want to feel you explode inside of me and I'll squeeze my walls around you until I drain out every last drop of come from your dick."

_Damn,_ that was hot. I was ready to explode from just listening to her. I nibbled her neck, just below her ear and said: "So, you're tired and just want to go to sleep?"

She screamed: "NO! Fuck me! I want you to fuck me."

I swiftly parted her folds and slid my dick fully inside of her. Mid-scream, she suddenly gasped as I started thrusting inside of her.

"Is this what you wanted, baby?"

She moaned: "Yes, oh, yes, but please untie me. Please. I want to touch you so bad."

I reached up and untied her left wrist. As soon as it was free, her hand went right to my face and she caressed my cheek.

"Want me to undo the other one too?"

"Please."

I continue pumping slowly as I untied her right wrist. Then I stopped when I saw the damage I had done. Her wrist was red and rubbed raw.

"Oh, shit, Elle, I tied you too tightly. I hurt you."

"Shh, it's OK. It's not bad. Here, kiss it and make it better."

She held her wrist out to me and I kissed and licked the red marks.

"See, you made it all better now."

She squeezed her inner muscles around my cock and said: "Ride me cowboy. I've been waiting for my turn for a long time now."

I chuckled and cradled her head in my hands. My heart swelled, as I looked at her, the most amazing woman I'd ever known. I felt her hand on the back of my head urging me down towards her. I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers. Her fingers tangled in my hair as we kissed slowly at first, then more urgently as our desire grew. I started pumping faster and she kept up with me, thrust for thrust. Finally, I hooked my arm under her left knee and lifted it towards her chest. I rammed into her hard and deep. She moaned loudly and shoved her pelvis up to meet me.

"Is this what you wanted, baby?"

"Yes, oh Gawd, yes. Oh, you feel so goooooood. Ah, ah, you're gonna make me come."

I could tell she was almost there. I shifted position ever so slightly to put more pressure on her clit as I thrust and then I bit her neck. Elle screamed incoherent words and I felt her walls contract and a fresh flood of moisture. I had pushed her over the edge. All it took was a couple more deep stabs and I fell over too. I continued to pump inside her as we rode out our orgasms. I let her leg drop and, wrapping my arms around her, I rolled us on our sides.

Panting like dogs and glistening with sweat, we lay there trying to catch our breath. Elle started planting kisses all over my chest and worked her way up to my neck and then my face. She was giggling too, in between still panting for breath.

When I finally caught my breath, I positioned her head on my shoulder and held her there. "What's so funny, my giggly girl?"

She giggled some more and then said: "I was laughing at myself. I was kinda freaked out when you tied me up. I didn't think I could go thru with it. But you put me at ease and then you got me so turned on. I wanted you so badly and you kept teasing me along. And then, BAM! Oh my Gawd."

She giggled some more and then said: "It's just funny that I was scared at first, and then you give me, like, the biggest orgasm I've ever had."

She sure knew how to feed a crippled guy's ego. "Yeah, the biggest ever?"

"I think so, definitely in the top 3, anyway."

I chuckled and pulled her closer: "Top 3, huh? What's my competition?"

"Don't worry, you're only competing with yourself. My top 3 list is all you."


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

**_Blythe_**

It was 10AM when I woke up. That was really late for me. I am normally drinking my coffee by 7AM. Between the time zone difference, and staying up late last night, my sleep time was really off. I got up, dressed and was ready for some coffee. I also felt like having some pancakes and wondered if Elle had pancake mix at her place. A search of Greg's cupboards had revealed very little in the way of groceries and I figured that they ate mostly at her place.

I quietly let myself in and punched the button to start the coffeepot. The apartment was quiet and I assumed that they were still asleep. I couldn't resist the temptation to sneak down the hall and take a peek. The bedroom door was half ajar and I just gazed at them for a long minute. It was a peaceful scene. Greg was lying on his back and Elle was on her right side facing Greg. Greg looked so relaxed that the lines in his face were gone. He was snoring softly. I couldn't see Elle's face as she had it pressed into Greg's side. Suddenly he let out a loud snort, smacked his lips and rolled over onto his left side. His arm wrapped around Elle's middle and his right leg draped over hers. As he turned over, the sheet fell aside and I gasped out loud. He was naked, but that wasn't what shocked me. I wasn't surprised that they slept naked together. What I didn't expect to see was the large hole in Greg's thigh.

Tears came to my eyes. I knew about the infarction, of course, and the surgery that he didn't want, but I had never seen the results. It looked like half of his thigh was gone. This is why he had so much pain and why he had so much trouble walking. No wonder he limped and needed a cane to get around.

In the midst of my sorrow, I also felt anger at my husband. John had never seen Greg's leg either. How dare he poke fun at Greg, calling him a wuss, telling him that others had it worse than he did? He doesn't know what Greg has to deal with everyday. And it doesn't matter that Greg is 47 years old; he'll always be my baby. John just wouldn't understand that.

Then I thought of Stacy and my blood started to boil. She was the one who authorized this butchery of a surgery. She's the one who left him like this, scarred and in pain.

I don't know how long I stood there, my hands clenched into fists, thinking about what I would do to Stacy if I saw her again. Suddenly, my reverie was broken by Greg's voice, softly saying: "Mom? Mom, what's wrong? Your face is all red. Are you OK?"

Embarrassed that he had seen me like this, I turned and fled into the kitchen. I hoped he wasn't angry with me for seeing his leg. I went right to the coffeepot and poured myself a cup. My hands were shaking and it was hard to add the milk. I ended up spilling a bit. I heard the bedroom door softly close and then I heard his uneven footsteps as he walked into the kitchen.

I couldn't face him. I kept my head down and my eyes on my mug of coffee as I stirred it.

"Mom. What's wrong?"

In a shaky voice, I answered: "Nothing's wrong, dear. Would you like some coffee?"

He walked right up to me and put his hand on my shoulder. I had to cover my mouth or I would have sobbed at his touch. It had been a long time since it had just been us, and he could let down his guard with me, without his father's interference. From the time Greg was 4 years old, John frowned on showing any physical affection towards our son. He thought it would make him a 'mama's boy', a 'wuss'. My hugs and kisses for my son were restricted to those times when John wasn't around to make rude comments. Even now, as an adult, anything more than a brief hug and kiss would elicit a snark from John.

Greg gently squeezed my shoulder and said: "Mom, what's wrong? Tell me that you're not upset at seeing us naked. You knew we were having sex and that _**does**_ involve getting naked, or at least we prefer it that way."

I turned and looked at him. He was wearing just a pair of baggy cotton pajama bottoms. As usual, his scar was hidden beneath his clothes.

"No dear, of course not. Like I said last night, I'm HAPPY that you're having sex. Elle is a lovely girl and I'm so glad that you have her in your life. I was just surprised to see you that way, that's all. I shouldn't have peeked. I was just checking to see if you were awake because I was thinking about making pancakes."

He frowned: "There's more to it than that. That wasn't a pink blush from embarrassment. Your face was a deep red, like your blood pressure was sky high. That's more like it was from anger. Did I do something to upset you?"

"Oh, no, dear. YOU didn't do anything. It was what others did to you." My voice trailed off; I had said too much. I bit my lip; tears were welling in my eyes.

"Ohhhhh."

I could hear it in his voice. _He knew._

"You saw my scar, didn't you?"

**_HOUSE_**

"You saw my scar, didn't you?"

Mom nodded and said softly: "Yes, I saw it. It's so much bigger than I imagined. It must hurt you terribly." Her face contorted with emotion and I knew she was trying hard not to cry in front of me.

I didn't want to lie to her, but I tried to soft-pedal it. "Some days are worse than others."

"I know they can't replace the muscle, but isn't there anything they can do to stop the pain?"

"Actually I'm seeing a new doctor, a pain management specialist. He's a friend of Elle's He has me on a new medication regimen and it seems to be working a lot better for me. I'm just starting to exercise a little bit to strengthen the remaining muscles and see if that helps. But don't tell Elle that part. I want to surprise her if it works."

"OK, I won't tell her. So she found the doctor that is helping you?"

"Yeah, he's a old friend of hers; they worked together at her last job."

Mom smiled: "So she's been a big help to you."

I couldn't help smiling back at her: "Yeah, Mom. She's done a lot for me. She massages my leg when it really hurts. She runs me a hot bath when I want to soak for a while."

Teasingly she said: "Does she climb in and keep you company too?"

I feigned a shocked expression: "MOM! Your mind's in the gutter these days. And, yes, she does."

Mom wrapped me up in a hug: "I'm so glad you found Elle. She seems to take good care of you and I'm so glad you're not alone anymore."

I hugged her back and softly said: "Me too."

I let her hug me for a minute and then I asked: "So why was your face red? What exactly were you thinking about?"

Mom pulled away and turned to get her coffee. She picked up the mug, set it down again and then she spat out: "Stacy! That horrible woman went against your wishes and authorized the surgery. Then she left you shortly afterwards to deal with the pain and rehab all on your own. You don't do that to someone that you profess to love."

I closed my eyes and sighed. Mom had never liked Stacy and Stacy certainly didn't redeem herself in Mom's eyes with her actions concerning my infarction. "You know, I wasn't the easiest person to live with back then. I was really angry with her and believe me; I took it out on her. I resented the fact that she could still run and play golf and I had to learn to _walk_ all over again. And the pain."

I shuddered, remembering how bad the pain had been those first few months after the surgery. "The pain was horrendous; the meds hardly touched it. I was either screaming at her or screaming from the pain. That's why I didn't want you to come and help out. I didn't want you to see me like that. Actually, between my anger and her guilt, I'm amazed she lasted for 6 months."

"Oh, she felt some guilt, did she? Well. Good."

"Yeah, she did. I think she realized the surgery had been the wrong thing to do, but of course it was too late to change anything. She just wanted me to live at all costs. It didn't matter the quality of life that I would have, as long as I was alive, in her mind that was the most important thing. Funny thing is, six months ago, she just went through a similar situation with her husband."

"She got married?"

"Yeah. And her husband became ill and no one could figure out what was wrong with him, so she brought him to me for a diagnosis."

"The nerve of her! After all she did to you, asking you to save her husband."

"It is what I do, Mom. But it wasn't easy being around her again. It brought back all those memories that I would just rather forget. I wanted to perform a test that I thought might diagnose the problem, but Mark didn't want me to do it. So I refused. Stacy was adamant that I do the test. She authorized me to do anything, even against Mark's wishes, if it would help to diagnose him. She wanted me to save his life, no matter what. I ended up doing what she wanted and I solved the case. But kinda like my situation, it left him unable to walk. So she had to deal with _his_ pain and _his_ rehab and _his_ resentment that she could still walk and he couldn't. Lucky for him, it isn't a permanent condition. Rehab has taken a few months but he is out of the wheelchair and walking with a cane now."

"Payback is a bitch, isn't it?"

I burst out laughing: "Mom! I can't believe some of the things you have said this weekend. You would never say these kinds of things if Dad was around."

"You're right. He does kind of inhibit my personality, doesn't he? It's just he has this image of what a good little military wife should be and,"

"It's not who you are."

She shook her head slowly and whispered: "No."

Gently I asked: "Why did you stay with him all these years?"

"People didn't get divorced much back then. It was a real scandal if you did. And I had already caused enough scandal in the family, that I didn't want to stir up any more."

She shrugged her shoulders: "Now, we're used to each other and we're old, so what's the point of getting divorced at our age. He has mellowed somewhat and he treats me alright."

"Scandal? You? C'mon, Mom, what kind of scandal did you cause?"

"I know you think I'm just your boring ol' Mom, but I was a bit wild in my younger years. I thought school was dull and I would often skip my classes. I dated some boys that my parents thought were too 'wild' for me. I would crawl out my bedroom window in the middle of the night to go see your father because my parents had forbidden me from seeing him. We would meet at the high school football field, under the bleachers. He'd bring a little bottle of whiskey with him and that's when I had my first taste of alcohol."

I grinned; this was a side of Mom that I had never heard about before. "And that was scandalous, meeting him under the football bleachers in the middle of the night?"

"No, dear, it's what _happened_ during those nights under the bleachers."

A light bulb went on in my head: "Mom? You didn't? Please don't tell me that you lost your virginity on a football field?"

"Well, it wasn't technically on the field; it was under the bleachers. I'm pretty sure it was around the 40 yard line."

I shook my head hard, to get _that _picture out of my mind.

"Well, I'm sure, even in the 1950's, that a lot of girls lost their virginity in high school. What was the big scandal? Did someone see you and rat you out to your parents?"

"No, dear, no one saw us. I was the one who told my parents what had happened."

"You told them? Why would you?" And before I finished the question, I knew the answer. There was only one reason why a high school girl would admit that to her parents.

Mom seemed to realize that I had figured it out. She nodded: "Your father and I had a shotgun wedding. I was 7 weeks pregnant when we got married."

My mouth dropped open: "What? I've seen your marriage license. You got married a year and a half before I was born."

"I wasn't pregnant with you, dear. Two weeks after the wedding, I miscarried. By then, it was too late for an annulment. We had consummated the marriage and your father had been shipped out to Korea for 6 months, so there was nothing to be done. We stayed married and when he got back from Korea, we made you. So you're not really a bastard, no matter how many times your father calls you that."

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Elle woke up a short while later and Mom made pancakes for breakfast. After we ate and the ladies cleaned up the kitchen, we went back to my place and lounged in front of the TV, watching old movies for a while. This was our usual way to spend Saturday afternoon on the weekends that Elle plays. She always needed a nap before going to the club, so we would usually lay down around 4 and nap for a couple of hours. Today was no different; at 4PM Elle announced she was going to nap and Mom thought that was a splendid idea since she would be staying up much later than usual. We all headed off to our respective beds for a nap. Elle and I cuddled up together in hers and after a few sweet kisses we drifted off to sleep.

We went to Satchel's around 7 so we could have dinner before Elle started to play. Mom and I had burgers while Elle ordered a honey mustard chicken sandwich and a big plate of potato skins for us to share. She never ate much before a show, and tonight was no different. She ate 2 skins and about 1/3 of her sandwich.

When she shoved her plate in my direction, Mom frowned in disapproval.

"Elle, dear, you need to eat. You're so thin."

"I know I'm thin, Blythe, but I never have a big appetite before I perform. I'll eat later, after the show is over."

"But dear, you never seem to eat very much. Is it because Greg steals your food?" Mom actually glared at me while I bit into Elle's discarded chicken sandwich.

Elle gave her a wan smile: "No, it has nothing to do with Greg. I just get full quickly. I guess I have a small stomach or something."

"You're not anorexic, are you dear?"

"No, Blythe. Really, I just have a small appetite."

I got see the distressed look on Elle's face; this conversation was obviously making her uncomfortable.

Quickly, she stood up: "There's Adam. I need to go talk to him about tonight's music. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Mom grabbed Elle's hand before she could move away from the table: "You're not going to go throw up, are you?"

Elle stood shock-still. She just looked at Mom and then shook her head. "No. I'm not bulimic. I don't have an eating disorder. I'm just thin."

She looked at me and said in French: _"Now I see where you get it. The dog-with-a-bone, I'm-not-letting-go-until-I-get-an-answer attitude. You can tell her if you want, but I can't do it."_

She pulled her hand away from Mom's. "I have to go see Adam and start getting ready. I'll be in the back, _not throwing up_, if you want to join us."

She hurried away from the table before I could say anything.

Mom looked at me and said: "Oh, dear. I've upset her, haven't I?"

I pushed the plate with the remains of the chicken sandwich away from me. "Yeah, you did. There are things that Elle isn't comfortable talking about."

"And her weight is one of them?"

I rubbed my face with both hands and blew out a big sigh. I tried to think how to explain it without violating Elle's privacy too much. Mom didn't need to know all the details. "It's complicated."

I looked around to see if there was anyone within earshot. Seeing that we were fairly isolated at our table, I started: "Starting last December, Elle went through an extremely stressful event, which lasted for approximately 6 months. Due to the stress that she was under, she lost about 20 pounds."

"Oh, dear, what happened to her?"

"Mom, I really don't want to talk about all the details. It was a very bad time for Elle and she's still trying to deal with the aftermath of it. She knows she is too thin and she does eat, but it is going to take a while for her to put the weight back on. I know you're concerned, but please don't mention her weight any more. And I don't steal her food and leave her nothing to eat. I only take what I am sure she is not going to eat anyway. Well, unless it's her brownies."

Mom looked sad: "I didn't mean anything; I was just concerned."

"I know that and Elle knows it too. But you need to back off on this subject. Elle is very independent. She's not used to having a concerned Mom in her life and I don't think she knows how to handle that."

Mom still looked like a scolded child. So I went on: "She likes you. She was so nervous about meeting you; she was so afraid that you wouldn't like her. But you two have really hit it off; you sit and chat like old girlfriends. Just avoid this one topic, OK?"

Mom nodded. She looked a bit perkier. "Was Elle really afraid of meeting me?"

I chuckled: "Oh, yeah. After that phone call, '_House's den of sin'_, you could see why."

"I thought it was funny, but it's a good thing it wasn't your father on the phone."

Truer words were never spoken. The fall-out from that would have been bad, to say the least.

"Come on, Mom. Let's go in the back. You can meet the rest of the band before they start playing."

We stood up and Mom followed me to the back door.

_**ELLE**_

I hurried to the back; I had to get away from this conversation. I knew she was just being motherly, but I felt like I was being smothered. I wondered what Greg would tell her and I really hoped that he wouldn't give her all the details. I didn't want her pity.

The gang was already in the back room. Avi took one look at my face and said: "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I sat down and started pulling out my make-up.

Gen walked over with the hairbrush and started brushing out my hair. "We know you better than that. Your face is easy to read. What happened?"

I closed my eyes and bit my lip. I fisted my hands to try to keep them from shaking.

Gen continued brushing my hair as she softly said: "What has upset you so much?"

I swallowed hard: "Greg's Mom keeps saying that I'm _so_ thin. She's commented on it several times now. Just now she was asking me if I had an eating disorder. I left Greg to handle it and came in here. As I was leaving the table, she asked if I was coming back here to throw up."

Ricky said: "Oh my Gawd, she's thinks you're bulimic? That's so totally not you."

Gen said gently: "What do you think House is going to tell her?"

"Hopefully as little as possible. I just can't get into the whole story with her."

Adam spoke up: "Well, we understand. Let us know if there is anything we can do to help."

The other guys nodded and I muttered my thanks.

Danny walked past me, squeezed my shoulder and said: "I'm getting a beer, I'll bring you a Heinie."

I smiled at him: "Thanks, Danny."

Gen started braiding my hair and I took some deep breaths to try to calm down. Danny brought me my beer and I took a few sips.

Gen was about halfway done with my hair when Greg and Blythe walked in. My heart rate shot up as I wondered what had been said in my absence. Blythe simply squeezed my shoulder as she walked by, as Greg led her over to the guys and introduced her around. She settled in to talk to Ricky and Greg walked over to me. He pulled up a chair and sat down on my right side.

Glancing up at Gen, he asked softly: "Can we talk for a minute?"

"They know. You can talk in front of them."

He nodded: "All I told her was that you had a very stressful event happen. It caused you to lose weight and you haven't been able to gain it back yet. I didn't tell her any details of what the stressful event was and I asked her not to talk to you about your weight anymore."

Relief flooded my body. He couldn't have handled it any better than that.

I looked in his eyes and tried to non-verbally convey how much that meant to me. He gave me one of his little smiles that meant he knew what I was thinking. He picked up my hand, brought it to his lips and planted a small kiss on the back.

"She feels badly that she upset you, but I told her it was best just to not talk about it anymore. I didn't think you needed or wanted an apology, is that OK?"

"Yes, that's perfect. Thank you."

He squeezed my hand and rubbed his thumb across the back. Then he sat back in the chair, and just continued holding my hand until Gen finished with my hair.

The room started getting rowdy like it usually did right before a performance. Theresa brought us drinks and then Wilson and Cuddy strolled in. Avi introduced her to everyone and I could see that Danny was really taking a shine to her. She was casually dressed in tight blue jeans; a V-neck knit black top and black boots with 3-inch spike heels. She certainly didn't look like a hospital administrator tonight. Greg made a point of informing Danny that Lisa was HIS boss and the ensuing look on Danny's face was quite amusing to all of us.

When it was that time, Adam herded us up towards the stage and the rest of our group trooped out front to sit at our usual table. Billy announced us and we started off the set with Stevie Ray's "The House is Rockin".

**_HOUSE_**

They started out, as usual, with some Stevie Ray. Not that I was complaining, cuz they do him really well. Adam was wearing his black cowboy hat and looking the part. It's a loud raucous song, and a lot of people got up and danced to it. The newbies of our group, Mom and Cuddy, sat staring at the band, seemingly completely mesmerized. As that song ended to thunderous applause, Mom turned to me and said: "Wow. They are really good."

Ricky grinned: "Oh, they're just warming up, Blythe. You'll see."

The band slammed into Bob Seeger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" and Cuddy dragged Wilson out to dance with her, not that it took much persuasion for him to get out there. Cuddy loved to dance. We didn't call her "Party Pants" at Michigan for nothing. That woman could dance all night. I wondered if Wilson had the stamina to keep up with her. He certainly seemed to be enjoying himself judging by the expression on his face.

Wilson and Cuddy stayed on the dance floor for most of the band's first set. Ricky took Mom up to dance for a couple of the slower songs. She really seemed to be enjoying herself on this trip. Without Dad around, she was more outgoing and much more talkative. Dad always tends to monopolize the conversation and he interrupts her a lot when she talks.

The band took their break and Theresa appeared with drinks for the table. When the band sat down, Mom and Cuddy were quick to shower them with complements about their music. The guys took the comments in stride and worked on their beers. Billy walked over and handed Elle a piece of paper with a couple of requests written on it.

She scanned the list and said: "Oh, I haven't done a couple of these in a while." She passed the page to Adam, indicating which ones she wanted to do in the next set. He nodded in agreement.

All too soon, their break was over and they got up and started heading back to the stage. Elle smiled at me and gave me a quick kiss on the lips. I grabbed the back of her head before she could get away and pulled her in for a deeper kiss. After my tongue thoroughly examined her mouth and found it to be delicious, I finally let her up. Her hand caressing my cheek, she said: "See you in a bit." And then she headed up to the stage.

Cuddy laughed: "Oh my Gawd, House. You can't stop sucking face with her for 5 minutes. What alien life form has invaded your body and where is the real Dr. House?"

I snarled: "I got a hot chick after my body. Why would I want to stop sucking face with her? You're just jealous cuz you don't have a boy toy 10 years your junior all over your bod."

She chuckled: "Actually she's 12 years younger than you. And is that all she is to you, just a plaything?'

Mom interjected: "Lisa! What a thing to say! Elle is certainly not _just_ a plaything for Greg."

Lisa actually looked contrite: "Sorry, Blythe. I was just teasing Greg about his PDA's."

When Mom wasn't looking, I rolled my eyes and stuck out my tongue at Cuddy.

She muttered: "So mature. I can definitely see what Elle sees in YOU."

The guys played the usual intro and Elle strutted out on stage, her electric guitar hanging across her back. I loved the brassy confidence that she displayed on stage. She really came alive when she was in front of an audience. She pulled a slide out of her pocket, slipped it on her middle finger and then displayed her finger for the crowd. They went wild. Elle blew the crowd a kiss and the band started playing. The first song turned out to be Bonnie Raitt's "Something to Talk About." It gave Elle a chance to show off her guitar skills, something we rarely saw at the club, since she mostly played the piano here. I wasn't the only one impressed; the crowd roared their approval when she finished. Next up was another Bonnie Raitt song, "Thing Called Love", which again showcased Elle's guitar playing.

Cuddy slapped me on the arm during the song: "Are you ready?"

"Ready for what?"

"The _thing_ she's singing about."

I knew what she was getting at, but I refused to give her the satisfaction of an answer. "Shut up and enjoy the show."

She gave me a knowing smirk and turned to face the stage.

Elle finished that song and then said into the mike: "I had a request for this next song. I hope no one here is easily offended by the strong language."

After a few hoots from the audience, Elle led the band in Meredith Brooks' "I'm a Bitch." As usual, she was amazing. She danced around as she sang and played the guitar and she made it look like it was the easiest thing in the world to do. She looked like she was having a lot of fun with this song and the crowd was grooving along with her. She shot me a look as she sang this part:

_I'm a bitch I'm a tease_

_I'm a goddess on my knees_

_When you hurt, when you suffer_

_I'm your angel under cover_

That brought a smile to my face. She was my goddess, my angel. _Mine. _

The bar was really crowded tonight. A good-sized crowd was on the dance floor. There was a buzz in the air from all the excitement. Mom tugged on my arm for my attention as the song ended, but the noise level was so loud that I couldn't quite hear her. I took my eyes off of Elle and leaned closer to Mom. Wilson and Cuddy were dancing in the middle of the floor and Gen and Ricky were deep in conversation. With so much going on, I guess that's why we all missed the guy who walked up to the stage and grabbed Elle by the leg.

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Suddenly I hear Elle cry out: "Hey!" Her voice sounded distressed. I looked up to see a man with his hand on her leg and threatening to pull her off the stage. Fortunately Adam and Danny were right next to her. They each grabbed an elbow and held on to her. They kept her from being pulled off the stage, but the guy wouldn't let go of her. Billy came around the bar with his baseball bat and ran towards the stage. Ricky rushed up to Elle and I was following as fast as I could.

Ricky got there first and grabbed the guy from behind. I heard Elle say: "Yo, dude. Let go of my leg. You're going to pull me off the stage."

The guy slammed his other hand against the stage floor. He started bawling and managed to stammer out: "I just wanted you to sing a song for me." He sounded like he was just about 3 sheets to the wind.

"I can do that, but you gotta let go of me first."

Billy's big hand closed over the guy's and he started peeling his fingers off of Elle.

"PLEASE. You gotta sing something for me. My brother just died and I need you to sing this song for me."

"OK, just let go of my leg and tell me what song you want."

As he released her leg, he tearfully said: "_Paradise_ by John Prine. He loved John Prine."

"OK. I can do that. Danny and I know lots of John Prine."

There was a cry of "Let me through, that's my husband." The crowd parted and a petite, rather pregnant-looking woman elbowed her way to the front. She tugged on the guy's arm.

"Ralph, come back to the table. Come on; let's go sit down. I'm sorry everyone, he's really upset. He just found out today that his brother was killed in Iraq."

Elle froze. Solemnly she addressed the woman: "What happened?"

The woman looked at her husband who was sobbing into his hands and then back at Elle. "He was killed by hostile fire near Fallujah. He was only 20."

Sadly Elle said: "I'm so sorry. What was his name?"

"Ryan Jones. Sgt. Ryan Jones. He is Ralphie's baby brother. He's in college studying engineering and he was also in the National Guard. Well, his unit got called up two months ago. And yesterday they lost 6 of them, including Ryan."

Elle bent down and place a hand on Ralph's shoulder. "Ralph, I'm so sorry about your brother. I wish there was something I could do for you."

He looked up at her and tearfully said: "If you would just sing that song, that," He broke into sobs again.

"OK, man. Your wife's going to take you back to your table, OK? And Danny and I will sing that song and some other John Prine for you, OK?"

Elle addressed his wife: "Are you the designated driver tonight?"

She pointed to her huge belly and said: "Oh, yeah. Tonight and for the next 2 months."

Elle said quietly to Billy: "His drinks are on me, tonight."

Billy nodded. They managed to get Ralph turned around and between Billy and Ralph's wife, they steered him back to their table. Elle watched their progress with a sad expression on her face.

I waved my cane in the air to get her attention. "Are you OK? You're not hurt, are you?"

Elle bent down to me: "No, I'm OK. I'm just sad for them. It sucks, that's all." She gave me a quick peck on the lips and stood up. She turned, walked back to her guitar stands and set the electric guitar down. She picked up her acoustic and slung it across her shoulders. There was a quick conversation with the boys and then she walked back to the mike. Danny moved his mike closer to hers and the other guys just stood back.

There was still a lot of commotion in the bar. Elle held her arms up in the air and waited for silence. When everyone settled down, she spoke: "I'm sorry to report that we lost one of our own yesterday. Sgt. Ryan Jones was killed in Iraq, by hostile fire near Fallujah. His brother is here, and Ralph, our sympathies goes out to you and your whole family."

A murmuring started in the crowd and Elle waited again until it had died down. "As of the end of July, _two thousand, seven hundred and eighty_ of our men and women have been killed over in Iraq. I don't know how many have been injured, how many lives permanently affected by this stupid war. Bush is playing macho general with our soldiers' lives and it's just wrong."

A cheer of support went up in the crowd. Again Elle waited for the noise to fade away and then spoke: "Ryan really liked John Prine and Ralph asked if we could sing something of his so that's what Danny and I are going to do now. Ryan, wherever you are, this one's for you."

Danny and Elle started playing the opening bars of '_Paradise'_. Danny sang the verses and Elle joined him on the chorus. The last verse seemed rather poignant to the situation tonight.

_When I die, let my ashes float down the Green River,_

_Let my soul roll on up to the Rochester Dam_

_I'll be halfway to heaven with paradise waiting_

_Just 5 miles away from wherever I am._

When they finished, the crowd roared their approval. The singers waited a moment, and then went right into the next song. It turned out to be _'Spanish_ _Pipedream'_ which I knew to be a favorite of Elle's. Again, Danny sang the verses, but this Elle soloed on the chorus. When they played _Illegal Smile_, it seemed like the whole audience joined them on the chorus. This was turning out to be one of the more rowdy nights at Satchel's. When they sang _Flag Decal_, Elle and Danny changed the words on the chorus a little bit, but the audience still managed to sing along just fine.

_Your flag decal won't get you into heaven any more_

_They're already overcrowded from BUSH'S DIRTY WAR_

_Now Jesus don't like killing, no matter what the reason's for_

_And your flag decal won't get you into heaven any more._

Adam, Avi and Lenny had wandered back out and joined them on the last chorus also. When the song ended, Adam caught Elle's eye and made a turning motion with his hand. Elle nodded and held up one finger.

She said to the crowd: "OK. I've been reminded I need to wind up this set, but I just want to say that I feel this war is a mistake. And I don't understand where all the protesters are, like there were back during the Vietnam War. We were a much more vocal bunch back then. There aren't many protest songs about this war either, so I'd like to close this set with a song from the Vietnam era. I'm sure you know it, so sing along."

Elle said something to the boys off mike and Adam picked up his guitar. The others gathered around mikes so that they could sing along. It was probably Country Joe McDonald's most famous song.

_And it's one, two, three, what're we fightin' for_

_Don't ask me; I don't give a damn. Next stop is Vietnam._

_And it's five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates._

_Well, ain't got time to wonder why, whoopee, we're all gonna die._

I think everyone in the bar sang along except me. Everyone at our table, even Mom, was singing along. Mom caught my look of surprise and leaned over to speak into my ear: "I was against the war, but I couldn't really vocalize that opinion being married to a Marine and living in military housing. The war changed your father, and not in a good way."

She shot me a knowing look and went back to singing and clapping along with the rest of the crowd. I just shook my head; I had certainly learned a lot about my Mom on this visit.

The crowd was fired up and the noise was deafening as they sang the last chorus. They finished to thunderous applause and Elle yelled into the microphone: "Thank you! We'll be back in 15. I ask all of you who are against this war to write your congressmen and senators and tell them to get us outta Iraq!" They all ran off the stage while the audience carried on with their applause and cheers.

As the crowd roared, Mom tugged on my arm. I bent over so I could hear her over the din. "You know, son, maybe we shouldn't tell your father that you are dating a Jewish anti-war peacenik."

I thought of what his response would be and knew that there was no way I would want to expose Elle to his ugly tirades. "You're right, Mom. Maybe we should keep this between us."

A/N: This chapter takes place in Aug 2006. As of the end of July 2006, there had been 2780 causalities reported by our armed services in Iraq. As I write this on June 10, 2008, there have been 4092 confirmed deaths. (Source: iCasualtiesdotcom)


	37. Chapter 37

**HOUSE**

Before we knew it, Sunday evening was here and Mom's visit was drawing to a close. It had been the best time I'd had with her since I was a kid. Too bad she can't visit more often without Dad tagging along.

Mom really enjoyed Satchel's. The rest of the evening had gone smoothly. Elle sang a few of her usual songs in the last set. "It's My Life" got everyone feeling rowdy again. We barely saw Wilson and Cuddy during the last 2 sets; they just danced the night away. I actually hadn't seen either of them have this much fun in a while. Made me wonder how much longer Wilson's marriage would last, if he was having more fun with _Cuddy_ than with his own wife.

After the bar had cleared out, Elle sang _"Broken Hallelujah"_ for Theresa in exchange for her potato skins. Mom watched her as she ate, but wisely didn't say anything. We hung out until around 3AM and then we all headed for home. Elle took a shower while I got Mom settled. I was undressing in Elle's bedroom when she walked in, naked and damp after her shower. She finished undressing me and pushed me onto the bed. I lay flat on my back, hands above my head, forbidden to move, while she kissed and caressed me all over. When I was so hard that I thought I was going to explode, I grabbed her, rolled her onto her back and slid inside. She was more than ready for me and we didn't last long. I rolled us on our sides afterwards and we just held each other, kissing gently. Elle managed to pull the sheet over us, right before we fell asleep.

It was 11:30 AM when we heard a loud rap on the bedroom door. Mom was standing there, tapping her foot: "Are you kids ever getting up?"

Elle mumbled "No" and snuggled deeper into my side. I didn't respond verbally; I just pulled the sheet up higher and wrapped my arm tighter around Elle.

Mom went on: "James called. He's coming over so we can all go to brunch."

Elle turned her head to look at Mom and said sleepily: "Is he buying?"

I chuckled, kissed her temple and said: "That's my girl."

Mom laughed: "Just get up. He'll be here in about 10 minutes."

We all piled into Wilson's Volvo and he drove us to PJ's Pancake House over on Nassau St. Elle dove gleefully into a pile of banana pancakes, happy as a little kid. I stole her sausage; she stole my bacon and we amused Mom and Wilson to no end with our food snitching. I managed to dump the check on Wilson, but he didn't seem to mind.

We spent the afternoon at the cinema. The Princeton Garden Theatre was showing "Prairie Home Companion" and Elle really wanted to see it. Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin were amusing and really quite good as singing sisters. Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly played a couple of singing cowboys and their roles were really funny. All in all, it was an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.

We went out for steaks that night. I almost let Wilson pay again, but at the last moment I grabbed the check. I didn't want Mom thinking that I was a total cheapskate. It was worth it to see the look of surprise on Wilson's face when I snatched the check out of his hand. After dinner, Wilson dropped us off; and the three of us settled on my couch for a bit of TV.

Around 10PM, we all decided to turn in. I needed to get Mom to the airport by 8AM and Elle, of course, had to be at work at the same time. Elle hugged Mom and told her how much she had enjoyed her visit and invited her to come back anytime. Mom thanked Elle for going to such trouble for her and naturally Elle assured her it was no problem whatsoever. Mom kissed me goodnight, and Elle and I went to her place.

I hate going to bed at such an early hour. We had slept so late this morning that I really wasn't tired yet. I flailed around for a bit, fitfully trying to get comfortable and clearly disturbing Elle's rest.

She caressed my chest with her fingertips and said softly: "You need something to help you sleep?"

"What have you got in mind?"

She kissed her way down my body until she found my soft member. He didn't stay soft long once she had put him in her mouth. I tried to change positions so there could be some mutual fun, but Elle patted my chest and refused to move. I took that to mean that she just wanted to pleasure me tonight and I lay back to enjoy it. She may not have exactly been on her knees at that moment, but she was indeed a goddess. Afterwards I was spent and sleepy, but with Elle cuddled in my arms, I let my fingers do the walking until she sighed with satisfaction from her own orgasm. We fell asleep wrapped up in each other's arms.

Elle's alarm went off at an ungodly hour. She turned it off and got out of bed. I could hear her in the shower and knew I needed to get up, but I was procrastinating as much as possible. When she walked back into the room, she had a cup of coffee for me and I gratefully took it from her. I showered, dressed and met up with the ladies in the kitchen. Elle had made us a to-go breakfast of egg sandwiches and coffee. We loaded Mom's bag into the car and after another hug for Elle, Mom and I took off for the airport.

"I really enjoyed this time with you, Greg."

"Yeah, Mom, it was great. You should always leave Dad at home and come alone."

Wistfully, she said: "You know, I can't do that."

"I'm just kidding, Mom."

She sighed: "I wish things were better between you two."

"I wish I had my leg back too. There's no point in wishing for things that you know you can't have."

"Well, a person can still want something even though logically they know it will never happen."

_Shit!_ Didn't I just say something like this to Elle 2 days ago? I realized that I'm more like my Mom than I thought.

"Yeah, you're right, but I just don't see it happening. You don't even want to tell him about Elle, cuz you know how he will react."

"Yeah, it is pretty sad, isn't it?"

I didn't respond and the question just hung in the air between us.

"So what type of exercise are you doing for your leg?"

"I started swimming a couple of days a week at the hospital gym."

"When are you going to tell Elle about it?"

"I want to give it a couple of weeks and see how it goes and then I'll tell her."

Mom nodded and we rode in silence for a while.

"Do you forgive Stacy for what she did to you?"

_Forgive Stacy?_ How can a person forgive someone for doing something so life altering to him? It's not like I haven't pondered this question many times over the last several years, but no one had actually asked me about it.

"I don't know if forgiveness is the right word, Mom. I've tried my best to understand what she did. I told her that I would be OK after my electrolytes stabilized and the cytokines flushed out of my system. My body needed to ride out the storm and she was too impatient to wait for that to happen.

She knew what I wanted and she went behind my back and did what SHE thought was best. She didn't trust my medical opinion. She wanted me alive at any cost. She violated the medical proxy by not doing what I wanted. Now I have to live with HER decision that she inflicted on MY body. I have to try every single day to accept my limitations and that's hard."

I paused for a moment, and then went on: "Acceptance is hard; forgiveness is even harder. Can I look Stacy in the eye, pat her on the head and say: 'Oh, it's OK; I understand why you did it. Thanks for saving my life even though the quality of my life has greatly suffered.' No, Mom, I absolutely cannot do that."

Quietly Mom said: "I'm sorry, dear."

I reached over and squeezed Mom's hand: "You have nothing to be sorry for, Mom. Besides, you know what they say; living well is the best revenge. I've had two opportunities to flaunt my hot young girlfriend in front of her face."

I smiled, remembering the look on Stacy's face at our PDA's. "Damn, was she jealous! Especially after it was quite obvious that her husband was checking out Elle's assets too. Green is not a good color on Stacy."

I related the story of what had happened at the beach when we ran into the Warners and Mom howled with laughter.

By this time, we had arrived at the airport, and I pulled into a fairly close handicapped parking space. I walked Mom up to the counter, got her checked in and then we strolled over to the security gate.

Mom set down her bag and pulled me into a big hug. I hugged her back with my left arm.

"I really had a great time, dear. And I'm so glad to see you looking so well. I think Elle makes you happy and I hope you continue to make each other happy for a long time."

I squeezed her a little harder: "Thanks, Mom. I'm really glad you came. YOU can come visit anytime."

She smiled, understanding where the emphasis was in that sentence. "Call me once in a while. Your ol' mother likes to hear from you."

"You can always call me when he's not around too."

"I'll do that. When he's off fishing or at the VFW with his cronies, I'll call you. Take care, Greg. I love you."

"I love you too, Mom."

She gave me a kiss on the cheek, picked up her bag and headed into the security line. I watched until she was through the X-ray machine and on the other side. After she slipped her shoes back on, she stood up and waved one more time.

I waved back: "Bye, Mom." I said it softly to myself, cuz obviously she couldn't hear me.

I watched her turn and head towards her gate. When she was out of sight, I turned and headed back to my car.

When I got to the hospital, I headed right to the gym. Again, there were very few people there at that hour, so I did my laps in peace. Today I managed 3 laps of each stroke, floating afterwards to rest and enjoy the feeling of weightlessness. By the time I had showered, dressed and walked into my office, it was almost 11AM. That was more like my usual appearance time. No one paid any attention when I entered my office and parked myself behind my desk. We had no case at the moment so I lunched with Wilson and generally goofed off until my 4:30 appointment with Gus.

We met in his office, without Elle. It was strange seeing him without her, but I knew it was for the best. I told him about the swimming and he was pleased at my progress. It seemed miniscule to me, but he assured me that I was off to a good start. I told him of my intention to bump up to 3 times a week and he agreed with my plan. We discussed my current dosage; I felt I was holding OK at 50 mg twice a day, so we left the Oxycontin dose at the same level. He wrote me a prescription for another week's supply and some more oxycodone for breakthrough pain. I had been using only 3 or 4 a day, which wasn't too bad. Gus seemed genuinely pleased at my progress without being condescending. He was an OK guy. We set another appointment for next Monday at the same time.

I took my prescriptions to the pharmacy and waited for them to be filled. It was probably 6PM when I arrived at my apartment. I frowned as soon as I opened the door. Leaning up against the back of the couch was a large package. I figured that it had been on my doorstep and Elle had brought it in, but I hadn't ordered anything lately. The return address sticker said it was from Iznad Golf Supply. _What the hell?_

I threw my backpack and helmet on the couch and went into the kitchen for a large knife to open the box. As I was sawing through the cardboard, Elle walked in.

Gleefully she exclaimed: "Oh, a box! What did ya get?"

"Don't you know?"

She had a mischievous look on her face: "Maaaaay-be."

I smirked and continued wrestling with the box while Elle watched me. Finally I was able to extract the contents.

"A ProActive Sports Pro-Circuit Putt Return System?"

Elle squealed: "Do you like it? This way you can practice putting left-handed. I thought you could put it in your office. If anyone says anything about you playing at work, you can tell 'em it's THERAPY."

I mused: "Yeah, I could borrow one of Wilson's putters. He's left-handed."

It was pretty cool actually. The putting green was adjustable up to 9 feet long and it had a track and diverter system to return the ball back to the original putting position. I could just stand there and keep putting and the ball would keep returning to me. This would give me some practice with hitting left-handed before I tried out the driving range.

Elle looked at me expectantly. It was obvious that she was waiting for my reaction.

I grinned: "Thank you sweetheart. This is great; really, it's terrific. But you didn't have to do this."

In a small voice, she said: "I wanted to. You like it, right?"

My little mouse. "Yes, I really like it. Wilson is gonna be SO jealous when he sees it. I can't wait to take it to work."

I pulled her into my arms. She tilted her head up and our lips met. We kissed slowly and softly, like we had all night. My lips trailed over to her ear, where I nibbled on her lobe and whispered my thanks. She squeezed me tightly and nuzzled her face into my chest. We just stood there, wrapped up in each other, until my leg started to ache from standing.

I called Wilson and asked him to bring a putter to work. He sounded puzzled, but agreed without needing an explanation. I took the putting green to work the next day and set it up in my office. Wilson grinned like a Cheshire cat when he saw my new toy. After watching me putt for 20 minutes, I finally allowed him a turn.

As he positioned himself, he said: "So why did you want one of my putters? You still have your golf clubs in the back of your closet."

"I'm testing a new theory. What exactly will you let me borrow just cuz I ask for it? So, now I can check golf clubs off the list. I'll try something bigger next time, like your car."

"Ha, ha. Seriously, you have your own clubs. Not only did you want to borrow mine, but also you are actually hitting left-handed. Something's going on here."

"Well, it's a left-handed putter. Of course, I'm going to use it that way. _Duh!"_

He just looked at me suspiciously. I'm sure he realized that there was more to it than that, but he knew me well enough to know that he wasn't getting the whole story outta me today.

Elle sent me a text on Wednesday afternoon. Bill Arnello wanted to meet with her after work to give her an update on the case. I wanted to be there, but it was poker night. She assured me that she would be fine; they were meeting at Satchel's as they usually did. I knew she hated to interrupt my poker game, but I told her to come over when she got home. She promised to poke her head in my door as soon as she got back.

Wilson came over and helped me set up as usual. The guys arrived, everyone got settled with a beer and I dealt out the first hand. Dry Cleaner Guy had just raised the bet by 10 bucks when we heard the front door of the building slam. I glanced at Wilson; he looked equally puzzled. Then we heard scuffling noise in the foyer. Wilson laid his cards down and started to get up to check on the noise when we heard her scream.

"Leave me alone! Get away from me!"

We all jumped up and ran for the door. Bus Stop Guy was the closest and yanked it open. Elle was struggling to get into her apartment and Bill and Tony were closing in on her. She screamed over her shoulder: "I said leave me alone!" She finally managed to get the key in the lock and rushed inside without looking back. She slammed the door and we could hear the deadbolt being thrown. Even through the thick door, we could all hear her anguished cries.

My blood was boiling. I grabbed Bill and threw him up against the wall. "What the hell did you do to her?"

**_Elle_**

The meeting started off as it usually did. We made small talk for a while and Theresa brought us our food. As usual, Bill waited until we finished eating to get down to business. Theresa was just picking up our empty plates when Tony strolled in.

He gave first Theresa, and then me, a kiss and said: "Sorry I'm late. I just couldn't get outta there tonight."

"You know you don't have to come to my little meetings with Bill. He'll keep you posted on everything."

"Yeah, well. I wanted to be here. You know, in case you needed a shoulder to lean on."

I felt like I suddenly had ice water in my veins. "What do you mean by that?"

I turned to Bill: "Do you have bad news about the case?"

"Well, there is nothing new with the lawsuit with PMMC. Their lawyers are still stalling the case with ridiculous motions."

He leaned closer to me and put his hand over mine. I'm sure he meant it to be comforting, but it scared me even more. "Something else has come up."

He glanced at Tony who edged his seat closer to me. My trepidation grew. I wanted Greg. I wanted his arms wrapped around me, my face buried in his chest, so that I would feel safe. But he wasn't here. If I had known Bill had such bad news for me, I would have dragged him along. He had wanted to come, but I told him not to bother since he had his poker game tonight.

Through clenched teeth, I hissed: "Spit it out, Bill. What the hell is so bad that you made sure to have back-up here?" I pointed at Tony as I said it.

"OK, Elle, here's the thing. The guy who assaulted you has filed a motion to have his conviction overturned. He is claiming that some of the evidence was improperly obtained. He is full of shit, but I have to respond to the motion."

I felt sick. I could hardly breathe. I saw Tony motion to Theresa and she hurriedly brought me a scotch. I had to clutch the glass with both hands in order to drink from it, as my whole body was shaking from the news.

I managed to croak out: "Best and worst case scenario?"

"Best is that the judge laughs and throws the motion out of court. The worst is that the judge will overturn the conviction and allow a new trial. The absolute worst is that he will let the bastard out on bail while he awaits a retrial."

Oh Gawd, it never dawned on me that he could get out of prison before serving at least half of his sentence. This was horrible. And then another thought crossed my mind: "If there is a retrial, would I have to testify again?"

Bill nodded sadly: "It depends on which evidence gets tossed out. It could be vital for you to testify again. But if the judge throws out the dog bite evidence, I don't think we have enough to get a conviction again. He could end up walking away from this."

I couldn't believe this. Just when I was starting to feel safe again, this news rocked my world. I started to feel very sick. I clamped my hand over my mouth and ran for the ladies' room.

In the middle of throwing up my dinner, Theresa hurried in. She held my hair back for me while I finished puking. She helped me up and I leaned on her as we walked towards the sink. As I splashed water on my face, I asked if Bill told her. She sadly nodded. "If there is anything we can do, don't hesitate to ask."

I nodded: "I know. I just don't know if I can go through a trial again. And if he gets out, I don't know if I will be able to stand it. I was just starting to feel safe again."

I let her hug me for a minute and then said: "I gotta get outta here."

I dashed out of the bathroom, ran to the table and snatched my purse. I could hear the guys' protests as I ran out of the bar, but I kept going. I wanted to get home.

Unfortunately they were right behind me. I hurried as fast as I could into the building but I couldn't shake them. I started screaming at them to go away as I fumbled with my key. My hands were shaking so badly that I couldn't get the door unlocked. My screams brought the guys out of their poker game. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Greg's concerned face. I wanted him, I wanted to be in his arms, but there were 6 other men in the small crowded foyer and I felt completely overwhelmed. Finally I managed to get my door unlocked, dashed it and slammed it shut. I threw the deadbolt lock and burst into tears.

**_HOUSE_**

I shook Bill again. "What the hell did you do to her?"

"I had to give her some bad news. She got rather upset about it."

"Obviously, you dick! What did you tell her?"

Bill pointedly looked around; I had forgotten that we had an audience. I gritted my teeth and said: "If the news was that bad, and you thought she would be upset by it, why the hell didn't you call me so I could be there for her?"

"She wasn't alone. We were at the bar, and I made sure Tony would be there."

That just further enraged me. I cut him off before he could finish: "Tony is _not_ her boyfriend. _I am_ and I should have been told. Don't ever leave me out of the loop again." I gave him one last shove against the wall and turned my back to him.

Wilson had a shocked look on his face. After all, I had just threatened a mob lawyer. Real smart of me, but I couldn't help it. I needed to find out what the bad news was and I needed to get to Elle.

I pulled my keys out of my pocket. "Game's over, guys. I gotta deal with this."

Accountant said: "Is there anything we can do? Elle's our friend and we wanna help if we can." The others nodded in agreement.

I knew that they meant well, but I just couldn't deal with them right now. I held up my hand and started to speak, but Wilson butted in. "I'm sure that Elle would really appreciate your offer, but she's obviously quite distraught and having a crowd around might be too upsetting for her right now. House will let her know what you said, right House?"

I nodded as I fitted the key into the door. I walked into her apartment and looked around. Her purse had been slung on the futon, but there were no other signs of her. I limped into the kitchen and saw one of the cabinet doors were ajar. It was the cabinet where she kept her liquor and I saw that the bottle of Jack was gone. OOOOOK. That was a bad sign. I heard footsteps and turned around. Bill, Tony and Wilson had followed me in.

Wilson said: "The other guys are gone."

I addressed Bill: "What's the bad news?"

He shot a look at Wilson. I shook my head. "If you can talk in front of Tony, you can talk about it in front of Wilson."

He cleared his throat: "Well, there is the matter of confidentiality."

This guy lived to piss me off. "Confidentiality, my ass! Tony knows about it. You made sure he was there for the news. He has no right to the information."

"He's an old friend who is still very involved in her life."

"Yeah, well, he's married to someone else now. Perhaps he should start remembering that when he sticks his nose into MY girlfriend's business. Now, fucking tell me what's going on."

Bill succinctly filled me in. My heart sank. No wonder Elle was so upset. Her rapist might be freed and the charges dropped. Would he come after her again? I needed to get to her.

Jabbing my finger into Bill's chest, I said harshly: "Don't ever give her this kind of news again without me being there. My cane will find a new home up your ass if you do."

I stalked off down the hall. She wasn't in the bathroom and the bedroom door was locked. I jiggled the doorknob, but it wouldn't budge. I knocked on the door, not too hard as I didn't want to scare her. "Elle, it's Greg. Let me in, sweetheart. Elle, come on, open the door."

The silence frightened me; why wouldn't she open the door for me? Could she have taken something with the booze and passed out? Wilson handed me one of his credit cards and I tried picking the lock, but it wouldn't pop.

"Credit cards don't work on those kinds of locks. Hold on."

My head spun around at hearing a new voice; Avi and Ricky had showed up.

"What are you doing here? YOU know?"

Avi nodded. "Theresa called and gave me the heads-up. We thought you might need some help, so we came over."

I was steaming: "Everyone manages to find out before I do. That's just great. Any ideas why she won't answer the door?"

Avi pulled a long slim bar of metal out of his pocket. "Judging from past behavior, she's hiding in the closet with a bottle of Jack. Did you check to see if it is gone?"

"Yeah, the bottle's gone."

Avi nodded sadly: "I'm not surprised." He took the bar of metal, and threaded it into the small hole in the doorknob. It only took about 5 seconds and then we heard the lock pop. He handed the bar to me: "Maybe you better keep this."

I nodded and stuck it in my pocket.

He opened the door slowly and called out softly: "Elle. It's Avi and Greg. We're coming in, OK?"

We scanned the room quickly, but it was obvious that she wasn't there. The closet door was closed and Avi pointed to it. "She has to be in there. She's done this before when she's really scared."

He knocked softly on the closet door: "Elle. It's Avi. I'm going to open the door, OK?"

Elle wailed: "Noooooo."

"Oh, come on honey. Let me open it just a little bit, OK? Just a crack?"

He slowly turned the doorknob as he spoke and then eased the door open just a little.

"See, I'm only opening it a little bit. Just to let a little light in."

"Don't want any light." She sounded like a petulant 5-year-old.

"C'mon, you don't want to sit in the dark closet on the floor, do you?"

"Yes, I _do."_

Avi got down on his knees and kept easing the door open. As soon as it was opened wide enough, he crawled in next to her.

"Come on out, sweetie, let's get out of here. It's all small in here."

"I like it all small. It's safer."

"It's safe to come out. I'm here and Greg's here. Ricky and Wilson are out in the living room. No one's going to get you. He's still in jail."

Elle sobbed: "For now! But for how long?"

"Hopefully for a long, long time. Come on sweetie. You know Jack is not your best companion right now. Wouldn't you rather see Greg? He's all warm and cuddly and ready to give you a hug. Jack is all cold and hard, no fun to hug.

"Nice and warm going down."

"Well, yeah, but Greg will hold you in his arms and keep you warm and safe."

"What if that guy comes back, Avi? He'll hurt Greg too. He killed Rocco; he'd kill Greg too. I don't want anything to happen to Greg. It would be all my fault, like it's my fault that Rocco got killed."

"It's _not_ your fault; you gotta stop saying that. Nothing is going to happen to you and Greg. You know that Bill will do everything he can to keep that bastard in jail."

She wailed: "But what if he can't?"

He sighed in exasperation: "Oh, sweetie. Give me that damn bottle."

He plucked the bottle out of her hands and passed it over to me. Then he picked Elle up, walked over to the bed and flopped down with her in his lap. Her arms were around his neck and she was sobbing into his shoulder.

He shot me an apologetic look: "Sorry. I didn't mean to just swoop in here and take over."

I held up my hand in a 'stop' posture. "You knew what to do. You got the door unlocked and got her out of the closet; that's huge."

He let her sob for a few minutes, rocking her and rubbing her back. I sat down on the bed next to them and squeezed her shoulder.

"Elle, Greg's right here. He wants to hug you. You wanna sit on his lap?"

Elle nodded. She was now hiccupping in between her sobs. Avi shifted Elle over to me and I eased her onto my good leg. She seemed so fragile as she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face in my shoulder. Her hand cupped my cheek and I placed my hand over hers.

She whispered: "I'm scared, cowboy."

I hugged her tighter: "I know, sweetheart."

I wanted to reassure her that she would be safe, but I didn't want to make any promises that I couldn't keep.

"I need another snort."

Avi sighed: "Elle,"

"I'm not gonna get smashed, Avi. I just want one more short for my nerves, OK?"

Avi looked at me and I gave a slight nod.

Resignedly, he said: "Alright. Just let me get you a glass first. I hate it when you drink right out of the bottle. You look like a fucking skid-row bum when you do that."

She giggled, her face still pressed into my shoulder. I smiled and kissed the top of her head; it was great to hear that sound. Avi left to get the glass and we were alone for a few minutes.

"I guess you must think I'm pretty stupid, hiding in a closet like that."

"No, sweetheart, I know you were scared."

"I wanted you. But I felt surrounded by all those men in the hall and it was too overwhelming. I couldn't handle it. So I ran and hid, like a little kid."

"It's OK. You want to be alone? You want me to kick everyone out?"

"No, I want you here. And Avi and Ricky can stay, they're my brothers."

I kissed her again. "I think Wilson wants to be one of your brothers."

"OK. He can be one too."

The adrenalin from the emotional upheaval was wearing off and she sagged in my arms. I shifted us to I could lay her down on the bed, staying right beside her, my arms still wrapped around her.

Elle whispered: "I'm exhausted."

I stroked her hair away from her face. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was rather shallow. "We can go to bed if you want. Or maybe have a nice hot bath; that might be relaxing. We got any of that vanilla bubble stuff left?"

"I think so."

"Did you have dinner? We could get some Chinese and then have a bath if you want."

"I ate at Satchel's but then I threw up."

_Shit._ The fear was affecting her in a very physical way and that worried me. This problem may take a while to resolve and I hoped that keeping food down would not become an issue; she certainly didn't need to lose any more weight.

Avi walked back in with a glass and the rest of the guys followed him into the room. He shot me a look and rolled his eyes. Guess he wasn't too thrilled at being followed. Tony stared at us with narrowed eyes and a hard look on his face. He didn't seem too happy to see Elle wrapped up in my arms. I possessively pulled her closer to me. _MINE_ was my mental telepathy message to him.

Avi casually walked over and picked up the bottle of Jack. "Still want a shot, sweetie?"

Elle sat up and rubbed her face. "Yes, please, a small one."

Then she seemed to notice that we had an audience. "Geez, what did I do to deserve 6 men in my bedroom?" She looked back at me and said: "Am I that good in the sack?"

I wiggled my eyebrows at her: "Oh, yeah, you are, but I'm not sharing." I was rewarded with a smile and I leaned forward to plant a kiss on her lips.

Bill cleared his throat and said: "We just wanted to make sure you were OK before we left."

Elle snorted and accepted the glass from Avi. She chugged it back in one shot. I noticed that Tony frowning at her.

"I'm as OK as I can be considering the news you gave me tonight."

"Elle, I'm fighting the motion, I'm doing the best that I can."

"I know you are, Bill. I know that you will do everything in your power to keep him in jail and keep the charges from being overturned. But as your client, I gotta say, the next time you have news this bad to dump on me, don't tell me when I'm all alone. I want Greg and Avi there with me."

"Well, but I had Tony come over."

Elle held up her hand and cut him off. "Yes, that's nice and Tony is an old friend. However, Avi is like my _brother_ and Greg is my _boyfriend_ and I want them to be there for me."

Tony said: "Elle, I can help. I can be there for you."

"Tony, there is only so much that you can do for me. Avi and Ricky baby-sat me through my past ordeal and Greg is my boyfriend. I need _them_ to be with me."

Tony was stone-faced. "Don't worry Elle. If he gets out, I'll take care of him."

She let out a harsh laugh: "Like you took care of Charlie?"

"Uh, something like that, a bit more perhaps."

Elle shook her head: "I can't spend the rest of my life having you take care of my problems."

He looked at her tenderly: "I don't mind. You know I would do anything for you."

"Well_, I_ mind. I don't feel right having you clean up my messes. Once was enough. Hopefully the legal system will take care of it this time. Maybe G-d will be on my side. Ask Nancy to light a candle for me."

Tony stiffened at the mention of his wife's name. He turned to go and then suddenly blurted out: "None of this would have happened if you hadn't been so stubborn. I never should have let you go."

Elle looked appalled. Through clenched teeth, she spit out: "Are you implying this is MY fault?"

"No, no, of course not. I'm just saying things would have been different, this wouldn't have happened, if, you know."

Elle sounded frustrated as she let out a puff of air: "You pick _now_, to bring up ancient history? Fuck. I did it for you, Tony. I wanted you to be happy. Now go home to your wife and kids."

She turned away from the group at the door and wrapped her arms around me, burying her face in my shoulder again.

I held her tightly, my chin propped on top of her head. "You heard MY lady. Go home."

Bill and Tony made their good-byes, Bill promising to call both of us with daily updates. Elle merely waved her hand to acknowledge their goodbyes. As soon as I heard the door close, I whispered to her: "They're gone."

"Good," came the mumbled reply.

Wilson finally spoke up: "Elle, do you want us to leave too?"

She shook her head: "No, you don't have to. I just wanted the bearer of bad news and my extremely over-protective EX to go. You guys can stay if you want, but I don't think I'm very good company right now."

She flopped back on the bed and Avi lay down next to her, taking her left hand in his. I stretched out on her other side and took her right hand. Wilson and Ricky sat nearby on the bed. She glanced at all of us and then looked back at Avi. "What do I do now?"

"Well, as Tom Petty said, the waiting is the hardest part. You need a good distraction. And I know just the thing."

He stood up, scooped her off the bed and threw her over his shoulder. Eyes wide, she squealed: "What are you doing?"

Avi ignored her words and walked out to the living room with Elle over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. We all followed. He stooped by her DVD collection and grabbed a couple of films.

He turned and looked at me: "Let's go back to your place. You have a bigger sofa."

I nodded and let him lead the way, Elle still over his shoulder. I figured if he thought of a good distraction for Elle, I was game for just about anything.

We ordered Chinese food and settled on the couch. Elle was sitting between Avi and myself. Ricky squeezed in on the other side of Avi and Wilson pulled the chair over. Avi started the first movie with the remote and it turned out to be 'Galaxy Quest'. Elle sighed and snuggled into my side. She giggled in all the right places and seemed to be unwinding. The Chinese food arrived; Wilson got the door and paid for it. We paused the movie long enough to lay the containers out of the coffee table and grab plates and utensils.

Elle peered at the containers and frowned: "Are there any sesame noodles?"

Ricky grabbed the appropriate container and handed it to her: "Here, sweetie."

She thanked him, grabbed a fork, settled back against the couch and started eating them straight out of the container. The rest of us made plates and once we were all settled, Avi restarted the movie. Elle seemed content eating her noodles, but I wanted her to eat some protein too. I picked up a shrimp with my chopsticks and stuck it in front of her mouth. She obediently opened up and let me feed her. Encouraged, I fed her a few more shrimp and some pieces of meat from the Hunan Beef. She let me feed her while continuing to eat the sesame noodles, never taking her eyes off of the movie. Finally she sighed with contentment, shook her head to my last proffering of shrimp and set the empty container down on the coffee table. Behind her back, Avi gave me an encouraging nod; we had gotten her to eat, now if it would just stay down. She snuggled back up to me while we finished watching the movie.

When it was over, Avi said: "OK, which one do you want next? 'Groundhog Day' or 'Four Weddings and a Funeral'?"

Elle yawned: "No more tonight, Avi. I need to go to bed. I gotta work tomorrow."

She embraced him. I could see his emotions play across his face as he held her. I knew his feelings ran deeply for her and I was glad that she had such a good friend. He didn't ask what she needed; he just did things. That was a good kind of friend to have when life was completely overwhelming you.

Elle whispered something to him that I couldn't hear. Avi's response was: "I love you too. I'll call you tomorrow. You call me if you need me, anytime, day or night, got it?"

I didn't hear her response, but I was sure it was affirmative. They gave each other a kiss and then Elle stood up on slightly unsteady legs. She motioned Ricky to stand up and gave him a big hug. We walked them to the door, and after Elle gave them each another hug and kiss, Avi and Ricky went home.

Wilson said: "I guess I better go too."

"Thank you for being here, Jimmy. Your presence is very calming."

Wilson looked slightly taken aback by her words, but then his face softened and I knew he was pleased by her compliment. They embraced and I waited a few seconds before butting in.

"OK. That's enough. Stop pawing my girl."

Wilson was still holding Elle and smirked at me. "You didn't say that when the other two were hugging her."

"They're gay. They don't have an ulterior motive. You, on the other hand, are the panty peeler of PPTH and I gotta watch you around my woman."

Elle laughed and proceed to give Wilson a kiss on the lips.

I protested: "HEY!"

Elle giggled and turned to me. Slipping her arms around my waist, she said: "There's more for you, SO much more."

Somewhat mollified, I said: "Well, OK, then."

Elle leaned her head against my chest and said: "Good night Jimmy. Thanks again."

He nodded, glanced at me and then back at Elle: "Call me if you need anything. Good night."

He let himself out, which was good, cuz I wasn't letting go of my girl.

She murmured into my chest: "I'm exhausted."

"Let's get you to bed. Do you need anything from your place?"

"Yeah, I need my phone and I gotta take my pill."

"OK. I'm coming with you."

I followed her into the bathroom and watched as she swallowed her birth-control pill. She paused, staring into the medicine cabinet.

"What is it?"

"This is bad. I'm trying to remember how much I had to drink tonight. I thought I should probably take an Ativan cuz I'm afraid I'll have a nightmare. But I can't remember how much I had to drink."

"Avi only gave you a small shot, and you didn't drink anything with dinner. How much did you drink while you were in the closet?"

She winced: "That's what I'm trying to remember. Maybe 3 swallows. I was taking it slow cuz I was crying so much and still feeling a little nauseated. I didn't want to puke on my shoes."

"Very sensible. So you didn't have that much and it's been a couple of hours. I think it's OK for you to take one."

Elle inhaled deeply and let in out. "OK." She opened the vial of Ativan, took out one tablet and swallowed it.

We grabbed her phone, turned out the lights and went back to my place. In the bedroom, I started stripping, tossing my dirty clothes onto the chair. I was down to my boxers when I noticed that Elle had just taken off her jeans and was standing there, holding them in her hands.

"Hey, are you OK?"

She was looking in my direction, seeing but not seeing, her lower lip trembling. I moved quickly to her side.

"Sssh, it's OK. I'm here. Don't be scared. Nothing's going to happen tonight. I promise."

I took the jeans from her hands and tossed them on top of the chair. She started fumbling at the buttons on her blouse and having difficulty unfastening them.

"Want me to help you?"

Elle nodded and, in a very tiny voice, said: "Please."

I undid the buttons and slipped the blouse off of her shoulders. I tossed it next to the jeans. I wrapped my arms around her, my hands on her bra clasp. "Shall I undo this for you?"

She nodded and I popped the bra. I slid the straps off of her arms and tossed the bra with her other clothes. Elle just stood there, arms crossed over her breasts and trembling like a leaf.

I saw her swallow hard and then she asked: "Greg, can I sleep in one of your t-shirts tonight?"

I pulled her into a tight embrace. I stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. "Of course, baby."

I moved over to the dresser and opened a drawer. Trying to inject some humor into the situation, I held up 2 shirts: "Rolling Stones or Led Zeppelin?"

I was rewarded with a small smile: "Ooooo, tough choice. Gimme Stones."

I tossed the Stones shirt to her and she pulled it on. It was huge on her, falling to the top of her thighs. I pulled back the sheet and indicated that she should climb in.

She hesitated: "Are you sure you locked the door?"

"Yes. You want me to check it?"

She nodded: "I'll come with you."

My shadow and I went back down the hall and double-checked the front door. It was indeed locked and we checked all of the windows too. As we strolled back to the bedroom, Elle paused at the bathroom, and looking apologetically at me, flipped the light on. She hadn't needed the light on for a few weeks now. I felt sad, that the need was back.

We climbed into bed and I pulled her into my arms. She burrowed her face into my chest, her arm wrapped around my waist, her hand caressing my back.

"I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, sweetheart."

"I'm being preemptive. I'm sorry that in a couple of hours I'll probably wake you up with my screaming."

I stroked her hair and planted little kisses on her face, all the while making soothing sounds. I didn't want to make promises that I couldn't keep, but she badly needed reassurance.

She fell asleep in my arms as I repeated over and over: "I got you. I won't let anything happen to you."


	38. Chapter 38

**_HOUSE_**

It wasn't even 9AM on Friday morning when I snuck into the hospital and headed right for the gym. I was exhausted, but wanted to keep up with my routine. Elle had had nightmares for the last 2 nights and we weren't getting much sleep. She was probably a walking zombie today; I hoped she would be able to get through work OK. At least it was Friday; we had the whole weekend ahead of us and maybe she would be able to relax.

I had a lengthy talk with Bill yesterday. He seemed to harbor no ill feelings about my tirade and gave me a detailed discourse about all of the possible results of the motion. I had to give it to him; he was prepared with objections and counter-motions for every possible decision that the judge could make. He promised to call me everyday and keep me updated. I wanted to know what was going on before he told Elle, so that I could be there for her.

After my swim, I headed to the coffee cart where I ran into Wilson.

"You look like crap. Why are you here so early?"

"Buy me a cup of coffee and I'll tell you."

He was so surprised that I had caved so easily that he ended up buying me not only a coffee but a doughnut too. He grabbed a low-fat bran muffin and a coffee for himself.

We went back to his office where we sipped our coffee and ate our pastries.

I didn't want to tell him why I was here so early, so I dove into the other topic. "I look like crap from lack of sleep. For the last 2 nights, since we got the bad news from Bill, Elle has been waking up screaming from nightmares. They had pretty much stopped a couple of weeks ago, but now they're back."

"Oh, that sucks."

"Yeah, that's an understatement."

"Did Bill give you any idea when he might hear a decision from the judge?"

"He said he would call me around 3. If he hasn't heard anything by then, we won't have any news until Monday. The judge won't decide anything over the weekend."

"So after 3, you'll just be in limbo until Monday. The calm before the storm."

"What a lovely way you phrased that. Thanks so much."

He grimaced and sighed. "Sorry. Look, try to relax this weekend. Do something fun. Take her mind off of it."

"Yeah, I was thinking of keeping her drunk all weekend cuz I don't know what else will do it."

Last night, Elle would only eat a few bites of dinner and even after a nice hot bubble bath, she still couldn't unwind. I convinced her to take another Ativan before going to bed and she still had a nightmare.

"Why don't you go away for the weekend? Maybe a change of scenery would help. Oh, I know this great place on the beach, but it's in Cape May and I don't know if you want to drive that far."

Elle loved the beach. Maybe Wilson was on to something; a change of scenery might do her some good.

"What's the name of this great place and what are my chances that they would still have a free room for this weekend?"

"Hang on, I'll pull up their website."

The place was called 'Rhythm of the Sea', kinda hokey if you asked me, but the rooms looked nice. Some of those B & B's were so over decorated they made me want to barf from all the cuteness. This place was decorated simply, but tastefully, with good clean lines. It wasn't too stifling and I figured that I could last a weekend there. And it did have one huge advantage in that it was right on the beach. I knew Elle would love it.

Wilson placed the call and found out that they had just had a cancellation for Room 1. We quickly glanced at Room 1 on the website. It was on the second floor and only had a queen-sized bed, but it was oceanfront and had a private balcony. My mind started ruminating on the things that we could do on that private balcony. Elle and I had not been intimate since we had heard the news. A private oceanfront balcony could be rejuvenating for both of us. After all, the first time we had knocked boots was after a trip to the beach. This little trip could be just what the doctor ordered. I handed Wilson my American Express card and told him to book the room. Elle and I would head there tonight right after work.

We didn't have a case, so to keep Cuddy off of my back; I spent the morning in the clinic. I signed out at 1:00 and had lunch with Wilson. I watched General Hospital and at 3PM, on the dot, Bill called. The judge was still considering the motion, so there would be no further news until Monday. When we hung up, I knew he was calling Elle to give her the same news. Ten minutes later, I got a text message from her.

_Bill called. No news. Monday at the earliest._

I sent her a reply.

_Try not 2 worry. It's Fri. Hurry home when U R off work._

After a few minutes, I got this reply.

_KK. C U soon._

I headed out the door at 4PM. I wanted to be packed and ready to go when she got home.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Elle stared at the bags sitting by the door: "What's all this?"

"We're going away for the weekend. I packed everything we'll need. Let's get this in the back of your car and take off."

"Where are we going?"

I cupped her face and looked into her eyes. "Do you want me to tell you or do you trust me enough to let me surprise you? I know you'll like it."

She gave me a small smile, her eyes filled with warmth. "You know I trust you. I just can't believe you're doing this. We just went to New York a couple of weeks ago."

I shrugged: "I thought we could use a little get-away. Wilson suggested this place and it looked nice. I packed a bottle of scotch, your pills, my pills and _my_ favorite lingerie. I think that's all we need. Oh, grab a pillow so you can sleep in the car. That way, you'll be nice and rested up when we get there. I have plans for tonight."

I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively at her and she grinned broadly.

"You're on."

She swore that she wasn't going to fall asleep in the car; she wanted to stay awake and keep me company. I insisted that she prop the pillow up against the window anyway. She was fast asleep within 15 minutes.

It's 132 miles to Cape May from Princeton. Normally it would be a 2 and one-half hour drive, but on an August Friday night, it took a little longer. I guess everyone wants to head to the shore for the weekend while summer is still here. It was just after 8PM when we arrived in Cape May. Rhythm of the Sea was an easy place to find; I just took the Garden State Parkway until it ran into 109, then a left on Madison Ave and another left when I saw the ocean.

Elle woke up when I slowed to get off the Parkway.

"Hmmm, oh my Gawd, it's almost 8. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to sleep so long."

I handed her the bottle of water that was sitting in the cup holder. She took a long swallow.

"That's OK. I wanted you to sleep. How do you feel?"

"Much better. I really needed the nap. Thank you."

I picked up her hand, brought it to my lips and kissed the back of it. "Don't thank me yet; there's more to come."

I let go of her hand and she immediately placed in on the back of my neck. I let out a sigh as her hand rubbed my tense muscles.

"Do you want me to drive for a while?"

"No, we're almost there."

Ten minutes later, I pulled into the B & B's parking lot. Elle wandered around, checking out the grand salon while I checked us in. I arranged to have breakfast brought to our room tomorrow morning at ten and the manager gave me some menus for restaurants that would deliver to us tonight. He carried our bags up and settled us into our room.

Elle squealed with delight when she saw the balcony. That sound alone was worth the price of the entire trip. It was starting to get dark, but the view was terrific. Nothing but beach as far as the eye could see.

She threw her arms around my neck: "This is so fabulous. I love this room. Thank you so much."

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. Nibbling on her neck, I said: "Don't thank me yet. There's more to come."

Elle squeezed me tighter: "I have you and we're at the beach. I'm happy. I don't need anything else."

I chuckled: "Gawd, you're easy. Does that mean I can get into your pants tonight?"

Her lips found mine. We kissed gently at first, then deeper as our need became more urgent. Her tongue slipped into my mouth and I welcomed it with my own. When we finally came up for air, she whispered: "Yes."

Her hand cupped my package and I grinned. I brushed her hair aside so that I could nibble on her neck, nipping a little harder than usual at her sensitive spot.

"Ummmm, got a big appetite tonight, cowboy?"

Just as she said that, my stomach growled loudly. Elle laughed at the incredible timing. In my defense, it had been a long time since lunch.

I took one more delicious nip of her neck. "I'm starving. We're getting some food delivered and then I'm having you for dessert."

We looked through the menus and decided on a place called Carney's. I got a dry Reuben with some fries and Elle ordered a fried flounder sandwich and a side of stuffed potato skins. I got us each a slice of chocolate Chambord cake for dessert.

We ate out on the balcony. Between the moon and the light from the bedroom, we had enough illumination. I wolfed my food down at my usual speed, while keeping an eye on Elle's intake. The sea air seemed to have revived her appetite; she ate most of her meal. When she finally pushed her plate away with a contented sigh, I grabbed the last potato skin and gobbled it down.

She moved her chair closer to mine and took my hand. We sat there for a while, my thumb rubbing the back of her hand, her head tilted up as she stared at the stars.

Finally she broke the silence: "This is so nice, so peaceful. It is just what I needed. I can't thank you enough for bringing me here."

I turned my head and started to make a snarky remark when I noticed one lone tear sliding down her cheek. I caught it with my thumb.

I was confused; if she liked it here, why was she crying? "Sweetheart,"

"It's alright. I'm just a little emotional. It's been a rough couple of days and I don't know what I would have done without you. You've been great, so sweet and understanding when I wake you up with my screaming in the middle of the night. You comfort me."

She squeezed her eyes shut and another tear fell. Quickly she swiped it away.

"You've been so good to me. I know it's been hard on you too and I want to make it up to you."

"Elle, you have nothing to,"

Before I could finish my thought, Elle came over and straddled my lap. Without putting any weight on my bad leg, she pressed her pelvis against mine.

She wrapped her arms around my neck. In a soft seductive voice, Elle said: "But I want to make it up to you. I've been neglecting you and I want to show you how much I,"

My lips found hers and our kiss was soft and gentle. She didn't have to say anything. I already knew.

We moved, lip-locked and not so gracefully back into the bedroom. We tumbled together on the bed, Elle giggled madly as I blew raspberries all over her belly.

In between fit of laughter, she managed to spit out: "Wait. Wait. Didn't you say that you packed my lingerie?"

My face buried in her belly, I managed to mutter "Uh, huh."

She pushed me onto my back. "I want to get dressed for you. Be a good boy and wait for me."

I grinned watching her walk over to the bag. She opened it and started rummaging through it. "Geez, Greg, Did you bring ALL of my lingerie?"

"I wanted you to have a choice of what to wear for me."

She shook her head, laughing as she continued to sort through the packed items. Finally she pulled something out and turned away so I couldn't see what it was. She stuffed it under her shirt and then started towards the bathroom. Pausing at the door, Elle looked over her shoulder at me, and said: "I'll be out in just a minute. Don't start without me."

"I won't, but you better hurry."

She smiled seductively and shut the door behind her. I got out of bed and stripped to my boxers. I had put on a new pair with a giant 'Rolling Stones' tongue imprinted across the crotch. I could not wait to see her reaction.

After a few minutes, Elle strolled out of the bathroom wearing a leopard print camisole with matching tap pants. The cami top had black spaghetti straps and there was black lace trim on both the top and the tap pants. She looked incredibly sexy. The 'tongue' started rising.

She moved slowly towards the bed. "Is that a hint?"

I just grinned and twitched the 'tongue'.

"You're such a bad boy, aren't you?"

I chuckled: "Yes."

She crawled onto the bed, hovering over me on her hands and knees. "Yes, what?"

I wasn't sure where she was going with this, so I tried: "Yes, mistress."

I was rewarded with a kiss. "Good boy."

I slid both hands under her cami top, but she pulled away sitting back on her heels.

"No, no, can't touch without permission. Put your hands behind your head."

Amused, I complied with her request. "Yes, mistress."

"Good boy, you learn quickly. Now don't move your hands until I tell you that you can."

"Yes, mistress."

I let her take control. It seemed to be what she needed tonight, and who was I to argue as her tongue and hands wandered all over my body? She kissed and licked my neck and chest as her fingers softly caressed my ribs. I moaned as she gently bit my nipples and then soothed them with her tongue. She took the top of my boxers in her mouth and it seemed liked she was going to pull them off, but it was just a tease. She mouthed my hardness through the boxers, her mouth right over the tongue design. I moaned loudly. I wanted to be inside of her so badly.

"Please,"

Elle sat back on her heels, that delightful contact broken. "Please, what? What would please you, my sweet?"

"I want to touch you. May I move my hands, mistress?"

"Not just yet."

Pushing up the hem of her cami, she said: "Shall I remove this piece of clothing for you?"

"Yes, mistress, please, I would like to see your beautiful breasts."

"Well, I suppose so, you have been a good boy."

Slowly she slid the cami up and over her head. Her nipples were already erect with excitement.

"Beautiful, so beautiful, my mistress. May I touch them, please?"

"No, not yet, but you can watch me."

She cupped her breasts and teased her nipples with her thumbs. I thought I would go out of my mind with desire; but I was trying hard to play her game. She leaned over my face, dangling her breasts just out of my reach. I stuck my tongue out and managed to just flick a nipple before she backed away. Elle giggled at my frustration.

"Didn't you say that you wanted to have me for dessert?"

"Yes, mistress, I would love to have you for dessert. May I taste you?"

"One kiss for each."

Elle leaned over just enough that I could gently tongue each nipple. Then she sat back on her heels again, reaching behind her to stroke Mt. Gregory through the thin fabric of my boxers.

"Still hungry? Want more dessert?"

I groaned at the sensations: "Yes, mistress, please."

She pushed her tap pants lower on her hips until I could just see her short curlies. Then she slipped one hand inside her pants. I could tell by her motions what she was doing and I wanted my hand or my tongue there. She shivered and then removed her hand, promptly sticking her fingers in my mouth. I sucked them clean, relishing the taste of her.

"Are you still hungry?"

"Yes, mistress. Please, may I have some more dessert?"

She gave me such a sultry smile as she slipped off her tap pants. She moved up the bed until she straddled my face. Her core was dripping wet. She slowly lowered herself until my tongue could just reach. I lapped at her wetness as best I could. It actually was a good thing that my hands were under my head, as they were useful for pushing me as close as possible to my target. As her excitement grew, her body sagged closer to my mouth until she was practically sitting on my face. I longed to put my hands on her, but she still had not given me permission to move. I was still trying to play along, but my dick was so hard that it hurt.

I suckled her clit harder and Elle moaned and writhed against me. I knew I was pushing her closer to the edge and soon it was her turn to beg.

"OH GAWD, that feels so good. Oh, Greg, I need you; I need you inside me."

I mumbled into her muff: "I'm not supposed to move, mistress. I'm trying to be good." I went back to attacking her clit again.

"AHHH, you're good. You're so good. You can move. I need you now! I need you inside me."

She was so turned on that she was riding my face. Time to torture her a little bit: "I'm allowed to move my hands, mistress?"

She screamed: "Yes! Your hands, your dick, your whole body. Fuck me, please, fuck me."

I grabbed her hips and held her in position. My tongue probed the depths of her wetness and my lips suckled her clit so hard that she was screaming incoherently. I could make out the words: 'please' and 'fuck', but the rest was a jumble of words mixed with moans. I slid one hand up her body and cupped her breast. I alternated between tweaking her nipple and squeezing her whole breast. My face was slick with her juices. She was so close, but I wanted to prolong this exquisite torture.

I grabbed her and flipped her onto her back. Our bodies were covered with a fine sheen of perspiration and we were both breathing heavily. I pushed her legs apart and knelt in between them. I tugged my boxers down until Mt. Gregory popped out in his full glory. Elle looked at him hungrily.

I took him in my hand and slowly stroked him: "Is this what you want?"

"Yes," she moaned, reaching out for me.

"No, no, no. You just lay back with YOUR hands behind your head."

Elle whimpered but complied.

I continued stroking myself. "You've been a very naughty girl, haven't you? Not allowing me to touch you and ignoring my throbbing hard-on while you rode my face for your own pleasure. Perhaps I should just take care of my own 'problem' and let you watch."

"No, no, no, pleassssse."

"Please, what?"

"Please fuck me. Please come inside me. I need you."

"You don't want me? You just need me."

"No, no, that's not what I meant. I want you. I want you so bad. Please, Greg, please."

I teased her entrance with the head of my dick. Elle's eyes closed and she had a look of pure pleasure on her face as she pushed her pelvis up against me. She wanted more penetration and I was only giving her an inch or so.

Huskily, I said: "Tell me what you want."

Elle opened her eyes and looked at me. I could see the lust, the hunger in her eyes. "I want you inside of me. I want my warm wet walls to hug your massive length and give you pleasure. I want to feel you ramming inside of me as deeply as you can go. I want you filling up that empty part of me that you fit into so perfectly."

Oh, that did it. Her words pushed me over the edge. I shoved my entire length into her warm wet pussy in one thrust. Elle cried out and pushed her pelvis up against me. I grabbed her left leg and lifted it over my shoulder so I could penetrate her even deeper. I felt her hands in my hair, and I was tempted to scold her for moving without permission, but I was too far-gone to care about the game. I wanted her, all of her, kissing, touching, and moving beneath me.

We were both so turned-on that we didn't last long. I could feel Elle's walls contract and then the flood of moisture as she cried out with her orgasm. The pressure built up, almost painfully, in my balls until I too exploded with pleasure. I continued to thrust, riding out our orgasms, until I collapsed on top of her. I lay heavily on top on her for a few minutes, and then managed to summon the strength to roll us over, my semi-erect dick still inside of her.

Elle was breathing heavily, yet still managing to plant little kisses on my face. "Oh, my Gawd, Greg, that was so good. That was fantastic."

I nibbled on her neck: "You're delicious, absolutely delicious. Best dessert I ever had."

Elle let out what sounded like a very contented sigh and snuggled into my chest. My chin rested on top of her head and I held her close to me. It felt like all was right with the world, at least for that moment.

I was starting to doze off when I heard Elle murmur. "Thank you."

"Hmmm? For what?"

"You knew just what I needed. Thank you for bringing me here, for taking care of me."

I chuckled and repeated a line that I had said earlier: "Don't thank me yet, there's more to come."

Elle giggled: "I'm not sure that I could come again tonight, but I'm game to try if you are."

I was way too exhausted after work, the long drive and the sex to even think about round two. I kissed her forehead and said: "More to come, but tomorrow. Go to sleep now, my little sex kitten."

Elle meowed at me, snuggled her face into my chest and planted a kiss over my heart. I smiled, kissed her forehead one more time and held her close as we drifted off to sleep.

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I woke up just before 10 and eased out of bed. My leg felt quite stiff as I limped into the bathroom. Long car drives tend to do that to me. I had just finished washing my hands when there was a knock at the door. I slipped on a robe and answered it. It was our breakfast and I directed the woman to set it on the balcony for us. After she left, I grabbed the other robe and sat down on the bed to gently wake Elle up. She seemed to have slept well, as least there had been no nightmares. When I woke her, she smiled sleepily and sat up to embrace me.

"Hey, cowboy."

"Good morning, sweetheart. Sleep OK?"

"Ummm, like a log. The sex and the sea air must have just knocked me out, unless you slipped me some drugs."

"Nope, I only slipped you my dick. You didn't even take an Ativan last night."

"Apparently your dick is much better than Ativan or any other drug. I'll just have that every night before going to sleep."

"We might be able to arrange that."

I nibbled on her neck and she giggled.

"Breakfast is on the balcony. I found a robe for you in the bathroom."

She kissed my lips. "Thank you. Will you pour me some coffee and I'll join you in just a moment?"

Elle grabbed the robe and headed into the bathroom. I wandered out to the balcony, sat and poured the coffee. She joined me after a moment, wrapped up in her own robe.

I lifted the lid off of the dishes. One plate contained some nice looking French toast covered with fruit and the other contained a rather fancy-looking Eggs Benedict-type concoction. When I bit into it, I discovered crabmeat and asparagus under the sauce. It was delicious and I convinced Elle to try it despite her protests of not liking runny eggs. She discovered that she liked it and we shared our plates with each other. The French toast with the berries was excellent and the bacon was top quality. There was also a little basket of muffins and other pastries, orange juice and the coffee. We ate until we were stuffed and then leaned back in our chairs, feet up on the balcony wall, to bask in the sunshine.

There is something so invigorating about being near the ocean; the smells, the sounds, the sun all combine to rejuvenate a person. It was definitely working its magic on Elle; she hadn't seemed this relaxed since Bill gave her the bad news.

Feet propped up on the balcony wall, she shifted slightly and her robe fell open, revealing all of her luscious legs. I leaned over and placed my hand on her thigh. Her skin was so warm from the sun. She smiled and shifted again, the silky robe falling off of her, revealing more of her body. She was slouched in the chair and the wall was high enough that no one from the beach could see us. I reached over and untied the sash, pushing the robe open to reveal all of her assets. I caressed her as she lay back in the chair, eyes closed, purring with delight as she enjoyed the warmth of the sun and my touch.

Elle reached for me and started to untie my robe, but I stopped her. "No sunburn on the package, sweetheart. That would put a damper on our fun."

Her hand moved up my inner thigh. "Let's go back to bed."

I stood up and took her hand in mine. "Good idea. That big breakfast made me sleepy."

"I hope, not too sleepy."

We made love, slowly and sweetly, and after our mutual climax, fell asleep again. We woke around 3PM and decided to head out to the beach. The inn provided chairs with umbrellas and we headed out to find a spot. We lounged around until we were quite warm, and then we walked to the water. I had neglected to pack Elle's boogie board, but I leaned on her and managed the walk across the sand just fine. We swam, floated and just generally played around in the water. I thought my leg felt a bit stronger even from just the few swimming sessions that I'd had. We stayed in the water until our fingers were wrinkly and then walked back to our lounge chairs. We baked in the sun for another hour or so and then headed back in to shower and change. I had asked Wolfgang, one of the owners, for a dinner recommendation and he suggested the Island Grill, reserving us a table for 7:30.

It was really great to see Elle with her appetite back. She was thrilled with some of the menu choices, items you rarely see in New Jersey.

"Couch fritters? Couch chowder in New Jersey? I have never seen that offered on a menu up here. The last time I had any couch was down in the Keys."

So of course, we had couch fritters for an appetizer and Elle ordered a cup of the couch chowder too. She pronounced them delicious and quite authentic.

As we waited for our entrees, Elle said: "You know, when we can take a week off, I'd like to take you to the Keys. Have you ever been?"

I shook my head.

She closed her eyes and sighed: "Oh, I love it down there. It's so relaxing. I have this funky little place where I like to stay. I usually go down every year in May when the tourist season is over and before hurricane season starts. But, obviously, I didn't make it this year."

I touched her face and drew her attention back to the present before the past overtook her. "What do you like to do down there?"

She smiled: "Go swimming and hang out on the beach. There are canoe trails in the state park. Go snorkeling. Eat lots of seafood and key lime pie. Go to the bars and drink all night."

I wiggled my eyebrows at her: "Sounds like a good vacation to me."

Our dinners arrived and we tucked in. I had a medium-rare strip steak with shrimp scampi on top, garlic-mashed potatoes and veggies on the side. Elle ordered shrimp sautéed with spinach, artichokes, roasted red peppers in a lemon butter sauce with garlic-mashed potatoes on the side. The food was excellent and we shared our meals. In fact, Elle ate most of my veggies.

It was great to see her so relaxed and eating well again. We debated on dessert; Elle wanted to try their key lime pie and I had a hankering for Crème Brulee. Naturally we ordered both and shared them. We were so stuffed after eating all of that, I believe we rolled out the door.

We took a little stroll on the boardwalk to digest dinner and then we headed back. The inn had a gorgeous old oak pool table in the salon and I wanted to try it out. Elle and I played two games before some other guests showed up and we relinquished the table to them.

Back in our room, Elle kicked off her shoes and started rummaging through her bag.

"Didn't you say you brought a bottle of scotch?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Great. Wanna pour us a shot and I'll meet you on the balcony in a minute?"

She pulled something out of her bag and quickly headed into the bathroom with it. I grinned in anticipation, hoping it was some sexy lingerie that she was slipping on for me.

I quickly toed off my sneakers and socks and removed my long-sleeved shirt. I poured us each a double shot of Laphroaig, took the glasses out on the balcony and sat down in one of the chairs, awaiting her arrival. She didn't keep me waiting long. It was a little dark on the balcony, but I could see her well enough. Elle had changed into a red satin slip nightie with black lace trim and spaghetti straps. The hem only fell to her upper thigh and yet there was an enticing side slit. She stood next to me, her hand on my shoulder and I ran my hand up her leg. Mt. Gregory came to attention when I realized that she was wearing absolutely nothing under that little nightie.

"It's a warm night."

"Yes, it is. I've got a scotch on the rocks for you if you're thirsty."

"Thank you."

Elle leaned over to pick up her glass and I got a brief view of her lovely ass. I pulled her chair right next to mine and she sat down. I put one arm around her and picked up my glass with the other hand. We clinked glasses and then we both took a sip.

It was a beautiful night; a little warm but there was a slight breeze that took the edge off. It was quiet on this stretch of beach. The stars were out. I had a glass of expensive scotch in one hand and my other arm was around a gorgeous, scantily clad woman. I found myself smiling; despite the unresolved issues waiting for us back in Princeton, I felt happy. It wasn't an emotion that I was well acquainted with, but I thought I could get used to it.

I finished my scotch and set the glass down on the table. My hand landed on Elle's knee and I slowly caressed my way up her leg. When I reached mid-thigh, I hear a small sigh and she spread her legs wider. I continued my slow journey upwards. By the time I reached her core, her head had lolled back and her eyes had closed. I gently flicked her clit and she gasped, her eyes flying open.

I parted her folds and felt her arousal.

"My, my, Ms Kaplan, you're quite wet down here. Good thing you're not wearing panties. They would be completely soaked by now."

Elle giggled and then knocked back the rest of her scotch. She set the glass down on the table and then grabbed my face with both hands. Her lips brushed against mine, softly at first and then more urgently. Her tongue pressed against my lips and I parted them, allowing her entrance. We kissed deeply for several minutes. Still lip-locked, Elle eased off of her chair and carefully straddled my lap. Her hands found the bottom of my t-shirt and tugged upwards. We broke apart long enough for Elle to pull my shirt over my head. Even in the dim light, I could see the desire in her eyes. Her fingers played with my chest hair as she leaned in to kiss me again. My hands slid up her thighs and under her nightie. I cupped her ass with both hands and pressed her closer to me. She smiled against my mouth and then giggled as my hands caressed her sensitive ribs. I ran my thumbs along the underside of her breasts. I nuzzled my face into the valley of her breasts and Elle pressed me closer still. Her fingers were playing with my hair and stroking the back of my neck.

I leaned my head back and Elle pressed her lips to mine. As we kissed, I slowly slid the straps of her nightie down her shoulders. A few little tugs on the fabric and her breasts popped out into the night air.

"Hello, girls! Come to poppa."

I properly greeted each one with a thorough tongue-bath. Elle mewed with pleasure. When I started nibbling on her neck, she reached between our bodies and started unbuckling my belt. She kissed me passionately again as she worked on the zipper next. Her nipples were erect with excitement and I suppose the cool night's breeze didn't hurt either.

She unzipped as far as she could while still straddling my lap, then she stood up, finished the job and started tugging on my jeans.

In an urgent tone, she said: "Lift up."

Damn, she was going to screw me right here out on the balcony. I lifted my ass and let her tug off my jeans and boxers. She straddled me again, this time rubbing her wet core up and down against my shaft. I grinned at the sight of her; she looked so happy and sexy, her nightie falling off of her as she rubbed against me. As good as that felt, when she finally slid Mt. Gregory inside of her, it was a million times better. She was so tight and hot and wet that I could have blown my wad within a couple of strokes.

I think she knew how close I was as she slowed down her movements so as to prolong the fun. My hands and my lips roamed her body, hitting all her favorite spots and increasing her passion.

"You like doing it outside like this?"

"Yes," she moaned, as she continued to ride me.

"What if someone saw us?"

"Mmm, it's dark, they can't see us."

I chuckled: "But what if someone could? They would think, wow, that dude's lucky that he has such a hot chick."

Elle's passion was rising and it was getting harder for her to talk. The words came out as gasps: "Oh, Greg, you, think, I'm, a hot, chick?"

My hands held her hips steady as I thrust up into her: "Oh, yeah, baby. You're my hot chick. Mine, all mine."

I slipped my hand between our bodies and as soon as my thumb touched he clit, she exploded. She screamed loudly as I continued to rub and thrust up into her. I briefly wondered if anyone could hear her cries, but the pressure was building in my balls and I didn't really care. A few more hard thrusts and I came deeply inside of her. Elle collapsed against me, her head resting on my shoulder.

After a few minutes, we managed to drag ourselves to bed, collapsing in each other's arms. After a few more kisses, we drifted off to sleep.

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After another delicious breakfast on the balcony, we headed down to the beach for a swim. I had arranged for a late checkout, so the room was ours until 5PM.

We swam and sunned for a while, and then headed back to the room for another nap. We woke at 4PM, had a shower and packed up to leave.

The closer we got to Princeton, the quieter Elle got. At least we had a brief respite before dealing with this again. I wondered if she would be able to sleep tonight. We had slept a lot this weekend and she was looking quite refreshed now, but I wondered how long it would last.

When we crossed the Mercer County line, she said in a quiet voice: "It was so nice at the beach. We had so much fun. I could forget about everything else. I don't want to go back and be worrying about when the judge is going to decide and what that decision will be."

I reached over and took her hand. I tried to smile reassuringly: "We'll deal with it, sweetheart. Just remember, I have a big cane and I know how to use it."

She squeezed my hand. "I'm so afraid he'll get out and come after me again. I don't want you to get caught in the crossfire."

"I won't. Try not to worry so much. Bill has a lot of counter-arguments cooked up for whatever the judge decides. It will all work out."

I wished I felt as confident as I sounded. I didn't have a lot of faith in the legal system, but that's all we had right now, unless I wanted to resort to Tony's brand of justice. Hopefully it would not have to come to that.

Elle wasn't too nervous when we got back on Sunday night; she took an Ativan, we had sex and she went right to sleep afterwards. I think she believed that we would hear the decision on Monday and when Bill called with no news, her anxiety started to mount.

The judge was taking his sweet time deciding on the motion. Bill called us every day and the longer it stretched out, the more nervous Elle became. She was sure that the judge was taking so long to decide because he would rule in the assailant's favor.

By Wednesday, she was breaking the Ativan in half and popping it twice during the day and taking a whole one at night.

Wednesday night was my usual poker game and she insisted that she would be OK alone in he apartment. She didn't want to disturb my game. I tried to talk her into hanging out with us, or I said I'd cancel the game, but she wouldn't hear of it. The guys came over and we started playing as usual, but my heart wasn't in it. After an hour, I told them to deal me out and I went over to check on her. As soon as I walked into her apartment, I could hear her sobbing. I hurried into the bedroom and found her on the bed, arms wrapped around her stuffed dog and crying her heart out. I held her until her tears subsided.

"Why didn't you come over if you were scared?"

"I didn't want to bother you. I wanted you to enjoy your game. You must be sick of me crying on you all the time."

"You'll stop crying when the source of the problem is gone. If that judge doesn't hurry up and decide, I just may have to use my cane to give him a rectal exam."

"I don't think that would help decide things in my favor, do you?"

"Probably not."

I held her close and kissed her. "Go wash your face and get ready for bed. Then come over, say hi to the guys and go lay down in my bed. I'll be in as soon as we wrap up the game."

"I don't want to disturb you. What if I have a nightmare?"

Firmly I said: "You won't. There are 5 guys in the living room to protect you. You'll feel safe enough that you won't have one."

She nodded. "OK. I'll be over in a few minutes."

I kissed her one more time. "Good. Don't make me come back over here for you. I'll tickle you unmercifully if I have to limp all the way over here again."

I sat back down with the guys and got dealt in on the next hand. Elle walked in 5 minutes later, wearing a black tank top and black stretch yoga pants. She had washed her face, but her eyes were still red. The guys called out enthusiastic greetings and, for once, I didn't shut them up. She smiled and said hello to all of them.

Wilson chimed in: "Hey, Elle, there's some pizza left if you want some. I think there is some of the pepperoni/mushroom in the box on the left."

"Oh, yeah?" Elle wandered over to the stack of pizza boxes on the coffee table, located the appropriate box and snagged a slice. I glanced at Wilson and gave him a nod; he knew that she hadn't been eating.

She wandered back to the table, with her slice and asked: "Can I watch you guys for a little while?"

There was a chorus of affirmative answers. Bus Stop Guy jumped up, grabbed the desk chair and placed it between him and Wilson. I smirked inwardly; he really did have a crush on Elle.

Elle thanked him and sat down. She silently watched us play as she munched on the pizza. She was eating really slowly; it must have taken her 15 minutes to finish that one slice, but at least she managed to eat it all. She watched us play for another half hour and then excused herself to go to bed. I had them deal me out so I could tuck her in. I got her settled in bed and then went back to the game.

We ended the night at 11:30; I was up by 200 bucks, which was decent. After Wilson and I cleaned everything up, he went home and I headed to bed. Elle had left the light on in the bathroom and I went in there to brush my teeth. I noticed her bottle of Ativan sitting on the counter and I opened it. Her supply had drastically diminished in the last week. I'd probably need to order her a refill soon if this crap kept up much longer.

She was sleeping peacefully and I stripped off as quietly as I could and climbed into bed next to her. She stirred and started mumbling, but I pulled her into my arms and placed her hand on my cheek.

"Sssh, it's me, baby."

"Cowboy,"

"That's right. Go back to sleep."

She hummed and burrowed her face into my chest. I listened for her breathing to even out again, and then I closed my eyes.

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It was Friday. I was anxiously awaiting news from Bill, hoping we wouldn't have to get through another weekend with the decision still up in the air. Elle was supposed to play this weekend, so I didn't think I would be able to talk her into going away again.

I was attempting to watch General Hospital when Bill Arnello walked through my office door. I grunted a greeting and turned off the TV; this didn't bode well.

"Somehow, I don't think that a personal visit from you denotes that you are delivering good news."

"Actually I don't have any real news yet; I just know when we will have an answer. The judge will render his decision on Monday in open court. Elle needs to be there."

"Why does Elle have to be there?"

"Judge's prerogative. He can require the both parties to be there. If she doesn't show, he could throw the whole case out."

"Shit. She has to face her rapist again?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Elle needs to know, and I thought I should tell her, in person, with you present. Court's at 10AM; you both will need to take the day off of work."

That was no problem for me; I had a million vacation days saved up. Elle, of course, hadn't been here long enough yet to accrue any. I wondered how her boss would react to Elle's sudden need to take the day off. He didn't seem like the most sympathetic guy in the world. I picked up the phone and called Cuddy.

"Need to see you, now. It's really important."

"It's always important with you, House. And I don't have time for your little problems right now. Wilson and I are going over some budget issues that must be done by 5:00 today."

"Wilson's there with you now?"

"Yes, we're going over the new fiscal budget."

I slammed the phone down before she could continue. I motioned to Bill to follow me and we headed down to Cuddy's office.

I barged in without knocking as usual, Cuddy's secretary flapping in behind me. Bill trailed in behind us.

"I tried to stop him, Dr. Cuddy, but he never listens to me."

Cuddy looked up from all the papers on her desk. "Don't worry, Grace. He never listens to me either. Please hold my calls for now while I deal with this."

I saw Wilson glance at Bill and then back at me: "It's not good news, is it?"

"It never is when a lawyer makes a house call. Cuddy, you remember Bill Arnello, Joey's little brother?"

Recognition flashed across Cuddy's face and she rose, extending her hand. "Yes, I do. Nice to see you again. What has House done this time?"

"Why do you always think it's me? He's _ELLE'S_ lawyer."

She frowned: "I don't understand."

Bill said smoothly: "I'm representing Elle in her civil case against PMMC. I'm also helping her out with the criminal cases. The state prosecuted, of course, but I'm along to give her legal advice."

I blurted out: "The bastard filed a motion to have some of the evidence thrown out. The judge is going to decide on Monday and Elle needs to be in court."

"Oh. Kay. So Elle needs to take the day off and I presume you want to also. That's fine. You have tons of vacation time, what's the big deal?"

"Elle doesn't have any vacation time. I want you to clear it with her boss before we tell her. I don't want her to have to deal with asking him for permission after Bill tells her this news."

She looked at me with a surprised expression on her face: "Wow, you _have _changed. I can't believe how concerned you are for another human being, even if it is someone that you are shagging."

Wilson snorted, trying but failing to contain his amusement at her comment. Even Bill had a small grin on his face.

Through clenched teeth, I hissed: "Will you just make the phone call?"

She smiled, but picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Tom? Lisa Cuddy. I need to speak to you for a moment. Can you meet me in my office? Great. See you in a few minutes."

Then Cuddy beeped Grace on the intercom and told her to expect Tom Kirby and to let him right in.

"Bill, please have a seat."

I whined: "Hey, what about me? Cripple here, and you didn't offer me a seat."

"Like I need to. You'll just take one when you want to, anyway. But where are my manners? House, please take a seat, preferably on a trans-Atlantic flight."

Laughter escaped from both of the men.

"You'd miss me if I left here. Who would ogle the twins and remind you that you dress like a slut instead of a hospital administrator?"

"Ha, you're crazy if you think I would miss that. It would be nice to not have popcorn tossed down my blouse when I'm showing potential new donors around the hospital."

"I can't help it if your cleavage is the perfect target for popcorn basketball. Practicing on you is how I became the league champion."

Before Cuddy could respond to that remark, the door opened and Elle's boss walked in. He glanced around and then focused on Cuddy.

"You wanted to see me, Dr Cuddy?"

"Yes, Tom. This is Bill Arnello; he is Elle Kaplan's attorney. You know everyone else, of course. Bill, this is Tom Kirby; he is Elle's supervisor."

The 2 men shook hands. Kirby looked a bit wary and I wondered if he knew just who Bill was.

Cuddy went on: "Tom, Elle has to be in court on Monday. Despite the fact that she has no vacation time, she needs to take the day off."

Hesitantly he said: "Well, sure, of course. I can find coverage for her morning shift, but what about her pain patients in the afternoon? They will need their appointments rescheduled."

Wilson piped up: "I'll help with that."

"That's very nice of you, Dr. Wilson. Is this going to be a one-time thing or will this be a frequent issue?"

I snarked: "Too much work for you to find coverage for her shift?"

In a warning tone, Cuddy hissed: "House,"

Kirby responded: "Well, it is a bit short notice, but it can be arranged. I just wanted to know for future reference if her personal life was going to continue to interfere with her work."

Cuddy answered quickly before I could open my mouth: "It will interfere as little as possible, Tom, but sometimes it will happen. We appreciate you being able to cover for her on such short notice, don't we, House?"

I waved my hand dismissively: "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

My concern lay elsewhere. How was Elle going to take this bombshell?

**_ELLE_**

It had been a rough week. My fear grew as each day passed with no news. Last weekend had been really nice, but now it seemed so long ago.

We were cleaning up our paperwork in the satellite when the phone rang; Miriam answered it. We all heard her side of the conversation: "Yes, she's here. OK. OK. Sure, I'll tell her right now."

She hung up and said: "Elle, Kirby wants to see you down in Dr Cuddy's office right now."

"Did he say why?"

She shook her head. "He just asked if you were here and when I said yes, he said to send you down there."

_Oh, my Gawd, what could this be?_ I didn't need this on top of my worries about the case. After what happened to me at PMMC and what happened here with Dr Rivera, I was nervous about any interaction with my director. I grabbed my purse, said my good-byes to the girls and headed down to Cuddy's office. I was lucky that I got into an elevator that was unoccupied so I quickly popped an Ativan to help calm my nerves.

When I walked into Cuddy's office, I was taken aback by the number of people in there. Bill was there; that meant it wasn't work related. It had to do with the case and it must not be good news if he was there with Greg, Wilson and my bosses.

I stiffened my spine and prepared myself for bad news. Kirby was the one who summoned me so I addressed him first: "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, apparently you need Monday off to go to court, so I'm just letting you know that you can have the day off but you have to call and reschedule all of your afternoon appointments."

My voice faltered: "I have to go to court?"

I felt my knees start to tremble and I locked them to keep them from shaking.

Greg hissed: "You idiot. What a way to tell her."

Kirby turned on him: "I thought she knew. I thought I was just here to let her know she has the day off."

Greg raised his voice: "Well, your job is done. You can leave now."

Kirby snarled at me as he walked towards the door: "Don't let this be a common occurrence. It will affect your performance review."

I froze. Having to go to court was bad enough; now Kirby was threatening me with a bad review because of it. Was this PMMC all over again?

I looked at Bill and said: "Can you take it from the top and tell me what's going on?"

He glanced at the closed office door and said: "Gee, your new boss seems like a really nice guy."

I didn't say anything; after all, Cuddy was in the room. My eyes begged him to tell me what was going on.

"The judge will announce his decision in open court on Monday. He is requiring both parties to be there."

Both parties? I was going to have to be in the same room with _HIM_ again? My knees did buckle this time, and I hit the floor before anyone could catch me.

I woke up on my back with 4 faces hovering above me. _Great, I fainted._ This was really embarrassing.

Greg had his fingers on my pulse but he didn't look worried. "Decided to take a nap on Cuddy's floor? The couch is much more comfortable."

"Thanks for telling me. I'll keep that in mind for next time."

"Think you can sit up?"

I nodded and slowly moved to a sitting position. The room didn't spin, so I took that to be a good sign, but I wasn't in any hurry to stand up. Cuddy's secretary brought me a glass of water, and I sipped it slowly. I saw Greg wince ever so slightly as he got up off his knee; it must have hurt for him to get down on the floor with me.

He towered over me, watching me drink while tapping his cane on the floor.

"Feel like moving to the couch now?"

"I think so."

He took the glass from me. I tried to get up, but the room started to spin so I plopped back down on my butt.

"You know, the floor's not so bad."

He shook his head, chuckled and said: "Wilson." He motioned with his hand towards the couch.

Next thing I knew, Wilson had scooped me up off the floor and was gently depositing me on the couch.

Jimmy said softly: "OK?"

I nodded: "Thanks, Jimmy."

Greg limped over, handed me the glass of water and sat down on my right side. He put his arm around my shoulders and I nestled into him.

Bill sat down on my left. "Geez, Elle, I was hoping to break this to you a bit more gently than that asshole did."

Cuddy piped in: "Kirby's not known for his finesse. And don't worry about your performance review; I'll make sure that something like this will not have any bearing on it."

She was totally sticking up for me. I was really touched. "Thank you Dr Cuddy. I really appreciate that."

I turned to Bill: "What does this mean? Why does the judge want all of us in court again?"

Bill shrugged: "It's one of those things that I don't have an answer to give you. It's the judge's prerogative. He may want to ask you or him some questions, or maybe he just wants to grandstand. It was one of his bigger, well-publicized cases and he _is_ running for re-election. Maybe he just wants to show that he is really tough on crime or something. Just be aware that the press will undoubtedly be there."

I groaned and buried my face in my hands. This was going to be rough.

I felt Greg squeeze my shoulder. Softly, he said: "I'll be there with you. Maybe Avi can get off work and come too."

I squeezed his hand and nodded. I was too close to tears to want anyone to see my face.

I flinched when I felt a hand on my knee. I looked up to see that Jimmy had knelt in front of me. "Didn't mean to startle you. Let's get your appointment list for Monday and start calling the patients. Then House can take you home. Would you like me to come on Monday too? I'm sure I can free up my morning."

I nodded. I did want him to come along. The bigger team in my court, the better I would feel.

He glanced over his shoulder at Cuddy.

She shrugged: "Sure, why not? Just rearrange your appointments."

Jimmy nodded his thanks.

Bill said: "Elle, try not to worry too much over the weekend. Nothing's going to happen until Monday. And the D.A. and I are prepared for whatever the judge throws our way. We're not going to let the bastard get out."

"Thanks, Bill. I know you'll do everything you can, but ultimately it is up to the judge, isn't it?"

He couldn't sugarcoat the truth. "Yeah, it is, but we are prepared to fight if we have to."

He stood up: "I'll meet you at 9:30 in front of the courthouse and we'll all go up together. Call me if you need anything over the weekend."

He turned to go and then stopped. "Elle, is it OK if I give Tony an update? He's going to want to know what's going on."

I nodded: "Yeah, you can tell him." Actually I was surprised that Bill asked; I just assumed that he would tell Tony as a matter of course.

I leaned back onto Greg's shoulder; this was going to be a long weekend. I considered how much Jack I had left and figured I had better make a stop by the liquor store on the way home tonight.


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

**_House_**

I arrived home before Elle did which wasn't completely surprising. I could usually move faster through traffic on my bike than she could in the car, but she was usually only 5 minutes behind me. It was another 15 minutes before she arrived and I could see the evidence that caused her delay. She was carrying a paper bag from the liquor store.

I blocked her apartment doorway with my cane: "What's in the bag?"

She shrugged: "Just some refreshments for later."

She unlocked her door and ducked under my cane. I followed her into the apartment.

"We have plenty of scotch and beer. You didn't need to stop."

"Yeah, well, that's not what I wanted tonight."

I grabbed the bag from her. Sure enough, it contained a 750 ml bottle of Jack Daniels. I guess she was planning on getting plastered tonight.

I snarled: "Did you get enough? Perhaps you should have gotten 2 bottles."

"Oh, shut up. It's Friday night, if I feel like having a couple of drinks tonight, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal is that you don't have just a _couple_ of drinks with Jack. You get hammered with him."

"And again, it's Friday night! What's the big deal if I get hammered?"

I yelled at her: "Because I don't want to watch you drink your dinner! You're not eating and you're not sleeping. You cry, drink and pop Ativan. Speaking of which, how much Ativan have you had today?"

She snarled: "None of your business."

"You're sleeping in my bed, that makes it my business."

"Well, I could sleep in my own bed if that would make it easier on you. And I don't keep tabs on _your _oxycodone use."

I gritted my teeth: "I use that for my leg pain, remember? YOU suggested it. I'm on a program with your buddy, Gus. I'm not using it to escape reality."

"Yeah, well I use the Ativan for my anxiety. It _is_ a legitimate use, you know. You might have learned about it in med school."

"Funny, aren't you? Perhaps you learned in pharmacy school that mixing alcohol and benzodiazepines is a very bad idea. It's hard to OD on benzo's but when you combine them with alcohol, it can be lethal."

She screamed: "I am careful! You know that! Just leave me alone! I don't want to think about what's going to happen on Monday. I just want to block it out for tonight and I need some Jack for that."

I grabbed the bottle from her and set it on top of the refrigerator. She lunged for it and I grabbed her in a bear hug. She struggled to get away, and I held on tighter. She slugged me in the arm, and for a little woman, she packs a mean punch. I grabbed her wrists and held them together in one hand while I kept my other arm securely wrapped around her, holding her close to me.

She struggled a little bit more, but I could tell the fight in her was starting to wane. Her face contorted; I knew she was struggling not to cry. I kissed the top of her head and said: "I just don't want you drinking too much on top of whatever Ativan you have already taken today. I don't want to have to rush you to the ER to pump your stomach."

She cracked. The tears took over and she sobbed into my chest. I let her cry, holding her and rubbing her back until she was all cried out.

I guided her over to the futon and we sat down. Elle flung her arms around my neck and kissed my cheek several times. "I'm sorry, Greg. I'm sorry I hit you. I'm sorry that I was acting like an ass. I'm just so scared. It's only been a few months since it happened. I thought it was all over; I thought the bad guys were safely behind bars. And now he might get out. I have to be in the same room with him again. I have to see him. If he has to testify, I have to listen to him lie again. What if the judge makes me tell my story again? Do you know how hard it is for me to say what happened? And have to do it in front of a whole courtroom full of people?"

She pulled away from me and buried her face in her hands. "I'm trying so hard to put it behind me and now it's like I have to live through it all over again. I don't think I can do it again."

I pulled her into my lap and tilted her face up so she had to look me in the eyes. "Yes, you can. You were brave enough to blow the whistle in the first place. You were strong enough to survive the attack and get through two trials. You can do this. I know you can. And I'll be right there with you. Wilson will be there. Did you call Avi and tell him yet? I'm sure he'll be there."

She shook her head: "I didn't call him. I figured I would just tell all of them tomorrow night and get it over with in one shot."

"How about I call Avi and tell him? Then he can tell the others. That way, you won't have to. Would you like that?"

"Yes, actually I would."

I kissed her gently. "OK. Here's the plan for tonight. While I call Avi, you pick out a movie for us to watch. Then we're going to order Chinese food and you're going to _eat_ some dinner. Then we're going to take a nice hot bath together. You can have a couple of drinks, but you're not getting plastered. The bath will relax you and then I'm taking you to bed and I'm gonna fuck you into such a coma that you'll sleep like a baby."

She cracked a smile as I said that last line. "Can we watch _Four Weddings_ _and a Funeral_?"

I cringed, but said: "Any movie you want."

"Can I get sesame noodles?"

"Of course."

She nodded: "OK. You're on. I'm going to get out of my work clothes while you call Avi and then we'll go back to your place."

I nodded. Elle walked into her bedroom and shut the door. I quickly called Avi and gave him the news. He promised to tell the others and said he would definitely be with us on Monday. I flipped the phone closed just as Elle walked out of the bedroom wearing some black stretchy yoga pants and her favorite Tweety Bird tank top. We grabbed the movie and the bottle of Jack and then headed over to my place.

We ordered Hunan Beef, Spicy Sizzling Shrimp and Sesame noodles. The food arrived 30 minutes into the movie and we paused it long enough to set out our banquet. Again Elle ate the sesame noodles right out of the container and I spoon-fed her protein in the form of beef and shrimp. I'd concluded that sesame noodles were a comfort food for her when she was really stressed out and I made a mental note of that. She ate enough to satisfy me and then we snuggled together on the couch until the movie was over.

I let her pour a double shot of Jack for each of us while the tub was filling up. I added her favorite vanilla scented bubble bath while she pinned her hair up into a bun. I eased myself into the tub and when I was settled, I guided her so she could sit in between my legs. Her back resting against my chest, I played with the bubbles, covering and uncovering her breasts with them. We kissed and caressed, sipped on the whiskey and just enjoyed each other's company. When the water started cooling off, we let some out and added some more hot to the tub.

Elle snuggled up against me, her head on my shoulder. I rested my cheek against the top of her head and gently stroked her back. After a short while, I noticed that her breathing had gotten slow and even. She had dozed off. I held her in my arms until the water started to cool off again. I abhor cold baths for several reasons, not the least being that cold water would make my thigh cramp up. I wish that I were able to just scoop her up and carry her to bed without waking her. I cursed the thigh that made me unable to do that.

I kissed her forehead and murmured: "Wake up sweetheart. The water's getting cold. We need to get out of the tub and this old gimp can't pick you up."

She frowned: "Stop that. Don't call yourself ugly names."

"Well, I am an old gimp. If I wasn't, I'd be able to pick you up and put you to bed without having to wake you."

"Oh, like that's the most important thing in the world. I don't care if you can't pick me up. You're a sweet, wonderful man."

Sweet is not a word that most people associate with me. "Yeah, yeah, you just like the multiple orgasms that I give you."

She cupped my face with both hands. "And those are superb, the best I've ever had. But there is more to you than just your dick and your tongue."

I waved my pruney fingers at her: "Don't forget these guys. They help out."

She smiled sweetly: "Yes, they do. But there is more, a lot more. You're a wonderful man. You're brilliant and funny and sexy. You take such good care of me. I don't want to hear you say such derogatory things about yourself. It's hurtful."

I didn't know how to handle her loving words. I needed to deflect: "If you think 'old gimp' is bad, you should hear some of the other things people call me."

Elle sat straight up: "They better not say those things in front of me. Anyone who dares to knock you will have to deal with me."

I bit my lip so I wouldn't bust out laughing. The thought of little Elle defending me against my detractors was really rather cute. And she was so resolute about it.

Teasingly I said: "You going to take on the world and defend my honor?"

"Yes I will. I may be little, but I can kick really hard."

"Hey, your punches aren't wimpy either." I rubbed my arm where she had slugged me earlier.

Her expression saddened. "I'm really sorry about that. I feel terrible that I hit you. Does it really hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt now, but it did when you hit me. It's nice to know that you can beat up the bullies for me."

She hugged my neck: "You don't need me. You have a big cane and you know how to use it."

I hugged her back. I struggled with the emotions that I felt towards Elle that I could not verbally express. _Oh yes, I need you. Not to beat up the bullies, but I do need you._

I kissed her lips and said: "C'mon, unplug the tub and we'll shower off the soap. I have some plans for your lovely squeaky clean body in the next room."

We rinsed off the soap and I let her help me climb out of the tub. We dried each other off, tickling and kissing as we worked.

When we were dry, I grabbed the towel from her and tossed it on the floor. I took her in my arms and pressed my rising desire against her.

Quietly I said: "The best you've ever had, huh?"

She gave me an extremely sultry look: "Come on stud muffin. Take me to bed and show me your stuff."

We managed to make it through the weekend, mostly unscathed. We spent Saturday in our usual fashion, sleeping, goofing off and then a nap before the show. When we got to Satchel's, everyone crowded around and offered their support. Elle managed to maintain her composure but just barely. Avi, Ricky, Gen and Theresa said they would show up on Monday and we both expressed our gratitude for that. The show went well, but I noticed that Elle was drinking more than usual during their breaks. We hung around afterwards for a short while, but Elle didn't even ask Theresa to make potato skins; she just kept drinking Heinekens. When she asked Billy for a shot of Jack, I decided it was time to take her home.

I got her in the shower and then into bed. She wanted more to drink, but I managed to distract her with kisses and caresses until she was thrusting her pelvis at me and begging to be fucked. I teased her and brought her right up to the edge over and over again, until she finally screamed with frustration. I entered her in one long quick thrust and she moaned with pleasure. I pumped her hard and it didn't take long for both of us to explode with pleasure. Afterwards, we kissed softly and tenderly, until sleep overtook us.

Wilson provided us with a distraction on Sunday. He showed up around 11 with bagels and coffee. Elle was a little hung-over, but she dove into an onion bagel with cream cheese and lox on it. After we ate, he drove us over to Monmouth Junction, home of the South Brunswick Grand Slam Sports and Entertainment Center. First we had a round of miniature golf. My putting practice at the office came in handy as I easily beat the two of them. Then Wilson dragged us over to the batting cages. I wasn't so sure about this activity. Elle had never batted before and I wasn't sure my leg was up for this. But Wilson was all gung-ho on it and Elle picked up on his enthusiasm. So I decided, what the hell, I'd go for it too. I gave Elle a demo on the proper way to hold a bat and put her in the cage. We decided on the 30 MPH softball pitch. Wilson took the cage next to her, and for now, I decided to stand behind her cage and give her instructions. The first few pitches were total losers, but my advice and shouts of encouragement spurred her on. After 20 pitches or so, she really started getting the hang of it. She was connecting with every ball. I paid for another 20 pitches and let her continue. Wilson finished his 20 and came to stand next to me.

We stood there watching her slam the bat around, making that ball fly.

Wilson said: "She's starting to look like a major-leaguer."

"Yeah, pretty good for her first time."

"I think she's really working out some aggression on those balls."

Studying her face, I had to agree with him. There was a fierceness and determination in her expression. I wondered if she thought that she was smashing her rapist's balls every time that she swung.

"Maybe we should put some boxing gloves on her next. Let her pound the bag for a while."

Wilson grinned and then I took my place in the batting cage. I took a couple of right-handed swings, but I realized that it put way too much pressure on my bad leg. So I switched my stance and tried it left-handed. That was much better on my leg and after a few times, I found I could hit decently. I slammed through my 20 pitches and noticed that Elle was still in her cage watching me.

"Nice. Poetry in motion."

I felt shyly pleased at her compliment. It had been such a long time since I attempted anything resembling athletics. It was a real thrill to find out that there were some things that I could still do, like impress a girl with my batting skills.

"Want another 20 pitches, sweetheart?"

She nodded. Wilson took the cage next to me and I bought each of us another 20 pitches. We had a great time slamming those balls home.

Grand Slam also had an arcade, so when we tired of batting, we headed over there. We played air hockey, foosball, and skee ball. We tried some of the newer video games and the virtual reality games. We amassed a whole bunch of tickets, so naturally we gave them all to Elle so she could pick out a prize. Not surprisingly, she picked out yet another stuffed dog. I teased her about her growing menagerie, but she just giggled. She sounded so happy that Wilson and I both cracked grins at her giddy demeanor.

Before the drive home, Elle headed to the ladies' room, making me hold the dog for her while she was gone. Wilson smirked at me as I stood there, looking stupid holding a stuffed dog. He whipped out his cell phone and threatened to take a shot and I told him I would beat him with the dog if he did. He laughed, but shoved his phone back into his pocket.

Quietly, I said: "Thank you."

He looked at me and tilted his head in a puzzled manner.

I looked away and waved my hand in the air: "For all this. It was a great idea, an excellent distraction for her today." I stared down at my feet, tapping my cane on the floor. I'm not very good at expressing my gratitude and he knows it. I felt his hand on my shoulder, a gentle squeeze and that was enough.

We stopped at a hole-in-the-wall pizza joint on the way back. Elle clamored for garlic rolls and we indulged her. We shared a large pizza with just about everything on it. After stuffing ourselves, Wilson drove us home.

He came in for brownies and we ate a couple while we watched another of Elle's favorite movies, _'Groundhog Day'_. He left shortly afterwards, promising to pick us up in the morning for court.

As he was leaving, Elle gave him a big hug: "You're a good friend, Jimmy. Thanks for everything."

He said softly: "If there's anything I can do, let me know." He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, gave me a nod and left.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Since this was a very serious matter, I decided that I would break down and wear a jacket and tie to court. Elle put on a very conservative navy dress and low heels. Wilson arrived around 9:15, did a double take at my appearance and quietly drove us to the courthouse.

Bill and the rest of the gang were waiting for us on the steps and we went into Courtroom A together. Elle was palpably nervous and I held her hand tightly. She had to sit at the table with Bill and the District Attorney while the rest of us sat behind the divider. Avi and I sat so that we were directly behind her. The rest of the gang filled the front row. A few minutes later, Tony and a couple of bulky goons walked in and sat in the row behind us. He looked at Elle and gave her a nod; she gave him a wan smile in return. If Elle's attacker were not previously aware that she had the mob on her side, he would be today.

My jaw almost hit the floor when they brought him in. He was huge; he must have been 6'4" and 275 pounds. He was handcuffed and shackled and practically busting out of his cheap suit. The thought of that behemoth attacking tiny Elle made me physically sick. He scanned the courtroom and when he saw Elle cowering next to Bill, a smirk appeared on his face. I gripped my cane so tightly that my knuckles turned white and started to hurt. I wanted to smash my cane right across his ugly mug.

Wilson briefly laid his hand on my shoulder: "Easy. Don't make a scene. It will be harder on Elle."

I gave him a quick nod as a reply. I faced forward and kept my eyes on Elle.

We all rose when the judge entered. He sat and spread a large number of papers around on his desk. He took a few moments to eye the occupants of his courtroom and then focused on his papers again. It was a good 10 minutes before he started to speak.

"I called all the involved parties here so I could give my findings. The defendant had filed a motion asking that certain evidence be thrown out, citing that the chain of custody was improperly followed, contaminating said evidence. I have reviewed all the evidence again in great detail."

He spent the next 20 minutes explaining all the details. He spoke in a boring monotone and it was a bit difficult to follow all the legalese as he droned on and on. Elle was hanging on his every word; her hands clenched tightly in her lap.

Finally he reached his conclusion. "Ladies and gentleman, I find nothing improper or illegal about the search and seizure of the evidence. I find that the chain of custody was properly followed. The original conviction stands, as does the original sentence. Court is adjourned." He pounded his gavel once.

Elle covered her face with her hands. Bill put his arm around her shoulder and whispered something in her ear. An audible sigh of relief was heard in our row, but that was offset by a loud exclamation of "FUCK" from the defendant's table. The behemoth repeatedly slammed his fist against the table as his attorney tried to calm him down.

The judge banged his gavel: "There will be no further outbursts in my courtroom. Bailiff, remove the prisoner."

The next part happened so quickly that we had no time to react. As the bailiff approached their table, his attorney started urging his client to his feet. To our astonishment, the bastard stood, shoved the table into the bailiff's path, knocking him down and then lumbered over to the D.A.'s table. He placed his shackled fists on the table and leaned over Elle. She gasped and tried to scoot backwards away from him, but the divider blocked her escape. Bill threw his arm across Elle in an attempt to protect her.

His face was mere inches from hers as he smirked: "It wasn't personal. It was just _business_. But you _were _a tight delicious morsel."

Elle's face went white as paper and she started trembling so violently that I thought she would faint. Avi leaned over the barrier and threw an arm around her while screaming at the guy to back off. Tony and the goons hustled out of their seats and rushed towards him. I stood up and raised my cane. The judge was pounding his gravel, shouting for order in his courtroom. I heard a couple of women scream and saw the flash of cameras taking pictures of this 'newsworthy' scene.

The bailiff, his attorney and 2 guards grabbed him before I could strike. They tackled him and pinned him to the floor, Tony and the goons hovering over them. The whole scene probably took less than a minute, but it felt like an hour.

Wilson and I hurried around the barrier as quickly as we could. Avi didn't wait; he leapt over it. Bill relinquished his chair so that I could sit next to her. Avi took her hand and I put my arm around her, pulling her into my shoulder. Elle was still pale and quivering; her respirations were shallow and labored. She was staring straight ahead and not responding to us at all. She appeared to be in a state of shock.

Wilson knelt in front of her and pulled an ammonia ampule out of his pocket. He held it up and I nodded my approval. He snapped it and waved it under Elle's nose. That broke her out of her catatonia.

She waved Wilson's hand away: "Oh Gawd, I hate that smell. Get that out of my face."

Sheepishly, he said: "Sorry, but you weren't responding to anything else we said or did. We needed to snap you out of it."

She nodded in understanding and then buried her face in my neck. She reached out to Wilson and he took her hand. She was gripping Avi tightly with her other hand. Ricky and the 2 women were standing behind Wilson and helping to block the scene behind them.

The guards were wrestling the bastard to his feet. Once he was upright, he seemed to notice Tony and his men for the first time, and his face sagged. I guess he figured out who they were. After all, three hulky Italians in Armani suits spell 'mob' in just about anyone's dictionary.

As they led him out of the room, he looked back over his shoulder; I could see the fear in his face. He yelled back to Tony and the goons: "It was only business. It wasn't personal_. Just business_."

I wondered what kind of contacts Tony had within the prison system, and if it being 'just business' would buy the bastard a reprieve from Tony's brand of justice.

Bill led us out the back way so we could avoid the reporters. Wilson ran for the car and met us back there. Avi and I hustled Elle into the back seat, sandwiching her in between us. Ricky and the girls took off for his car, saying they would meet us back at our place.

I had my arm around Elle and her head was resting on my shoulder. Her eyes were closed and her right hand rested on my cheek. She had her other arm slung around Avi's neck and he leaned up against her. I checked her pulse and it wasn't too fast. I hoped that she was finding comfort in having us so close to her. No one said a word as we headed home.

We all ended up in Elle's apartment. Everyone expressed relief about the verdict, but no one brought up the fact that the asshole had gotten right in her face or what he had said.

Elle walked around in a daze, politely offering everyone refreshments and smiling on cue, but I felt like I was watching one of the Stepford wives. I noticed that Avi was keeping a close eye on her too. When she announced that she was going into the bedroom to change out of her dress, Gen and Theresa accompanied her over her feeble protests.

As soon as the bedroom door was closed, Avi turned to me: "Keep a close eye on her. Don't leave her alone. She's keeping it all bottled up inside and that's bad. I'd rather have her crying than acting like this. You still have that bar I gave you to pop the locks, right?"

I nodded.

He continued: "Well, keep it handy. Don't be surprised if she hides in the closet with Jack again. She looks pretty overwhelmed. She's either going to want to drink or to sleep. Hopefully, it will be the latter."

Elle walked back into the living room, this time wearing some yoga pants and a tank top. She was barefoot and her hair twisted into a long braid.

Quietly she said: "I can't thank all of you enough for being with me today. Your support means the world to me. I don't want to be rude, but I'm exhausted. I really want to lie down for a while, so if you don't mind."

They all took the hint. Elle hugged and kissed everyone, thanking each person individually for being there for her today. She made promises to call if she needed anything.

Avi gave her the biggest hug of all: "Have a nice nap, sweetie. Remember, the bastard's in jail, where he belongs, and you are _safe._ When you wake up, the sun will be shining, the birds will be singing and you will be all snug in your lover's embrace. There's nothing to worry about now. Call me when you wake up, OK?"

A smile crossed her face, it was small, but it was genuine. "Thanks, Avi. I'll call you later."

They exchanged one more kiss and Avi and Ricky took their leave.

Elle wrapped her arms around my waist. She looked up at me, her chin propped on my chest. "I wanna go nap in your bed, OK?"

"Do I get to nap there too?"

"Of course, silly."

"Let's go."

Back in my bedroom, I stripped down to my boxers and Elle to her panties. She looked incredibly hot, wearing a cheeky little pair of hot pink fishnet hip huggers. I would have been more than happy to fuck her into a coma, but I wanted her to call the shots and a nap was what she wanted. We cuddled under the sheet, her head resting on my shoulder.

"Thank you for being there for me today."

"Hey, it got me out of clinic duty for another day. That made it worth putting on a tie."

She giggled. "Well, I'm glad I could help you in your mission to avoid work."

We lay quietly in each other's arms. I knew she wasn't asleep as she kept playing with my chest hairs.

Softly she said: "The bad guy is back in jail. He's not going to get out, right?"

"That's right, sweetheart. He's not going to get out. You're safe now."

She lifted her head and looked at me: "It's going to be OK, isn't it?"

I caressed her cheek and gave her the reassurance that she needed. "Like Bob Marley said, every little thing's gonna be alright."

She smiled: "I like that song."

She lay her head back down on my chest and hummed the chorus. I liked the way the vibrations felt against my chest.

I pulled her closer; she burrowed her face into my chest and sighed with contentment. It didn't take long for her to drift off to sleep. I kissed the top of her head and lay listening to her quiet breathing until sleep overtook me.

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After the court appearance, Elle had nightmares on and off for about 2 weeks and then they dwindled off. Our life settled into a routine after that drama resolved itself and I was surprised to find that I didn't mind the routine. Elle slept at my place every night except on Wednesdays when I would creep into her bed after my poker game ended. In September, Elle started seeing her therapist again after Gail returned from vacation, but after a few sessions, Elle quit. She had not had any nightmares for a few weeks and she claimed that she had run out of things to talk about with her therapist. Elle started spending her Wednesday nights soaking in a hot tub, painting her toenails and doing other girly things. Occasionally I would leave the game for a brief time and visit her in the bathroom. She'd let me play with her bubbles for a few minutes, but then shoo me back to the game, citing her need for relaxation and my desire for the other guys' money. Sometimes she would go out with Gen and Theresa, shopping or to see a chick flick.

Elle usually cooked in the early part of the week. We would have a nice dinner on Sunday and Monday and on Tuesday we would have the leftovers. Thursdays, Elle would go to her yoga class and I would order Thai take-out for dinner.

Of course the routine would change if I had a patient requiring me to stay late at the hospital. But, by now, Elle was accustomed to sleeping alone at my place and I knew that no matter what time I arrived home, she would be in my bed. She'd leave the kitchen light on for me so I wouldn't stumble around in the dark and a dinner plate in the fridge so that I would have something to eat. I would heat it up in the microwave and eat it in front of the TV. When I had unwound enough to fall asleep, I would crawl in bed and snuggle up next to her warm body. Even in her sleep, she would sense my presence and turn over to face me. Her head would end up pillowed on my shoulder and her arm wrapped around my waist. She made these cute little contented sighs as she snuggled against me. More than once, I found myself smiling in the darkness, my fingers combing through her hair, and thinking how good it felt to have her in my arms.

When football season started, Wilson started coming over every Sunday to watch the games. Elle enjoyed football almost as much as we did and the 3 of us would hang out on the couch, watching the games, eating junk food and screaming at the bad calls by the refs. Elle was completely hooked on her alma mater's football team. Even in New Jersey, sometimes they would show the game on TV and she would insist on watching them. If it was the weekend that she was playing at Satchel's, she wouldn't get much of a nap before the show, but she managed. On the last Saturday in October, Elle even dragged me to the sports bar to watch the game on satellite TV. She explained that the Florida-Georgia game was a huge rivalry and she didn't want to miss it. By the beginning of November, they had only lost one game and the some of the sports writers and most of the fans were already convinced that they would go all the way and win the SEC championship.

On the first Monday in November, the stars were in alignment and I was able to wreak revenge on Rivera. When Wilson and I entered the cafeteria that day, I immediately noticed Elle and Miriam sitting at a corner table. We were still being quiet about our relationship at work, but I caught her eye and she gave me a quick wink. Then I noticed Rivera sitting with 2 other doctors a few tables away from her. My blood still boiled whenever I saw him. As we went thought the line, I bypassed my usual Reuben and grabbed a plate of beef stroganoff instead. Wilson frowned at my unusual selection, but I ignored his questioning look. As we stood in line waiting to pay, I pulled out my cell phone, dialed a number, but didn't press the send key. Wilson paid for our lunches and he headed off to a table. I pressed the send key, slipped the phone into my jacket pocket and carefully balanced my tray, one-handed, across the crowded cafeteria. Just as I was approaching a certain table, I heard a beeper go off. Apparently it was Rivera's beeper as he jumped up to run over to the house phone on the nearby wall. Unfortunately, I was passing by right as he stood up and I didn't have a very good grip on the tray, only being able to use one hand and all that. So Rivera got a plateful of beef stroganoff spilled all over his nice Gucci suit.

I stood there holding the tilted tray, staring at mess on his suit. There was a bit on my Nikes too, but I decided not to make a big deal out of that.

In a faux aggrieved tone, I said: "Hey, watch where you're going! Cripple here, you made me lose my balance. You owe me a lunch."

Rivera looked down at his ruined suit and then back at me. Everyone in the cafeteria was staring at us. His face was red and his fists were clenched. "You, you, you ruined my suit!"

"Hey, you ran into me! You made me lose my lunch."

He was fuming, but every eye in the cafeteria was on us and he contained himself. Through clenched teeth, he hissed: "I have to get this page."

Grabbing a handful of napkins from his table, he swiped at his suit as he made his way over to the phone. I watched as he dialed the number and grinned inwardly as he stood there, waiting for someone to pick up on the other end.

"This is Rivera. Someone paged me."

After a minute, the entire cafeteria heard him yell: "What do you mean, no one paged me? I have a page to this number."

He listened for a moment and then slammed the phone down. He returned to his table, still swiping at his suit and muttering to himself.

I glanced over at Elle; she had her hand over her mouth, but I knew she was grinning. I gave her a quick eyebrow raise, and then headed back to the cafeteria line for my Reuben.

Wilson looked at me in amazement when I sat down. "How did you do that?"

Innocently, I asked: "Do what?"

He smirked and waved his hand towards Rivera's table: "You know what! That impeccable timing to run into Rivera with a plateful of beef stroganoff just as he was getting up to answer a page."

"Fate, karma. Venus is in Mercury or is it the other way around?"

He narrowed his eyes at me: "You sent that page didn't you?"

"Who, me? Why would I page Rivera? If I needed an oncologist for a consult, I'd call you, not him."

I took a big bite of my sandwich. Wilson shook his head, chuckled a little and then resumed eating his lunch.

That evening, when I opened the door to my apartment, I was surprised that only one lamp was on. I glanced down the hall and saw a dim light in the bedroom.

"Elle?"

A sultry voice answered me: "Oh, cowboy. You're home."

I heard the click-click of heels on the wood floors, and then Elle appeared at the end of the hallway. My jaw dropped when I saw her. My cane hit the floor. Elle was wearing a black fishnet bodystocking and black 4-inch fuck-me heels. The bodystocking left nothing to the imagination. I could see her nipples clearly through the mesh and as she walked towards me, I realized that the outfit was crotch less.

She wrapped her arms around my neck. "I'm so glad you're home. I missed you." She pursed her lips in a little sexy pout.

I ran my hands down her body. "Did you, now?"

She purred as I stroked her: "Yes."

Mt Gregory was already flying high. I nibbled on her neck: "Show me how much."

She gave me that smile, the smile that told me I was going to be a very happy man in just a short while. She took my hand and led me down the hall to the bedroom. We made each other very happy. Twice.

It was November. The weather had turned cold and gray, but Elle kept me warm.


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40

(**A/N**: smut alert; don't say you weren't warned!)

**_Wilson_**

By the time November rolled around, I found myself alone more and more often. House was busy with Elle and although I did spend some time with them, I didn't want to be the third wheel in their relationship. I was really happy that House was in a relationship again after such a long time alone.

I spent my weekdays at work and my weeknights, except for Wednesday poker, mostly alone. Julie was rarely home and when she was, she was sleeping, cleaning or ragging on me about something. It seemed as though nothing I did was good enough for her. I kept the place as spotless as possible, made sure my dirty clothes made it into the hamper, washed out my coffee mug as soon as I finished drinking. I grocery shopped, I did the laundry, I ran the sweeper. I cooked gourmet dinners and didn't invite House over since I knew he annoyed her. She would barely touch the food and complain if I used the good china. It had been months since we had had sex. She didn't even want to cuddle in bed. If I were lucky, I'd get a peck on the cheek when I got home from work. But I kept trying. I suggested counseling again and she refused again. She turned down a romantic weekend in Cape May and again in the Poconos. I couldn't figure out what was wrong. I hadn't cheated on her, except for that time with Cuddy and I know she didn't find out about that. House swore that he didn't tell her and I knew Elle or Cuddy wouldn't tell her. I started staying later and later at work. There seemed to be nothing to go home for.

I was at the hospital gift shop buying her a nice box of chocolates when House walked in.

He picked up the box of chocolates and said: "Spinook. Expensive Norwegian chocolate. Who's the lucky woman?"

Irritably I replied: "My wife."

"No, I don't want to know who gets the chocolates; I want to know who you're having the affair with."

"No one, you moron, they are for Julie."

He sighed: "I know the candy is for Julie. What did you give the cute nurse that you slept with?"

"I didn't sleep with anyone. You know, some people bottle up their feelings and have them come out as physical pain. Healthy human beings express feelings such as affection by giving gifts."

I paid and we walked out of the gift shop towards the clinic.

"Gifts express guilt. The more expensive the expression, the deeper the guilt. That's a 12 dollar box so that means you haven't slept with her yet, or she wasn't that good."

I felt like screaming at him, but contained myself since we were at the door to the clinic. "It's not all about sex, House."

"Really? When did that change?"

I glared at him and walked away. I was sure that I could feel his eyes boring into my back as I walked away.

Julie didn't appreciate the chocolate. She wanted to know if I was trying to make her fat. She threw the box in the trash and stalked off to bed. I fished the box out, parked myself in front of the TV and ate the whole box while watching reruns of 'Married with Children'. Even that jerk got more sex than I did.

A few days later, I was sitting at a desk in the clinic during some charting. House walked out of an exam room and tossed the file on the counter.

He gave me a pat on the shoulder: "Keep up the good work."

He walked around to the other side of the counter and paused: "Your shirt is ironed. That means you haven't told your wife anything."

I stood up: "Let's say you're right."

He paused as he reached for a lollipop: "You're saying I'm right?"

"No. Let's say. Does it occur to you that maybe there's some deeper guidance than keep your mouth shut? That maybe a friend might value concern over glibness? That maybe, maybe I'm going through something that I need to have an actual conversation about?"

He stared at me silently and then his pager went off. He glanced at it and then said: "Does it occur to you that if you need that kind of friend, that you may have made some deeper errors." He turned and walked out of the clinic.

I dropped back into my chair, cradling my head in my hands. Why did I bother trying to talk about these things with him? I suppose a part of me thought that since he was with Elle now, he might have changed, become more of a human being. But, I was wrong. He was still House.

Two nights later, I found Julie pacing in the living room when I got home from work.

I set down my briefcase and went over to her. I reached out and touched her shoulder: "What's wrong, honey?"

Julie flinched away from me. "We need to talk."

No one likes to hear those 4 little words from their significant other. I felt my heart sink; I stumbled over to the couch and sat down.

I had flunked marriage for the third time, but at least this time it wasn't my fault.

An hour later and I was knocking on House's door. I knew I was intruding, but I didn't feel like being alone right now and his crappy company was better than nothing.

He pulled the door open and stood there staring at me. I saw his eyes glance down at my suitcase and then back to my face.

I swallowed my pride and said: "Can I stay with you for a few days?"

"You idiot. You told her."

"She told me."

He was stunned into silence.

I sighed angrily. "Turns out you're right. It _is_ always about sex. She's been having an affair. With her tennis pro. Turns out she's been getting more than just tennis lessons from him."

He stared at me with an unreadable expression on his face. He seemed to be at a loss for words for once in his life.

Just then, Elle bounced out of her apartment. She squealed when she saw me: "Hey Jimmy. What's up?"

Then she seemed to take in the expressions on our faces and her eyes glanced to the floor and I suppose she took in the suitcase. She looked back at me with kindness in her eyes. "I bet you need a beer. Or would you prefer some scotch?"

I mumbled: "A beer would be fine."

She picked up my suitcase, and pushing past House, brought it inside the apartment.

"Make yourself at home," she called over her shoulder as she went into the kitchen. She was back with my beer before I could even get my jacket off. She actually helped me take my jacket off, hung it up and steered me over to the couch. She sat down next to me and asked: "Do you want to talk about it? Or is it a guy thing and you want me to leave so you can talk to Greg?"

House sputtered: "No, he needs some girl talk. You stay and I'll leave."

"Greg! That's not very nice. Your best friend shows up here with a suitcase; obviously there is a problem at home. I think quite possibly he needs to talk about it."

He mumbled: "Well, he knows better than to come to me with that kinda shit."

Elle pressed on: "Why? You're his best friend. Where do you think I would have been without my friends after I got raped and David threw me out of the house?"

"I don't know. In a HOTEL."

I knew that hint was directed at me. I started to push myself up off the couch: "Maybe I should just go to a hotel."

Elle said: "No. You came here. You wanted something from us. What do you need, Jimmy?"

She took my hand and I could feel her warmth. My emotions were starting to become overwhelming and I blinked rapidly to keep tears from forming. House would never let me forget it if I started crying on his couch. I sighed deeply and covered my eyes with my free hand.

"I just thought I could stay here for a couple of nights."

"Well, of course, you can."

House interjected: "Hey, it's my apartment. Don't I get a say?"

She looked at him as if he had 3 heads. "Your best friend needs a place to stay and you would send him away?"

He smirked: "I doubt he wants to sleep on my couch and have to listen to us having sex. It might be upsetting for him since he hasn't had any in a while because his wife has been having an affair with her tennis pro."

Elle's mouth formed an 'O'. "Aw, shit. Oh, Jimmy, I'm so sorry. Well, you don't want to sleep on this lumpy old couch anyway. You can sleep at my place."

House sputtered: "What?"

Elle shrugged and in a very nonchalant tone, said: "Well, I don't sleep there, so he might as well. I only sleep there on Wednesdays and if Jimmy needs to stay for a while, I'll just sleep here on Wednesdays, too. That is, if it is alright with _you_."

I started to snicker. House had complained to me that Elle wouldn't stay over on poker nights and it bugged him. He couldn't figure out a way to get her to do it. Now, inadvertently, I had helped him with this little problem. I glanced at him and he knew it too. I saw the corners of his mouth turn up for just an instance.

He grumbled: "Fine. I guess you can stay for a while. But don't think you're getting any sympathy sex from my girl just cuz you're sleeping in her bed. Keep your panty-peeling mitts off."

I held both hands up in the air, palms outward. "I wouldn't dream of it."

"Come to think of it, why didn't you go to Cuddy's? You could've had a place to stay and some nookie too."

I exploded: "Jesus, House! That was a one-time, drug-induced thing that you formulated."

"Yeah, and it was the only hot sex you've had in the last six months. Actually it was probably the _only _sex you've had in the last six months."

That was true, but I certainly wasn't going to admit to it. I took a long swallow of beer and made a decision. My marriage was over. It was time to move on. I'd stay at Elle's long enough to find an apartment and then I'd start hitting on the nurses again. My mind flashed on Cuddy's luscious breasts and I knew I needed some action soon.

**HOUSE**

It actually wasn't so bad having Wilson across the hall although I would never tell him that. He did make an effort not to be a nuisance in our lives. He only came over when invited and of course, Elle invited him to dinner every night. But he didn't accept every time so we still had our private times too.

Elle moved a bunch of her clothes into my place so that she wouldn't have to go over there all the time. Wilson started dating again right away, and Elle didn't want to have to go over there for something and possibly interrupt things. I emptied 2 dresser drawers for her and made some room in the closet too. Wilson diligently looked for an apartment and found one within a few days, but it wouldn't be ready until Dec 1. Elle claimed that it was no big deal for Wilson to stay in her place until then and we could all have a big Thanksgiving dinner together. Since it was already the middle of November, I went along with the plan, especially since they were planning a huge dinner with all the traditional trimmings. The whole band was invited and Cuddy was included too.

A few days later, I was really glad that Wilson was so close by. It was Sunday afternoon; Elle had been cleaning and doing laundry all day. Our favorite teams weren't playing, so she kept busy while I channel surfed my way through the day. After finishing the last load of laundry, she announced that she was going to take a shower. I nodded absently, my mind focused on Yankee Workshop. A few minutes later, she walked back into the room wearing just her panties and a t-shirt.

"Greg, my leg hurts and I don't remember bumping it or anything."

A small alarm bell went off in my head. "Where does it hurt?"

_Please, not the thigh. Not an infarction._

"My left calf. See, it's kinda red too."

I shut off the TV. "Sit down, let me look at it."

Turning off the TV meant I was serious and she looked worried as she sat on the far end of the couch and lifted her leg into my lap. Sure enough, her left calf looked red and swollen. It felt warm to the touch.

I gently palpated the area: "Is it tender when I press on it?"

"Yes."

"What about when I do this?" I bent her knee slightly and then put my hand under her toes and pushed them gently towards her body.

She inhaled sharply: "That hurts."

_Crap!_ I relaxed her leg, but kept it elevated on my lap. I grabbed the phone from the side table and dialed Wilson's cell.

"If you're banging a nurse, send her home. Need you stat. Get over here."

I hung up without waiting for an answer and turned to face Elle.

"We need to go to the hospital. I think you have a DVT."

I wasn't prepared for her response.

She cried out: "NOOOOO!"

I frowned: "Sweetheart, it's OK. We're going to take you to the hospital and get an ultrasound to confirm it and then start the treatment."

Wilson rushed in right at that moment. "What's so urgent?"

I pointed: "Look at Elle's calf."

Elle slapped a pillow in her lap; I had forgotten that she was in her panties. Wilson leaned over and looked: "Is it tender? Positive Homan's sign?"

"Yes and yes."

"_Shit_. Let's roll. Want me to carry her to the car?"

"Yep." I slid her leg off of my lap and stood up. Wilson moved around the couch and bent to pick her up.

"Wait a minute! I'm not going anywhere."

Annoyed, I replied: "Why the hell not?"

"Well for one thing, I'm in my underwear, in case you hadn't noticed. And it is cold outside."

I shrugged: "OK. I'll get you some sweat pants. Hold your water."

I turned and started to move towards the bedroom, but her words held me back.

"And I don't want to go to the hospital. Can't you just treat me here?"

I looked at her with exasperation. What was she thinking? "NO, I can't just treat you here. First off, you need an ultrasound to confirm the diagnosis. Then I need to put you on heparin and you'll need to stay in bed for a few days with your leg elevated. If you're home, you won't stay in bed. And I'll need to draw labs a couple times a day to make sure your PTT is in the target range."

Elle was really close to tears: "I don't want to stay in the hospital, Greg. Can't you do the ultrasound and bring me home? You could treat me with Lovenox and then I wouldn't have to be on a heparin drip. We could do the Lovenox injections at home. Please."

She was infuriating. I was forced to say things that I hated to admit. "No. I can't take care of you by myself. You'll need to stay on bed rest for a few days. I can't carry you to the bathroom. You wanna use a bedpan?"

She was crying now: "I don't care about a bedpan. I just want to stay here. I don't want to stay in the hospital. Please don't make me. Why do I have to stay in the hospital?"

I screamed it out without thinking: "Because I love you and I don't want anything to happen to you."

You could have heard a pin drop. Elle was frozen, just staring at me, a stray tear making its way down her face. Wilson looked decidedly uncomfortable at being witness to my proclamation.

I sighed deeply; the first time I say those words to Elle and I scream them at her in front of Wilson. Way to go.

I cupped her chin and tilted her face up towards mine. I spoke much softer and gentler this time: "I don't want the clot to break off and turn into a PE. I want to make sure your PTT is in the correct range and you'll need labs drawn a couple times a day until it is stable. I want you monitored because I don't want anything to happen to you. That's why I want you to go to the hospital to get treated."

Her hand covered mine and she spoke in French: _"I'm sorry that I was being a big baby. Please understand that the last time I was in the hospital, it was after I was raped. Everyone knew what had happened to me and I felt violated all over again. It was awful."_ Her tears started to fall again.

I stroked her cheek with my thumb: "Nothing like that will happen this time. You know most of the staff is afraid of me and they will not want to displease me over the care of my _girlfriend_. You have nothing to worry about. I'll be with you as much as I can."

She squeezed my hand and gave me a little smile: "I guess you better get me some pants and some socks, huh?"

I nodded and headed to the bedroom for the needed items.

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I got some sweat pants and socks on her and Wilson carried her out to his car. He settled her in the back seat and I got in beside her. Jimmy played chauffeur for us.

She leaned against me and I had her stretch her leg across the seat so that it wasn't hanging down. It was a quiet ride to PPTH.

Wilson pulled up to the ER entrance, parked in the fire lane and ran for a wheelchair. He lifted her into it and we propped her leg up. I took Elle into an exam room while he parked the car. By the time he got back, I had Elle in a gown and was just about to start the ultrasound. I ran the transducer over her calf and we looked at the resulting image. There it was, big as life. Elle had a DVT.

She moaned: "How could I have gotten a DVT? I haven't been on a long car ride or a plane trip."

I wiped the gel off of her leg and gave her a moment to think about it. Suddenly she moaned again. "Oh Gawd, it's the pill, isn't it? I'm going to have to go off my birth control pills."

I nodded gravely: "No more hormones for you."

"Crap! This sucks. What are we going to do?"

"First we are going to treat your clot, then we'll worry about birth control. You'll be here for a couple of days and unless I drag you into the supply closet, which isn't a bad idea, we have some time to think about it."

Elle looked forlorn. "I guess I have to get admitted now, huh?"

I nodded.

Wilson piped up: "I'll get that ball rolling. You get her hooked up to the heparin."

A couple of hours later, we had Elle settled into a private room. She looked quite miserable, laying in the hospital bed staring at IV heparin dripping into her vein.

"So what's the treatment plan, Dr. House?"

I chuckled: "We can't play 'doctor' now. We're in a real hospital."

I sat on the bed next to her and picked up her hand: "You know the drill. Heparin IV and Coumadin orally until your INR is over 2, then we'll take you off the heparin and you can come home on the Coumadin."

She sighed: "Couldn't I do Lovenox instead of the Coumadin?"

"You need to be on anticoagulant therapy for 3 months. You'd rather get a shot everyday instead of just taking one tablet?"

"If I'm on the Coumadin, I have to constantly be watching what I eat so that I don't consume too much Vitamin K to counteract the Coumadin. I have to get my INR's monitored weekly. If I use the Lovenox, it's a standard dose. I don't need weekly blood tests and I can eat whatever I want. Plus since it is the birth control pills that caused this problem, once I'm off of them that will lower my risk factors too."

She rubbed her thumb across the back of my hand: "And then you could play doctor with me every night and give me my shot."

"I like playing doctor with you, but I don't know how much you'll like it when I'm using real needles."

She put on her best pouty face and I caved. "OK. If you stay in the hospital for 3 days and get your PTT in the therapeutic range, I'll switch you over to Lovenox and you can go home on that."

"Three days?"

I nodded. "You need to stay in bed."

"Wanna stay in bed with me?"

"It's oooh so tempting, but I don't like an audience. I will be here with you as much as I can. Wilson is going to inform Cuddy so she can deal with your boss and then he is going to bring us back some real food. I won't let you attempt to eat the slop that they serve the patients. I don't want you to lose any more weight."

She gave me a small smile: "Thank you for taking such good care of me."

"You were a real pain in the ass back there. You owe me big time for making me drag you in here instead of being smart enough to just do what you needed to do."

"Yeah, but I was a good girl at the end, wasn't I? Can I get a little kiss for my boo-boo?"

"Only a small one. You were only a little good."

I leaned forward and touched my lips to hers. Elle cupped my cheek and deepened the kiss. Our tongues met and danced slowly together. When we finally pulled apart, Elle was looking intently at me and stroking my cheek with her thumb.

"I love you too."

She had not forgotten what I had blurted out earlier. My heart swelled with the unfamiliar yet not unpleasant feelings that arose upon hearing her say those words. I closed my eyes, knowing what she would see if I allowed her to look at them. The love that I felt for her was blanketed with the intense fear that I would eventually screw this up and I didn't want her to see that.

I leaned forward again, this time, resting my forehead against hers and said softly: "I know."

**_ELLE_**

As we silently rode to the hospital, I pondered all that had transpired in the last hour. I couldn't believe that I had developed a DVT. I was frightened at the seriousness of my condition. What if it had broken off and developed into a pulmonary embolism? I shuddered involuntarily and Greg embraced me tighter.

He murmured in my ear: "Don't be scared. I got you."

I couldn't help smiling. I snuggled deeper into his embrace. When it came to expressing emotions, Greg was a man of few words, but those few words said more than any lengthy discourse. I couldn't believe that he had actually spoken those 3 little words and that he had shouted it out in front of Jimmy like that. I had really exasperated him by balking at going to the hospital and he had screamed it out in frustration. He did get his point across; I had been pretty sure about his feelings for me but now I knew absolutely.

I leaned my head back and looked up into his handsome face. He gave me an amused smile and whispered "Brat" before crushing me to his chest again. I felt his lips kiss the top of my head.

Greg did the ultrasound in the ER and confirmed the clot. He started the heparin drip and I was moved up to a private room on the fourth floor. He barked some instructions at Jimmy and he rushed off to do Greg's bidding.

I tried to tell Greg how much I appreciated everything he did for me and he told me I was a pain in his ass. But he had an amused look in his eyes so I knew he didn't really mean it.

I conned a really sweet kiss out of him and then I repeated those 3 little words to him. He didn't say them back and I didn't expect him to. He had said it once and, in his mind, that was enough. It's hard for him to verbally express his emotions; he keeps them bottled up. I know how he feels, by his everyday actions and by his words today. He loves me. He may not say it to me again for a long time, and although it is nice to hear it said, actions do speak louder than words. Coupled with his everyday actions, hearing it once from Greg House is truly enough.

Jimmy was a huge help. After driving us to the hospital and helping me get settled in, he ran off to do Greg's bidding. He informed Cuddy of my situation, he went back to our apartment and got clothes and assorted things so that Greg could stay with me, and then he brought back Chinese food for our dinner. He stole a recliner from the OB docs lounge and brought it down to my room. He parked it right next to my bed so that Greg could sleep next to me while I was in the hospital. He seemed to understand that I didn't want to be alone, so he helped to make it easy for Greg to stay with me. I was immensely grateful.

My stay at PPTH went better than I thought it would. Greg got Cuddy to tell my boss that I was ill and needed at least a week off. So I was happy that I didn't have to deal with Kirby about this; if he grumbled about it, I wasn't around to hear it. Jimmy cancelled my pain appointments for the week and I heard from Miriam that another pharmacist filled in for me in the satellite. The girls all came to visit after work on Monday and Greg left the room when they appeared. They all expressed surprise that I was dating the infamous Dr. House and gently probed for details, which I skillfully dodged.

Avi and the rest of the gang came to see me on Monday night, bringing flowers, candy and a sudoku book. Audra drew me a really cute get-well card. Greg shooed everyone except Wilson out at 9:00, citing the end of visiting hours, but it was really because he wanted to watch Monday Night Football in peace and quiet. Wilson stayed until the game ended, around midnight and then he went back to my apartment for some shut-eye.

Jimmy showed up in the mornings with fresh bagels and good coffee and we would have breakfast together. Then he would stay with me while Greg went off to the doctor's locker room to shower and change. On my second morning there, while Greg was showering, Wilson told me that the hospital grapevine was just buzzing with the news that Dr Crankenstein had a girlfriend. That explained the parade of employees walking by my room and taking a quick glance in. I really didn't like being the subject of gossip, but at least it wasn't like the last time when everyone was talking about something I preferred to keep under wraps. I was proud of Greg and happy to be known as his girlfriend. I knew Greg had a reputation at PPTH and people were undoubtedly wondering what I saw in him, but they would never see the side of him that he reserved only for me.

The nurses took really good care of me. If I rang the call bell, someone answered it in 30 seconds. Greg didn't exactly scowl at the nurses, but he let them know by his facial expressions that they had better take excellent care of me or there would be repercussions.

Greg stayed in my room almost the whole time. Cuddy even excused him from clinic duty. We would watch TV, play with the Gameboy, surf the net on his laptop and take naps. Around noon on the second day, his fellows showed up with a new case. He sent Chase to fetch the whiteboard while he quickly read the file. Cameron protested that they shouldn't be running a DDX in front of me, citing confidentiality rules. Greg gave her a look and impatiently explained that as a hospital employee, I was well aware of HIPAA regulations concerning confidentiality. She frowned, but didn't pursue the subject any further.

Once Chase had returned with the whiteboard, Greg listed the symptoms on it and demanded ideas from his fellows. They threw out a few suggestions. Greg considered the possibilities and sent them off to run some tests and get a better history. It was fascinating watching him work; I could practically see the little wheels turning in his head.

As soon as they left, Greg went back to his Gameboy. I stared at the symptoms for a while and then asked: "Do you know what it is?"

Without looking up, he replied: "Naw. Gotta get some tests first. Speaking of which, I need to see what your PTT was this morning."

He paused his game and set the Gameboy on the bed and after warning me not to touch it; he limped out of the room. Through the window, I could see him on the computer at the nurses' station. He clicked a lot of keys and then turned and walked back into my room. He sat in the recliner, picked up his Gameboy and resumed playing. I waited, but he didn't say anything.

"Well?"

He looked up: "Oh, did you want to know?"

I made a grab for the Gameboy, but he held it out of my reach. "Yes, I want to know. What was it?"

"Sixty."

"Sixty? My PTT was 60? I'm therapeutic! Can I go home now?"

He shook his head as he concentrated on the game.

"Why not?"

"I want you to stay in bed another day. If your level is still therapeutic tomorrow, and you've been a good girl, I'll take you home tomorrow."

I pouted. "If you let me go home today, I'll make it worth your while."

He smirked: "You'll make it worth my while tomorrow too. You'll be so horny by the time we get you discharged that you'll jump me in the car."

I sighed; he was right. I was already quite horny.

I asked hopefully: "Can't you close the blinds and lock the door? We could have some fun now."

He chuckled: "No can do, my randy little minx. My ducklings will be back soon with the lab results and I'll have to deal with them. And I told you that I don't like an audience. Be good now, I'm up to level 9."

I sighed: "OK." I grabbed his laptop and started playing some minesweeper.

Greg solved the case by 6:00 and he sent the ducklings to start the treatment. Jimmy arrived shortly afterwards, bringing cheesesteaks and fries for dinner. He even snuck in a beer for each of us.

Greg was pleased: "Atta boy, Jimmy. Can't have a cheesesteak without beer."

There was nothing on TV so we got caught up on all the hospital gossip during dinner. Jimmy left shortly after we ate, promising to bring breakfast again in the morning. He took all of the trash, including the empty beer bottles with him.

Greg got up and checked my IV. The nurse had just hung a fresh bag around 3PM so it was still three-quarters full. I wouldn't need a new bag until the morning and hopefully by then, Greg would switch me to Lovenox and I could go home.

He seemed satisfied with my IV. Next he checked my vitals. He checked my pulse, flashed a light in my eyes and magically produced a stethoscope so he could listen to my heart and lungs.

"How do you feel?"

He was acting so serious so I responded in kind: "I feel fine. I'm tired of laying in bed, but I feel good."

"No bleeding gums or bruising? Any shortness of breath?"

I shook my head. He nodded and went out to the nurse's station. I watched him pull a chart and make some notations in it. Then he went to the computer and after clicking some keys, made another notation in the chart. He closed the chart, handed it to the nurse and after speaking a few words to her, he returned to my room.

As he closed the door and drew the blinds, he said: "I've noted your vitals so the nurse doesn't have to come back in tonight. Your repeat PTT was 65, by the way. You're still therapeutic and on track to get discharged tomorrow."

With a flourish of his cane, he punched the button on the doorknob, locking the door. "No one has any reason to disturb us until morning. I'm going to slip on my pajamas now."

Without another word, he picked up his overnight bag and went into the bathroom. I was puzzled by his behavior; it was the first time he had locked the door and changed into pajamas. The last 2 nights he had just fallen asleep in the recliner in his jeans and t-shirt.

When he walked out of the bathroom wearing just his pajama bottoms, my mouth went dry. It seemed like all the moisture in my body headed south as I felt a certain familiar wetness between my legs. He looked so sexy and I badly wanted to get my hands on him. I missed sleeping in his arms, my head resting on his shoulder. His proximity in the recliner was good, but not nearly close enough for my desires.

He took one look at me, cocked an eyebrow and smirked: "You're looking at me the way a dog looks at a T-bone."

"I've missed you."

"What are you talking about? I've been right here with you the whole time."

"You know what I mean."

He shook his head: "Enlighten me."

I could tell by the look on his face that he was playing me, but I wanted him so badly that I was willing to play his game. "I've missed laying next to you in bed, your arms wrapped around me, my head pillowed on your chest, naked and sweaty after a hot romp. I miss those deep kisses of yours that leave me breathless and my lips swollen and tingling. I miss you nibbling on my neck and kissing your way down my body, stopping to suckle my breasts before you move on down to taste the promised land."

I glanced down; his erect penis was tenting his pajamas. "And I've missed Mt. Gregory and all the wonderful things that he does to me."

He rolled his eyes: "Well, when you put it that way. Scootch over."

I moved over as far as I could, my ass bumping up against the bedrails. Sadly these hospital beds were not meant for 2 people. He carefully climbed in next to me, arranging his leg for comfort and making sure that my IV line didn't get tangled. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me hard. The IV line kept me from moving as much as I wanted to, but I managed to stroke his face and run my fingers through his chest hair. He kissed me deeply for several minutes, his tongue exploring my mouth thoroughly. He hadn't brushed his teeth and I could taste the beer and the cheesesteak, but it wasn't unpleasant. Since I hadn't brushed either, I knew he tasted the same flavors on me.

He kissed his way along my jaw and then down to my neck. He nibbled and sucked on my favorite spot as I purred with pleasure. Then he whispered in my ear: "I can give you everything that you've missed except for Mt. Gregory. You'll have to wait until tomorrow for him so we can stop for condoms on the way home."

By now he had untied my gown and pulled it down, exposing my breasts. He cupped them with his hands and smiled: "There's my girls. Did you miss me?"

He suckled on the right nipple first and it perked right up. "Oooo, this one missed me. Let's try the other one."

He laved the left nipple, which immediately puckered up.

I lay back and watched him go back and forth between my breasts. He kissed and licked and suckled on them. My desire was growing steadily; I wanted him inside of me even though I knew it wasn't possible tonight.

Greg pulled the gown off of my left arm and pushed it to the side. The IV line prevented the complete removal of the gown, but most of my body lay there in its naked glory for his pleasure. He smiled as he took in the view; his hands caressing my belly and down to my pubic hair. Suddenly he grinned mischievously and shifted around on the bed.

"Scootch down a little bit."

I moved down and he swung his legs up by my head. He rolled me onto my side and my face looked right at his erection. I immediately mouthed him through the thin pajama pants and he hissed. "Oh, yeah. Take him out for some air, will ya baby?"

I lowered his pajamas and Mt Gregory sprang right out at me. I wrapped my hand around the base and took the head in my mouth, running my tongue around the hole and licking up his pre-cum.

Greg wiggled his way between my legs, lifting my top leg and placing it over his shoulder. I moaned loudly when his tongue first touched my clit and he shushed me. "Shhhh, we don't want everyone to figure out what we're doing it here. If you can't keep quiet, I'll shove my dick in your mouth."

He pushed deeper into my mouth to make his point and I chuckled. The vibrations caused him to moan and I giggled: "Shhhh. Don't make so much noise."

Greg laved my core from top to bottom. He slid two fingers inside of me and slowly started pumping as he kept licking my folds and flicking at my clit. I tried to concentrate on sucking him, but the sensations were so overwhelming that I couldn't focus on fellating him. All I could feel were his tongue and his fingers in my most sensitive spot. I kept my hand wrapped around him and slowly pumped him as he ministered to me. It wasn't long before he sent me over the edge. I managed to keep from screaming by pressing his cock against my lips. As I came down from my orgasm, I kissed Mt Gregory over and over until I felt focused enough to take him back into my mouth. I started sucking him in earnest now; I wanted Greg to have the same pleasure that he had just given me.

I had never tried to suck him off in this position. It was an interesting angle and I found that I could take his penis in deeper than usual. He was obviously enjoying it as he moaned softly and thrust into my mouth. Greg had removed my leg from his shoulder and wrapped his arm around both of them, hugging my legs to his face as he continued to push deeper into my mouth.

"Baby, oh baby, that's so good."

He planted several kisses on my legs and then pressed his face into my thigh. He hugged my legs tighter and I knew he was close. I managed to wiggle my hand into position and I gently cupped his balls. That sent him over the edge. He thrust into my mouth 3 more times and then collapsed with a groan. I swallowed all of his spunk and gently licked him as he came back down to earth.

He let go of my legs and rolled onto his back, breathing hard.

I propped myself up on one elbow and asked: "You OK, cowboy?"

I wanted to reach out and caress him with my right hand, but the IV line kept me tethered in place. Instead I leaned forward and planted several kisses on his damaged thigh, finally pressing my cheek against it as I watched him recover.

Finally, in between deep breaths, he was able to talk: "Sweetheart. That was, without a doubt, the best blowjob I've ever had."

He started laughing softly. "Man, I can't believe that I had the best BJ ever in a damn hospital bed from a woman hooked up to an IV. That's too funny."

He propped himself up on his elbow to look at me. "You're amazing."

Smiling, he ran his hand up and down my leg and I flinched when he touched the area of the DVT.

He immediately recognized what he had done. "Oh crap, I was squeezing on your legs. Did I hurt you?"

"No, I would have said something. Turn around and come up here. I need my after-sex cuddle."

He grumbled something about women and cuddling, but he did as I asked and wrapped me up in his arms. I knew he liked it too, but he would never admit it.

I sighed with utter contentment. I was right where I wanted to be, in his arms. Being in our own bed would have been much better, but this was pretty darn good.

After a few minutes of cuddling and kissing, Greg said: "We should probably get dressed before we fall asleep. Don't want the nurse to find us nekked in the morning."

He helped me slip my gown back on and he pulled up his pajamas. Then he walked over to the door and popped the lock, but didn't open the door. Finally he pulled the sheet up over me and tucked me in. As he started to climb into the recliner, I asked: "Don't you want to sleep here with me? I know the bed is small, but we could do it."

"I'd have to sleep on my right side to hold you and I can't sleep on my bad leg all night. And with the IV, you won't be able to put your arm around me if I sleep on my left side."

I nodded but couldn't hide my disappointment. I would just have to wait until tomorrow to fall asleep in his arms again.

He looked at my sad face and tsked at me: "You are such a pain in the ass, sometimes."

"Yeah, but I give good head. I heard a rumor it was the best you ever had."

He threw his head back and laughed. "Yeah, you do. That is a point in your favor."

He stood up and walked around to my IV pole. Slowly he moved it around the bed, taking care not to tangle the line or pull on my arm and repositioned it on the left side of the bed. Greg instructed me to lie on my left side and he moved around the bed again. He crawled in beside me, snuggled up to my back and wrapped his arm around me.

"How's this? I know you like to lie facing me but you won't be able to with the IV line."

I smiled at the feel of his naked chest up against my bare back. He hadn't tied the gown very well, so it gaped open in the back. I linked my fingers through his and said: "This is good, cowboy, very good."

He kissed my neck: "So you're happy now? Good. Go to sleep. You've had sex and cuddling, woman, what more do you need?"

In the darkness, I whispered: "Just to go home."

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I did get to go home the next day. My PTT was fine so Greg disconnected the heparin and started me on Lovenox. He scribbled a prescription for it and sent Jimmy to get it filled downstairs at the pharmacy.

Of course, I had to ride in a wheelchair down to the car. Greg still wanted me off my leg as much as possible so Jimmy picked me up and put me in the car again. On the ride home, Greg had Jimmy stop at CVS so that he could buy some condoms. He waggled the bag at me: "You owe me. You're gonna make it up to me for being such a pain in the ass."

I bowed my upper body in his direction: "Yes master. Whatever you say, master. As long as you shoot my ass full of Lovenox, this pain in the ass is all yours."

He shot me a look. "Brat."

With a quick glance towards He Jimmy, he switched to French: _"I ought to tie you to the bed so I can have my wicked way with you."_

I gave him a sultry look: _"If I say please,would you?"_

I saw the desire flash in his eyes: _"You're a very naughty girl."_

I put my lips to his ear and flicked my tongue over his earlobe: _"You could use those ugly ties that Jimmy always gives you for Christmas. There's a whole pile of them in the back of the closet."_

He let out an appreciative growl.

"That's enough!"

Both our heads swiveled and we looked at Jimmy's peeved expression in the rear-view mirror.

"We'll be home in 5 minutes; can you hold out that long? I really don't want to watch."

Greg let out such a deep laugh that I had to join it.

"Whattsamatta Jimmy? You can't be jealous, I thought you were finally getting some."

"I _am_ getting some. It doesn't mean I want to watch you two kanoodling in my back seat."

"So don't look in the rear-view mirror."

Greg cupped my cheek and turned my face towards his. Next thing I knew, we were locked in a very passionate, open-mouth, lots-of-tongue kiss. It was delicious and I couldn't help groaning out loud. Wilson snickered loudly from the front seat and that just incited Greg even more. He started fondling my breast and rubbing his thumb over my nipple. With Jimmy in the front seat, that was a little too much for me and I tried to push him away, but Greg had a good grip on me.

I broke our lip-lock: "Hey, I thought you didn't like an audience."

"Ah, Wilson doesn't count."

There was more snickering from the front seat. "Yeah, tell her about the time that we had those 2 hookers and we were taking turns."

Greg held up his hands: "OK, I'll stop."

"What two hookers?"

"See what you started, Wilson? Now she's going to want to know the whole sordid tale and I won't get any nookie tonight. Thanks a lot, moron."

Fortunately we had just pulled up in front of our building because Jimmy burst out laughing. He was laughing so hard that he was banging on the steering wheel with one hand. I saw a fleeting smile pass over Greg's face, but he sobered up when he saw me looking at him.

Pointing at Jimmy, he said: "It was all his idea."

Jimmy gasped out: "No, no, no. You're the one who approached them in the bar. Don't pin this one on me."

"Idiot! Can't you at least take the blame since you are the one who brought it up in front of my _girlfriend_??"

Jimmy waggled his finger at Greg. "You want me to lie for you?"

"Everybody lies, you dork. I'm your bestest friend, you can't lie to cover my ass?"

"It's much more fun to see you squirm."

"Jerk."

"Limping twerp."

My eyes felt like tennis balls bouncing back and forth between them. I cleared my throat: "Ahem, I'm sure it's a great story, but we're home and I'd like to get out of the car now."

Greg seemed eager to change the subject: "Yeah, let's get inside."

"Can I walk now?"

"No. Wilson will carry you in. You can walk around in the apartment a little bit, but I want you to rest as much as possible for the next couple of days and then you can slowly get back to your usual routine."

I rolled my eyes: "You'll have to do the grocery shopping."

"Hear that Jimmy? You gotta do the grocery shopping."

Jimmy bent over and scooped me up: "I believe she was telling you that, House."

Jimmy carried me into the apartment and Greg followed behind him carrying the overnight bag. He started down the hallway and called over his shoulder: "I assume you want me to put Elle in bed."

"You bet I want her in bed. I want her naked in bed, but that can wait until you leave."

He smirked and said in a low voice so that only I could hear him: "How _do _you put up with him?"

"He's really _really_ good in the sack."

Jimmy laughed so hard that he practically dropped me on the bed. "I'm leaving now so that you two can get busy. Call me if you need something."

He slapped Greg on the shoulder as he passed him in the hall and headed out the door, leaving Greg and me completely alone for the first time in 3 days.

Greg dropped the bag of condoms on the bed and then started rummaging in the closet. "Ugly ties, huh? Yeah, here's a whole pile of them."

He turned around with a handful of ties and flashed me an evil grin. "Lay down, baby. I gotta see if I remember my Boy Scout knots."

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I lay back on the bed and watched him, as he got ready. He kicked off his shoes and pulled his shirts over his head. Then he looked at me with an evil grin.

"You have too many clothes on. Take off your shirt and bra."

When the girls were revealed, he smiled in appreciation. He sat on the bed next to me and fondled them. My nipples perked right up.

"Ummm, they're happy to see me."

He seemed unable to resist taking one in his mouth. He released it with a big sigh and started nibbling on my neck.

"You're so tasty."

I giggled and he nipped me hard.

"Naughty girl, laughing at me. Lay back so I can collect what you owe me."

I complied with his request and he stretched my arms over my head. Grabbing a couple of neckties, he knotted one end around my left wrist and then tied it to the bedpost. He repeated that task with the right wrist. He tugged on them to make sure that they were secure and then he leaned over until his face was just inches from mine.

"Are you OK with this?"

I nodded.

He looked deeply into my eyes. "Don't just nod. Say it, and give me a safe word."

"I'm more than OK with this; I'm turned on. Wait until you take my panties off and find out. And we'll use apple pie for the safe word."

He seemed to be satisfied with my answer and gave me a gentle kiss on the lips. "Apple pie it is."

He held up another tie in front of me. "I'm not going to tie your legs because of the DVT. I want you to be able to move them. Lift you head a little bit."

He slipped the tie around my head and over my eyes, tying the knot on the left side of my head.

"Can you see anything?"

"Just a little bit of light at the top."

He adjusted it: "How about now?"

"I'm totally in the dark."

"Good."

I felt his fingers move under the waistband of my sweat pants and I lifted my butt in anticipation. He pulled both pants and panties off in one swoop.

He made an appreciative sound: "Naked and helpless; very sexy."

He ran his hands up my legs, brushed over my Mound and up my belly until he reached my breasts again. He squeezed them gently, stroking the nipples with his thumbs. Suddenly he got off the bed.

"I'll be right back. You stay here."

Sarcastically I replied: "Like I'm going anywhere."

"Tsk, tsk, that attitude is going to cost you."

I hear him walk out of the room. My other senses were heightened now that my sight was gone. I could really feel that I was alone in the bedroom and I wondered where he was going.

He returned in a few minutes and set something down on the nightstand. I heard what sounded like a bag rustling then a tearing noise and something else plopped down on the nightstand.

Suddenly his hand was between my legs and I jumped at the unexpected contact. He chuckled as he slid his fingers inside my slit: "A little jumpy today, aren't we? Well, hang on, cuz there's lot of surprises in store for you."

I honestly felt a bit nervous, but I trusted Greg and knew he would never hurt me. He pumped his fingers slowly in and out of me and just barely grazed my clit with his thumb.

He murmured: "Nice and wet; you're ready for me so quickly."

Greg removed his fingers and I whimpered at the lack of contact. I heard a low chuckle and then his sticky fingers were rubbing across my lips and pushing their way into my mouth. "Taste yourself. You're so delicious. I'm going down for a snack in a few minutes, but I have some other things to do first."

After I finished cleaning his fingers, he pulled them out of my mouth. I heard him unfastened his belt and pull down his zipper. Rustling noises told me that he was dropping trou and the next thing I knew he was laying his naked body on top of mine. I could feel the delicious hardness of his cock as he rubbed it against my belly. His lips found mine and we kissed deeply for several minutes.

"I love it when these lips taste like your other lips. It's such a turn-on."

All I could do was smile, moan and kiss him back. I longed to run my fingers through his hair and over his skin, but the neckties effectively prevented that.

He shifted his weight off of me and then I felt hard coldness on my left nipple.

"Ah! What's that?"

"What do you think it is?"

"Feels like ice."

"Clever girl. It is."

He rubbed the cube around my nipple until I shuddered and then he quickly took my nipple into his mouth and suckled it until it was nice and warm again. The contrast between the intense cold and the lovely warmness of his mouth was incredible and only served to increase my desire for him.

I groaned loudly when the ice cube touched my other nipple. He still had my left nipple in his mouth and now the right nipple was being assaulted by the ice cube. When my moaning grew louder, he moved quickly to the right nipple and warmed it up with his tongue. He placed the reminder of the ice cube in the valley between my breasts and let it start to melt.

"Ah, that's so cold."

"Want me to remove it?"

"Yes, please."

I felt him pick up the ice cube with his lips and then I gasped again as he dropped it into my belly button.

"Oh, you don't like it there either. I was going to clean up this wetness." He lapped at my valley. "And then I was going to work on this other wetness."

I felt the bed shift with his weight and then I felt his tongue on my folds. I moaned loudly and pushed my pelvis up against his mouth.

"Oh, you don't want me to work on this wetness. I should clean this one up first." He started tonguing my belly button and sucking up the small amount of water that had melted.

"No, no, go back. Work on the other place," I begged, thrusting my hips into the air and hoping to make some contact.

"Naw, you don't want it bad enough yet. Besides, I have more fun things to do."

The bed shifted again and I waited to see what would happen next. I could tell that Greg was kneeling next to me, but of course, I couldn't see what he was doing. Then I felt something sticky on my breast.

"Greg, what's that?"

"Shhhh, I'm drawing. You are disturbing my artistic flow."

The sticky substance continued to drop onto my body. I could feel in on both of my breasts and down my belly.

Softly he said: "Do you know what this is?"

I shook my head.

"Oh, come on, take a guess."

"I don't know. Chocolate syrup?" I knew we had a can of that in the cupboard for ice cream.

"Good guess, but no. I'll try that next time, although that would be really messy. I'll let you taste it then you'll know what it is."

The bed shifted again; I could sense he was moving closer to the head of the bed. Then I felt his hand lifting my head and turning it a bit to the right. He poked his dick against my lips and I opened my mouth and took him in. As I licked and sucked him, I realized that the sticky stuff was honey.

"Oh, babe, you look so hot, sucking on me blindfolded. This is a _Hustler _photo; wish I had a camera. I'd like to immortalize this moment."

While I was glad he didn't actually have a camera, his words got me even hotter and I sucked him harder. He groaned and encouraged my frenzied moments with his hand on the back of my head.

Finally he stopped me. "I don't want to end this action so soon. More things to play with."

His tongue got a good workout licking the honey off of my body. Finally after long agonizing moments, he reached the promised land. I was dripping wet and so ready for action. He parted my legs and shifted around on the bed getting comfortable.

"Ready for my real snack now," he said just before he dove in. I cried out from pleasure as his tongue wiggled against my aroused clit. He lapped my core from top to bottom, stopping occasionally to poke his tongue inside of me. He would gently suckle on my clit until I was just about to go over the edge and he would switch to tonguing my folds. He was truly driving me mad with desire and the fact that I couldn't see him or touch him only increased my passion.

"Greg, fuck me. Please fuck me; I'm so ready for you."

"You are? Are you suuuuurrrre?" He waggled his tongue hard against my clit.

I screamed: "Oh Gawd, yes. Please fuck me. I want you inside me so bad. I've missed you so much. It's been 3 days! Fuck me!"

The bed shifted with his weight again and then I heard a low tearing noise. He must be ripping open the condom wrapper. I moaned with pleasure; he was finally going to enter me now.

The next thing I felt was the head of his sheathed cock rubbing against my clit. I pushed up against him, trying to angle my body to push him inside of me.

He chuckled: "So eager, so impatient. My horny little minx, is this what you need?"

He rammed his cock completely inside me with one thrust and I screamed. He fucked me quite hard for a couple of strokes and then he slowed the pace.

I moaned as I angled my pelvis up to meet his thrusts. He pumped me steadily and I felt the telltale tingle that I was getting close. My breathing was ragged and I was gripping the neckties tightly.

Greg hooked one of my legs over his shoulder so he could penetrate me deeper and then as he continued to pump, he pushed the necktie off of my eyes.

"I like to see your eyes when you come."

As I rocked against him, I couldn't help smiling: "I like seeing yours too."

He smiled back, with his whole face and his eyes. My grin grew wider; his mask was completely gone. I felt like I could see into the depths of his soul.

That look sent me over the edge. I struggled to keep my eyes open for him as I cried out in pleasure from my orgasm.

"That's it, come for me, baby. Oh, that's good. That's so good. Aw, yeah. Fuck, oh Gawd, fuck!"

His eyes closed briefly as his orgasm hit, but he managed to open them again. He pumped several more times as we rode out our orgasms. He collapsed on top of me and tried to roll us over on our sides, but my bonds prevented that. He growled in frustration and released my arms. He rubbed them briskly to get the circulation going again. I was happy to be able to touch him again and I cupped his face as I kissed him over and over again.

"I love you, cowboy. I love you so much."

He chuckled as he pulled out of me, rolling the condom off of his dick and tossing it on the floor. "Are you going to say that every time we have sex?"

"Not every time. Just when I especially feel it."

"You aren't going to expect me to say it all the time, are you?"

I'd love to hear him say it again, but I knew that was too much to expect from Greg. Besides, I already knew how he felt and that was the important part. I simply said: "No. Say it if you feel like it."

"Good, cuz I hate repeating myself."

He pulled me closer for my post-sex cuddle. I sighed with contentment as I nestled into his embrace. He gently caressed my back as we lay in each other's arms.

"Did you really learn those knots in the Boy Scouts?"

He snorted: "Oh, hell no. I had enough of uniforms and regimented life dealing with the Marines. No way I was going to join the Boy Scouts."

I snuggled deeper into his embrace. As we were dozing off, I whispered: "Is the hooker story true?"

He murmured: "Yes."

"Will you tell me one day?"

As he nodded off, he managed to mumble: "No way, Jose."


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

**_ELLE_**

I stayed home the rest of the week. Greg decided that I could walk between the bed and the couch so I spent most of my time of the couch, either watching TV or playing on the laptop. It was rather boring, but Greg would send me lewd e-mails several times a day and that was entertaining. I spent way too much time watching daytime talk shows and I would e-mail him back with my opinions about Maury or Oprah's guests.

Greg didn't have any difficult patients this week, so he was home at a decent hour every night. I was glad of that, because it was certainly boring staying home all day and not moving around much. I wanted to get well as fast as possible, so I obeyed my doctor's orders and rested as much as possible. . Naturally, Greg did not go to the grocery store, but Jimmy picked up some essentials. He brought me cold cuts so I could make sandwiches for lunch and the three of us would have take-out for dinner or Jimmy would cook for all of us.

Fortunately it was not my weekend to play at Satchel's; I know Greg would have not allowed me to do that. We spent the weekend watching football and making up for the time in the hospital by having lots of sex.

We tried various barrier birth control methods. They all left something to be desired. The creams and jellies were messy and worse, Greg said they tasted awful. Plus my body makes enough lube that we don't need to use any extra. If we had a second round and inserted more jelly, which is what you are supposed to do, Greg would be sloshing around in there and not getting enough friction. I would have to get in to see the gynecologist to get sized for a diaphragm, but again we would have the same problem with the jelly.

In the end, we fell back to using condoms. They were quick and easy to use, there were no taste issues, and they were easy enough to carry around for spontaneous sexcapades. I knew Greg missed bareback sex, but he never complained.

The following week was a short workweek due to Thanksgiving being on Thursday, so Greg got Cuddy to call Kirby again and tell him I needed to take that week off too. Greg figured that I would be fine to go back to work on the last Monday of November. It was nice having 2 weeks off. By the Monday before Thanksgiving, Greg was letting me walk around more, but I still had to send Jimmy to get all the Thanksgiving groceries. Jimmy and I planned the menu; we were going to make the turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes and our guests were bringing the side dishes and desserts. I was going to make a pan of lasagna too. Tony's family always had lasagna as a side dish for every holiday and the tradition grew on me. So I always make it for Thanksgiving now and it's something different to go with the traditional turkey meal.

I made the lasagna and the stuffing the night before. Jimmy stuffed the bird early on Thanksgiving morning and popped it into the oven. Later on, we set up extra tables and chairs and made the mashed potatoes. Greg did his part by staying out of our way.

Our guests started arriving around 4PM. Avi and Ricky brought apple, pumpkin and pecan pies. Adam, Gen and Audra brought cranberry sauce with and without whole berries, a Jello fruit mold and a dish of peas with pearl onions. Lenny brought his traditional green bean casserole made with Durkee fried onion rings. Danny made a sweet potato casserole with mini-marshmellows on top. Cuddy made a huge salad and Billy and Theresa brought the wine.

The table was set, the food was ready and everyone was here except Greg. I knew he was parked on his couch watching football, so I simply walked across the hall, threw the door open and yelled: "Dinner!" Then I turned and walked back into my place.

He quickly appeared and his eyes widened as he took in the table. I wasn't sure if it was the huge array of food or the large number of people in my small apartment that stunned him, but he recovered quickly enough and sat down next to me.

As Billy walked around the table, pouring wine for everyone, I rapped my fork against my glass and stood up.

"Traditionally we go around the table and take turns saying what we are thankful for _after dinner_. But I decided to break with tradition and say my piece before dinner this year. You all know I've had kind of a rough year. I wouldn't have gotten through it without you. You were there for me in my darkest hour and I am so incredibly thankful to have you for my family."

I paused and looked around the table. They had all been so good to me. Being an orphaned only child, there were times when I felt incredibly alone, but these wonderful people had become family to me. I knew I could always reach out to them and they would be there for me.

"Since last Thanksgiving, we have acquired some new family members. I am thankful that Lisa, Jimmy and Greg have joined us." I smiled at each of them in turn, ending with Greg, who was looking at me with an amused expression. I knew this wasn't his thing, but I plowed ahead, addressing this next part to him.

"You have brought such light into the second half of this year after the darkness of the beginning. I am especially thankful for having you in my life."

He had an amused smirk on his face, but I could see the twinkle in his eyes. I bent down and gave him a kiss. Then I raised my glass and wished everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. They raised their glasses and responded in kind, and we all started passing the serving dishes.

We loaded our plates and dug in. Greg had huge helpings of everything on his plate, although he did pass on the salad. He caught me staring at me and I knew I had a silly grin on my face.

He shook his head and said softly: "Silly girl. You're thankful for _me?_ You're just thankful for the fabulous orgasms that I give you every night."

"Yeah, that's what I really meant. I didn't want to get that graphic in front of Audra."

He chuckled despite the large mouthful that he was currently chewing. He managed to swallow without choking and then whined: "Do we all have to do that?"

"Yes. It's tradition."

"I hate tradition."

"You like the traditional food."

"It's food. That's different."

We all stuffed ourselves into a turkey coma. As we sat around digesting before starting on desserts, we went around the table and everyone described what they were thankful for this year.

When it was Greg's turn, he patted his belly and said: "I'm thankful that my girlfriend and her _family_ are such good cooks."

Jimmy exclaimed: "That's it? That's all you're thankful for?"

"Well, I'm thankful that my girlfriend gives the best head I've ever had, but I probably shouldn't say that in front of a 3-year-old kid."

"You just did!"

"Oops, my bad."

It came as no surprise that Cuddy stayed to help clean up after the others had departed. She and Wilson had been exchanging glances all night, and I wondered if they were going to hook up again now that Wilson was legally separated. Greg noticed it too. He looked at me, shot them a pointed look and wiggled his eyebrows at me. I told Lisa that she didn't need to help, but she just ignored me and continued wrapping up the leftovers. While Greg nursed a scotch and checked on the football scores, the three of us wrapped up all the leftovers, folded up the extra tables and got the dishes done.

I was curious to see what would happen if the two of them were left alone, so I told Greg that I was really tired and wanted to go to bed. It was still relatively early and I could tell he was surprised by my request, but he played along. We said goodnight and headed over to our place.

Once we were in Greg's apartment, he said: "It's kinda early. What was that all about? You're not really tired, are you?"

"No, I wanted to leave them alone and see if anything happens. I bet you that Lisa's car will still be parked outside in the morning."

"I'm not taking that bet. I think they're are going to play doctor."

"Which one's the doctor and which one's the patient?"

"Oh, I think Mistress Cuddy would be the doctor. She just loves to be in charge. Wonder if she brought her whip?"

I giggled and wrapped my arms around him. "Wanna play doctor with me?"

He slipped his hands under my shirt and unclasped my bra. "You need a complete physical and I'm just the doctor to do it. We'll start with the breast exam."

As soon as I woke up the next morning, I ran to the living room window to see if Lisa's car was still there. Gleefully, I ran back into the bedroom and bounced on the bed, waking Greg.

"Her car's still there! She spent the night!"

He grumbled: "It's too early in the morning for you to be this bouncy, and you haven't even had coffee yet. What are you going to be like after coffee?"

He rolled me onto my back and then lay down on top on me, pining my arms above my head. "Beside, why are you so happy about that? Jimmy's been getting some with a couple of the nurses."

He buried his face in my neck and tenderly kissed my sweet spot.

My fingers automatically started playing with his hair. "Yeah, well, remember when Jimmy walked in on us? It's payback time, baby."

He smirked: "I already did that in the conference room, remember?"

"Yeah, but I didn't get to be there. Don't you want to bust in on them again?"

He yawned: "No, not really."

He rolled onto his back and pulled me along for the ride so I ended up lying on top of him. He wrapped his arms tightly around me as if he were afraid that I would get away, or worse, start bouncing the bed again.

"If we walk in on them, then they will want to get back at us, and the games will begin. We have 3 more days to this weekend, and I want to enjoy them and enjoy you without wondering if Wilson and Cuddy are going to interrupt us in the middle of our fun time. Besides, I don't want him seeing you naked again."

There was a sudden gleam in his eyes: "You want to see Wilson naked, don't you? I told you that he doesn't measure up to me."

"No, I don't want to see his joystick. You're the only one I want to see naked. You are the sexiest man I know."

I could tell by the change in his expression that he liked what I just said. With one hand on the back of my head, he gently coaxed me closer until our lips met. Meanwhile, his other hand was gliding down the length of my back. I softly moaned when he started caressing my ass.

"Isn't this much better than getting dressed and going over there to catch them in the sack?"

I cupped his face with my hands and slid my tongue into his mouth as my answer.

After a very satisfying romp, we finally rolled out of bed to find food. I slipped on a cami and some boxers and wandered into the kitchen to start breakfast. I got the coffee going and started pulling the eggs and bacon out of the fridge. After a few minutes, Greg wandered into the kitchen wearing just his boxers. I loved it when he walked around like that. Not only did he look sexy as hell, I loved the fact that he was comfortable enough with me that he didn't feel like he had to always hide his scar. I poured him a mug of coffee, added the sugar and handed it to him. He took a sip and set it down on the island. Silently he cupped my cheek and stroked it with his thumb. The tender look in his eyes made my heart skip a beat.

Softly he murmured: "You're so sweet. Sweet like sugar."

He planted a soft kiss on my lips and then stepped back, removing his hand from my face and picking up the coffee mug again.

He asked: "Bacon and eggs?"

I nodded, unable to form coherent words at the moment. He smirked at my reaction.

"Good, I'm starved. Hey, wanna go see the new James Bond movie today?"

I found my voice again. "Yeah, definitely. It's supposed to be really good. Shall we ask Jimmy if he wants to go?"

He smirked: "Let's see if we can drag the two of them out of bed for a movie."

**_WILSON_**

I was surprised that House and Elle retired so early. It made me think that they were up to something. I felt a bit awkward being alone with Lisa. I thought I was getting vibes like she wanted to spend the night, but I wasn't sure. There had been a few meaningful glances exchanged over dinner. As we sat down on the futon with a glass of wine, I noticed that she sat fairly close to me.

I picked up the remote: "Want to watch a little TV?"

"Sure. You don't mind if I take off my shoes, do you? These are new ones and they are a little tight."

"No, not at all."

I picked up the remote and started flipping around the channels. It seemed like I was looking for something to watch, but in reality I was just going through the motions as I watched Lisa take off her shoes and prop her feet up on the coffee table. She had worn a black pencil skirt to dinner and despite the November chill, her legs were bare. That was unusual; at work, she always wore stockings. But I was enjoying the sight of her bare legs and pink polished toenails as I clicked through the channels, unaware of the contents that were passing by.

"Oh, stop. Go back one channel. That was '_Casablanca'_. I love that movie. Would it be OK if we watched that for a while?"

"Oh, sure." I was happy to not have to make a decision about what to watch. I backtracked to the right channel, tossed the remote onto the coffee table and settled back to watch the movie with her.

We were deeply engrossed in the movie, when suddenly Lisa shivered.

"Are you cold? Should I put on the heat?"

"Oh, no, it's not that cold. Maybe there's a blanket or a throw that I could just wrap up in?"

"Sure."

I went to the closet and found a lightweight blanket. I spread it over her and she smiled gratefully as I sat back down.

In a voice that sounded almost shy, she said: "You could get under here too. It will be warmer that way."

I lifted the blanket and scootched over closer to her. I felt the heat from her body and was suddenly glad that the blanket was covering my lap as the heat in my own body was causing something to happen. I casually draped my arm over the futon behind her and she nestled into my shoulder. After a few minutes, her head was resting on my shoulder and my head was on top of hers.

In the movie, Ilsa was just requesting for Sam to play that song again for old times' sake.

Lisa sighed. "I just love this song."

I looked down at her and could see the longing in her eyes. As Sam went on to sing the opening bars of _"As Time Goes By"_, I leaned closer and gently brushed my lips against hers. I pulled back slightly and looked at her. Lisa's eyes were closed; her lips parted in a rather appealing pout. I deepened the next kiss, my left arm squeezing her shoulder and my right creeping under the blanket and settling on her left hip, pulling her closer to me. I felt her fingers in my hair. Her lips parted, allowing my tongue entrance to her sweet mouth.

In the background, Sam kept on singing: "_A kiss is just a kiss. A sigh is just a_ _sigh."_ I briefly wondered what the future would bring if I slept with my boss, but I knew I wanted her in my bed tonight, and judging from where her hand was currently caressing, I knew she wanted it too.

We kissed for a long time, our tongues thoroughly exploring each other's mouth. Our previous encounter in the conference room had been too rushed. This time, we were going to enjoy each other. We finally had to break for air. Lisa's lips were swollen and pink, her eyes shining with desire. I wanted her so badly. My erection was throbbing painfully and begged to be released from the confines of my pants.

My breathing was a bit ragged as I said: "You're so beautiful. Lisa, do you? I mean. Do you want to? Are you sure?" I couldn't quite get the question out.

She stared deeply into my eyes: "Yes, James. I'm sure."

I felt the smile creep across my face. I joyously kissed her again and then I scooped her up in my arms. I started to head towards the bedroom and then paused for a moment. I turned and walked to the front door, still carrying Lisa in my arms.

"What is it, James? Is something wrong?"

"No, just taking some preventive measures. Since my hands are full, would you mind flipping the deadbolt and putting the chain on? I would hang a necktie on the outside of the door, but I'm not wearing one at the moment, and I don't feel like looking for one. The chain will serve as an effective deterrent."

"What if Elle needs to get in? I mean; it is her apartment."

"I doubt that she would need to come over here for anything. She has moved a lot of her stuff over to House's. And I really didn't want House dropping in on us this time."

Lisa flipped the lock and put the chain on. "Neither do I."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

I drifted into consciousness with a feeling of a heavy weight on my chest. Slowly I opened my eyes. There was a woman draped across my chest, raven-haired and sound asleep. _Lisa_. I smiled as I peeked under the sheet at her naked body. Ever so gently, so as not to wake her, I ran my hand down her back. She really did have the most perfect round ass; it's no wonder that House stared at it all the time.

I chuckled to myself, _thinking of House at a time like this_. I was extremely happy that he hadn't interrupted us; part of me kept expecting him to burst in, chain or no chain. I glanced at the clock; it was already half past ten. It wasn't surprising that we slept late considering the two very energetic rounds of sex that we had last night. Lisa was an amazing passionate lover and although I had recently had dates with a couple of nurses, this had been so much better.

Thinking about last night caused a certain part of my anatomy to stir and I found myself hoping that Lisa liked morning sex. I slowly awakened her with kisses and caresses. When I finally succeeded in waking her, I could tell by the smile on her face and the desire in her eyes that morning sex was definitely on the menu.

It was tender and sweet, and we held each other for a long time afterwards. Finally Lisa stirred: "I could really go for a coffee. Any chance you have a coffee maker?"

"Yeah, I'll go make some. Want a bagel or something else for breakfast?"

"Just coffee, for now, thanks."

I slipped on a pair of boxers and headed into the kitchen to start the coffee. Lisa joined me in a few minutes; she had slipped one of my t-shirts on, but as she moved I could see that she had nothing else on underneath it. Damn, that woman could look sexy dressed in a burlap bag.

Sitting at the dining room table, we sipped our coffee silently. I wondered what she was thinking, how she felt about sleeping with me last night. Was it just a one-night stand or was she interested in more? Was I interested in more? I had only been separated from Julie for a mere two weeks. Was I ready to dive back in or should I just date around for a while? Either way, how would this affect my work relationship with Cuddy?

I glanced over and our eyes met. Lisa smiled shyly and looked down at her coffee mug. My heart flipped. Lisa was never shy; she was the boldest, brassiest woman I have ever known.

I put my hand over hers: "Lisa,"

Just then my cell phone rang and I groaned inwardly. Someone has great timing.

"I better get that, in case it's the hospital."

Lisa nodded. I hurried into the bedroom to retrieve my phone.

When I checked the caller ID, I did actually groan out loud. It was House calling. I was tempted not to answer it, figuring he was going to razz me about sleeping with Cuddy, but I decided to get it over with.

"Hello."

"Are you out of bed yet?"

"Good morning to you, too. Yeah, we're having coffee."

"You could be having coffee in bed. Maybe 'having coffee' is a new euphemism for sex."

"We're drinking coffee at the dining room table. Do you need those kinds of details?"

"Just wondering if you were still horizontal or not? Elle wants to go see the new Bond movie and wants to know if you and the Wicked Witch want to tag along."

"Elle did not call Cuddy that name."

"No, that was my translation. She actually said _ask Wilson and his current squeeze."_

I shook my head; House was impossible.

I muted my phone and said to Lisa: "They are going to see the new Bond movie and are inviting us along. Want to go?"

Her face was thoughtful and then she said: "Sure. I need to go home first and change clothes, but yeah, sure."

I unmuted the phone and said: "We'll meet you there. What time's the show?"

"Elle's on Fandango reserving us tickets as we speak. Uhhh, 3:10 or 4:15?"

I looked at Cuddy: "3:10 or 4:15?"

"The later one would be better, so I have time to go home first."

To House, I said: "Go with the 4:15 show. We'll meet you at the theater at 4:00."

I closed the phone. We were going on a date. Granted it was a double date with House and Elle, but it was a date. Maybe this could be more than just a one-time thing.

I showered and changed and then we drove us over to Lisa's house. I poked around her living room while she showered and changed. She reappeared wearing tight black jeans and a long-sleeved red clingy knit top. Her outfit really accentuated her assets and I inadvertently let out a wolf whistle.

I slapped my hand over my mouth. I could feel the heat on my face and knew I was blushing.

Lisa merely smiled and said: "Why, thank you, James."

She slipped her arm through mine and we walked out to my car.

'_Casino Royale'_ was fantastic. The action in the opening scene was unbelievable and it just kept coming. Even House was enthralled by the movie and didn't throw popcorn at other patrons or any of his other usual annoying movie theatre antics.

Despite the fact that there was a ton of leftover turkey at home, we went out for dinner after the movie. House was in a hamburger mood, so we went to the pub side of the Alchemist and Barrister. Lisa had a tofu vegetable wrap and the rest of us had burgers and fries. Over dinner, we naturally discussed the movie. Lisa and Elle got into a discussion over the physical attributes of the new James Bond. They decided that Sean Connery was still the sexiest Bond, but Daniel Craig was number two behind him. Lisa expressed her opinion that Pierce Brosnan was also hot, but Elle said no way was Pierce as hot as Sean.

House interjected: "You think Craig is hot?"

Both women nodded.

"Are you blind or something? His ears stick out like an elephant. You could hang a suit on those ears."

Elle gushed: "But that bod. Oh my Gawd, that body. That scene where he is getting out of the ocean, man, he looks sooooo good."

Lisa nodded in agreement, but House frowned. "I don't see why you're getting all goo-goo eyed over him. He's not that great."

Elle smirked: "I don't expect YOU to get it. You're a _guy_ and you're not _gay_. But I bet you thought Eva Green was hot."

House agreed: "Yeah, she was hot, decent rack. Almost as good as yours, Cuddy."

Lisa smirked: "Wow, you think mine are better than Eva Green's. I'm flattered."

"Well, I'm not 100 positive. Flash the twins for me. That will help me decide. OW!"

I laughed. Cuddy smacked him on the arm. He was rubbing it and whined to Elle: "The wicked witch hit me."

"You poor thing. Want me to kiss it and make it better?"

The look he gave her was smoldering. In a low voice, he murmured: "Yes, but not here."

Elle tilted her head and a smile slowly spread across her face: "Wanna go home so I can take care of your boo-boo?"

"It's a big one."

"I think I can handle it."

"Oh, I want you to handle it. And fondle it. And kiss it until it is ALL better."

I couldn't take it anymore: "OK, OK, we get it! Elle is going to take care of your _BIG_ boo-boo. We don't need details."

"Don't you want some details? It might give you some ideas for later."

I started to sputter an answer, but Lisa got there first. "We have plenty of ideas of our own, but thanks anyway."

House smirked at her: "Any time, Cuddles. Any time."

They left in a hurry and as usual I got stuck with the bill. But they had paid for the movie tickets, so I didn't feel so bad.

As I was signing the credit card receipt, I felt a hand on my knee.

A soft voice asked: "Would you like to come back to my place tonight?"

I smiled at her and nodded. So this definitely wasn't a one-night stand. I wasn't sure what it was, but I was willing to play along for a while.

**_ELLE_**

Greg and I spent the rest of the weekend alone. Cuddy's car was still parked out front, but Jimmy's was missing so we surmised that they were spending time at her house.

The Florida/FSU game was at noon on Saturday, so we headed to the sports bar to watch it. It is an intense rivalry that is always played on Thanksgiving weekend and fans of both the teams filled the bar. It was an exciting game and the Gators pulled it off, 21 – 14. The SEC championship game was next week, but it was being broadcast on national TV so we could stay home and watch it. I knew Greg generally preferred to watch sports at home, but he didn't seem to mind coming to watch these games with me. I think he actually liked that I had a bit of a football obsession.

Turkey leftovers were on the menu for dinner that night. Jimmy had obviously not been back home since yesterday. There were dregs in the coffeepot and he would have never let them sit without washing the pot if he were home. We speculated about their whereabouts and Greg was sure that they were at Cuddy's place, screwing like bunnies.

Not that we didn't do plenty of that ourselves. I took care of his 'boo-boo' after dinner Friday night and he returned the favor as always. Saturday night, I ran us a nice hot bubble bath and we relaxed in there for a while. As he was washing my back, he pointed something out to me.

"Sweetheart, you're bruising a bit from the shots. I'm trying to give them to you as gently as I can, but you seem to bruise easily. Are you sure you want to stay on the shots for 3 months? I could still switch you over to the Coumadin."

"No. It's holiday season, and I don't want to have to watch what I eat. There're just little bruises, right?"

I twisted around trying to get a look at them.

Greg rubbed his thumb over one of them and frowned: "Yeah, they are small. I just feel like I'm hurting you when I inject you and there's the proof."

"But it doesn't hurt when you give me the shot. You're very gentle. Don't worry about it. I only have 2 and a half more months to go."

He rolled his eyes. "Great. You'll be completely purple by then. Hope that's a good color for you."

Sunday night rolled around faster than I wanted and I tried to psyche myself up for going back to work. Greg and I had enjoyed a nice weekend together and I hated to see it end. Jimmy strolled in while we were heating up leftovers in my kitchen. Greg smirked when he saw that Jimmy was still wearing the same clothes that he had on from Friday night.

"What did you do, Jimmy, my boy? Stay naked all weekend?"

With a smirk, Jimmy replied: "What do you think?"

He turned on his heel and headed into the bathroom. The squeak of the faucets and the sound of the water indicated that he was heading into the shower.

"Now's your chance, sweetheart. If you still want to get back at him for seeing you naked, you could walk in on him in the shower."

"I thought you didn't want me to do that."

He shrugged: "I didn't want you to do it earlier because I didn't want Cuddy's competitive streak to emerge. She would have been out to even the score and I didn't want to spend the whole weekend watching our backs. Plus, she is my boss and I don't want any more clinic hours. But now it's just Wilson, so that's different."

"You don't care if I sneak in there and see him naked?"

"Naw, but I'm telling you he doesn't measure up to me."

"I know he doesn't. After all, I saw the pictures. I just wanted to even the score, you know."

With a flourish, he motioned towards the bathroom: "Go for it."

The shower was going full-blast. I turned the doorknob as quietly as I could and tiptoed in. Greg was right behind me. I quickly pulled the shower curtain back and said: "Hey Jimmy, want me to heat up some leftovers for you?"

He screamed like a girl and slammed back against the wall. He dropped the soap and quickly moved his hands to cover his privates, but he wasn't quick enough. I had gotten a good look.

"Holy shit, Greg. Come here. I think Jimmy needs a doctor. His dick is beet red."

Greg limped closer: "What did the she-devil do to you, Jimmy? Let me take a look."

He yelled: "No. Get out of here. I'm fine. I don't need you to look at it."

Innocently, I said: "But Jimmy, it's all red. It looks sore. Does it hurt? Maybe you need some cream."

Greg smirked: "Cuddy probably sucked all the cream out of his body and all that's left is just a nub."

Jimmy's face was red now. "It's not a nub. Just get out of here and leave me alone."

Greg started poking him in the shoulder and Jimmy finally had to move one hand to bat Greg away, revealing more of his privates.

"Oh, yeah, Elle, you're right. His dick is red. She rode you hard this weekend, didn't she? Bet you'll get out of clinic duty for a while."

He screamed: "Just get out of here!"

"OK, OK. We're leaving. No need to get so huffy. We're just concerned for your well-being. I could write you a prescription for some cortisone cream to soothe that redness."

He threw the soap at us and thankfully he used his right hand so his aim was really off. It bounced off the wall and we took that as our cue to leave.

Back in the kitchen, we cracked up. We laughed until our sides ached. I loved watching Greg laugh; he so rarely let loose that way. Once we had calmed down, I went back to heating up our dinner.

Just as we were sitting down to eat, Jimmy emerged. He had tossed on a t-shirt and some sweat pants. Surprisingly he had not blow-dried his hair. It was still damp from the shower.

Hands on hips, he confronted us: "And just what the hell was that?"

In my most innocent tone, I answered: "I just wanted to check and see if you wanted me to heat up some dinner for you." I pressed my lips together, trying to keep a straight face.

"And it couldn't have waited until I got out of the shower? You couldn't have shouted the question through the door?"

I smiled at him: "And what fun would that have been? Besides, now we're even. I finally got you back for seeing me naked back in July."

He buried his face in his hands and groaned. "Oh. Christ. So that's what this was. Jesus, House, no wonder you two get along. She's just like you, biding her time, plotting revenge until the opportunity presents itself."

Greg smiled: "She's good, isn't she?"

I piped in: "Want something to eat? I set a place for you." I pointed to the extra place setting.

He sighed and sat down. "Sure."

I passed him the mashed potatoes. He put some on his plate and then Greg passed him the turkey.

In a normal conversational tone, Greg asked: "So how are the twins?"

As Jimmy forked a big slice of turkey onto his plate, he replied: "Delightful. Absolutely delightful. And that's all I'm going to say."

"Seems like we all had a good weekend. I think Thanksgiving is my new favorite holiday."

Jimmy smirked: "Didn't know you had an _old_ favorite holiday."

Greg shrugged: "Well, anything with food and football is basically OK in my book. Throw in a lot of sex and we have a winner."

We passed the serving dishes around until we had filled our plates and then we tucked into dinner. I was curious as to exactly what was going on between Jimmy and Lisa, but I knew there was no way I was getting it out of him now, not after my little stunt. I'd have to bide my time. With any luck, Greg would be able to get it out of him tomorrow at work.


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Author's note: Mature audiences only! Heavy smut, (i.e. graphic sex) at the end of this chapter. You have been warned.

**_HOUSE_**

Wilson's apartment wasn't ready on December 1, as they had promised. They swore it would be ready by January 1, so naturally Elle told Wilson that he could stay in her place until then. I pretended to be put out, but really I didn't mind. Elle was basically encamped in my place and I rather liked it this way. Sure, we argued sometimes and one of us would take off to pout for a while, but by bedtime, we would make up and fall asleep in each other's arms like we did every other night.

She took care of me in ways that Stacy never did. Stacy rarely cooked, but Elle seemed to like cooking for me. She seemed to get a kick watching me gobble down her creations and asking for seconds. I could usually find leftovers in the fridge when I needed a midnight snack. Lady was still coming over every other week to do the heavy cleaning, but Elle kept the apartment neat and did all the laundry. Amazingly she never hassled me about doing my share; she even took out the trash. Stacy had always been pushing to get me to help with the household chores and it was an annoying issue between us. Because Elle never nagged me, sometimes I would do the dishes just to surprise her. I found that I liked seeing that surprised pleased look on her face when I did.

More importantly, Elle seemed to understand that when I was hung up on a case, I needed to be left alone. She didn't get upset by that the way Stacy used to. She'd tiptoe around me, quietly leave a dinner plate nearby in case I wanted to eat and either hang out with Wilson or lounge in the bedroom reading. The only time that she would interrupt me was right as she was going to bed. She always wanted a goodnight kiss and I would interrupt my thoughts for a few minutes of affection before she went off to bed. Sometimes I would follow her back to the bedroom, and we would have some sweet sex and then I'd tuck her in before returning to my work.

Occasionally she said those 3 little words to me, but I hadn't said them since that first and only time. I didn't feel the need to verbally express those feelings all the time. Love with Elle was like a nice thick blanket, soft and comfortable, enveloping you and making you feel warm and safe. I couldn't remember the last time that I had felt this way. There had been love with Stacy, of course, but there had also been cold hard edges. It had not been this comfortable warmth that I felt with Elle.

Of course she had her little things that bugged me, but since she put up with so much of my crap without complaining, I tried to go along with some of her stuff. At least one Friday night a month, we had dinner with Avi and Ricky. Occasionally Adam and his family would join us too. She always told me that I didn't have to go, but I always did, unless I had a case. After the Thanksgiving festivities, it was no surprise to me that Elle wanted to have a dinner party for Hanukkah. I remembered the story she told me of how lighting the candles was so important to her that she had fought with her first foster family about it and ended up being burned with a cigar by the dad.

So on Saturday Dec 16, the second night of Hanukkah, everyone was invited to her place for dinner and candle lighting. Elle and Wilson decided on the menu and shopped for all the necessities. I had discovered a couple of wrapped presents on the top shelf of the closet. There was no name on them and I wondered whom they were for and if she expected me to get her something. I wasn't sure about the protocol for gift giving on Hanukkah, so I decided to ask my resident Jewish expert, Wilson.

I found the opportunity to ask him when we were having lunch in the cafeteria a few days before the dinner party.

I took a big bite of my Reuben, chewed and then asked: "So what's the deal with Hanukkah? Do you guys give each other gifts or what? Are you getting something for Cuddy?"

Wilson and Cuddy had been spending weekends together, usually at her place. They were keeping it on the down-low at work, especially since Wilson was still technically married. Even though Julie was the one who cheated on him, he didn't want her lawyer to have any extra ammunition to use against him. Elle and I were the only ones who knew about them.

"Well, it depends on the family. Some families only give presents to the kids; others give a small present for each night of the holiday."

"Holy crap, do I need to come up with 8 presents?"

He chuckled: "I don't think so. She told me that she got a couple of little things for Audra, but that she and the guys don't exchange gifts. She did ask me if you celebrated Christmas."

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her that when you lived with Stacy, she put up a tree and decorated, but you haven't done that since she left. That your biggest Christmas tradition was spending it with me and eating Chinese food."

"Did you tell her that you give me a new tie every year?"

He smirked: "Yeah, I told her that. So she's aware of your Christmas traditions. I don't think she'll be getting you a tie though. I think I have the market cornered on that."

"So, what are you saying? She's going to get me something for Christmas? Do I need to get her something for Hanukkah?"

"I get the feeling that she is going to ask you if you want a tree or other decorations. And yeah, she got you something for Christmas."

"You know what it is?"

He nodded: "But I'm not telling you. It's a surprise. It's not a big present, but I think you'll really like it. You can tell she put some thought into it, finding something that you would like. She bought it last weekend when she went shopping in New York with Gen and Theresa."

Last weekend Elle had gone on her annual New York City Christmas shopping spree with the girls. They had taken the train up on Saturday morning, shopped, saw the tree at Rockefeller Center, caught a show and came home on Sunday afternoon.

I couldn't imagine what she would get me. "Come on, give me a hint. Remember, bro's before ho's, man."

He shook his head: "Nope."

"Crap. What are you getting Cuddy? I know you're getting her something."

Wilson lowered his voice: "Look, there's nothing official about us. We're just spending some time together."

"Yeah, and screwing like bunnies. Come on, spill it."

He shrugged: "I'm getting her a bottle of her favorite perfume."

Then he mumbled: "And some small earrings."

"Small earrings, huh? What carat?"

He shook his head: "How do you always know these things?"

"You wouldn't buy your Cuddles anything cheap. You don't even buy ME cheap ties, even though you know I don't wear them."

"She's not MY Cuddles and they're ¾ carat, round in a white gold setting."

I nodded: "Nice. You dropped a chunk of change on those. I can only imagine what you would get her if you two were officially seeing each other."

I took another bite of my sandwich and chewed it slowly while I pondered this whole gift situation. If Elle was giving me a gift for Christmas, should I give her one at the same time or should I give it to her for Hanukkah? It seemed more appropriate to give her a gift on her holiday, but then there would be the awkwardness of getting a present and not giving one back at the same time.

I shuddered. This is why I don't do holidays, too many complications.

I gave up and asked Wilson: "So what do I do? Give her a present on her holiday or give it to her at Christmas when she is giving me mine?"

He took another bite of his tuna fish sandwich while he considered the question. "You know, Hanukkah is not really that big of a holiday for Jews. When we were kids, we only got small gifts, nothing huge. I can remember getting candy, a new baseball, little things like that. The adults didn't exchange gifts at all. It has gotten commercialized in the last few years due to its proximity to Christmas. And since Elle doesn't exchange gifts with her friends, I would say that the gift part is not a big deal for her. She seems to be really into the dinner thing, though."

"Yeah, the dinner and the candles. She told everyone to bring their own menorah. The apartment is going to be set ablaze Saturday night."

He chuckled: "Well, be glad that it is only the second night and there will be only 2 candles. Imagine if it were the 8th night. That _would_ be a bonfire. I say, wait and give her a gift at Christmas when she gives you yours. I think it would be nicer to exchange presents at the same time."

I nodded. That made sense to me and it also gave me more time to think of a gift for her too.

As usual, the food was delicious. Elle made a brisket in the crockpot for the main course. Adam and Gen made a big bowl of chopped Israeli salad. They also brought some menorah-shaped iced sugar cookies that Audra proudly claimed to have helped make. Avi and Ricky brought jelly doughnuts, called sufganiyot, which I learned were a traditional Israeli Hanukkah treat. Apparently anything made with oil is appropriate to eat on Hanukkah.

Cuddy brought some wine and since she had spent Friday night with Wilson anyway, she was helping out in the kitchen.

But the star attraction on the dinner menu was the latkes. Elle and Wilson made the potato pancakes from scratch and there were 2 different kinds, the traditional white potato variety and a sweet potato version. There was a choice of sour cream or applesauce to put on top of your latkes. They made them at the last, so they were piping hot and fresh when they arrived on the table and they were so good. We all chowed down on them.

A decision was made to light the candles before dessert so we would have some time to digest and make room for the sweets. Wilson, Ricky and the ladies cleared the dishes while Adam, Avi and I were entertained by Audra. She proudly displayed a clay menorah that she had made at her Jewish Day School. Then she showed us a wooden dreidel that the teacher helped her paint the letters on.

Avi praised her painting: "You did a great job, Princess. Can you tell us what the letters are?"

"Of course. This is nun, gimel, hay, and shin." She pointed to each letter as she said the word.

"Excellent job. Did you play dreidel at school?"

"Of course, we did. But we used buttons instead of gelt."

Audra leaned on Avi's knee. "Uncle Avi, do you have any gelt? We could play dreidel if you have some gelt."

"Hmmmm." Avi scratched his head and pretended to think about it while Audra bounced excitedly on her toes.

"I think Uncle Ricky has the gelt, Princess."

Audra went screaming into the kitchen: "Uncle Ricky! Do you have gelt? We can play dreidel if you have some gelt."

Avi looked at Adam: "You know, if you give her any more sugar, you'll never get her to sleep tonight."

Adam groaned: "I know. But she's going to want a cookie for dessert and maybe even part of a doughnut. Hard to say 'no' to desserts on a holiday. At least tomorrow is Sunday and we can sleep in."

The rest of the gang trouped back into the living room with Audra riding on Ricky's shoulders.

Audra shouted to us: "Uncle Ricky has the gelt. Mama says we can play after we light the candles."

Adam answered her: "Great. Are you going to light your menorah with Uncle Ricky or with Mama?"

"With Mama."

Audra extended her little arms out towards her mother. Ricky squatted down, to make it easier for Gen to pluck Audra off of his shoulders. Gen settled Audra on her hip and walked over to her bag to pull out their menorah.

Elle announced: "Everyone find a spot to set up your menorah."

Avi and Adam stood up. As if they had rehearsed it, they both pulled yarmulkes out of their back pockets, placed them on their heads and burst into that Adam Sandler song: _"Put on your yarmulke, it's time for Hanukkah. So much fun-nic-ka, to celebrate Hanukkah. Hanukkah is the festival of lights. Instead of one day of presents, we get 8 crazy nights!" _

Everyone laughed at their antics, even little Audra. The two of them, with their brown curly hair and brown eyes, even looked like Sandler.

Elle gave everyone a book of matches and a piece of aluminum foil to set under their menorah to catch any drips from the candles. She set hers up on one end of the dining room table and Gen, Adam and Audra took the other end. Avi and Ricky took the coffee table. Cuddy and Wilson set one up on the bar. I watched Gen as she coached Audra through the proper order of placing the candles into the menorah. It seems you start at the right side and move to the left, like the way you write Hebrew, as Gen reminded Audra as Audra carefully placed the candles.

"Greg, could you dim the lights?"

I went over to the switch and turned off the overhead light as Elle requested. Now there was just the light on in the kitchen and it was sufficient for lighting the candles. I looked around at our little group. They were all coupled up in front of their menorahs except for Elle. I felt kinda strange being the only non-Jew in the room but I didn't want her to stand alone, so I hobbled over and stood behind her, resting my left hand on her hip. She placed her hand over mine and squeezed it.

Elle said: "Light your shammus whenever you are ready."

When everyone had that candle lit, Elle picked hers up and everyone else followed suit.

In unison, everyone sang the blessing: _"Barukh atah Adonai, Eloheinu, melekh ha'olam. Asher kidishanu b'mitzvotav, v'tzivanu, l'hadlik neir shel Hanukkah."_

Elle took the shammus and lit the first candle on the left and then she handed the shammus to me. She indicated that I should light the other candle, so I did. I set the shammus back into its proper place and turned to see Elle beaming at me. Such a little thing had made her so happy. I reminded myself how important this was to her and bent down and kissed her. Her arm snaked around my waist and she squeezed me as we kissed.

As soon as all the candles were lit, Avi started singing and everyone else joined in. The melody was familiar but I couldn't place it. Elle told me later it was _Maoz Tzur_ or Rock of Ages, and it was traditionally sung right after lighting the candles. It felt rather peaceful watching the flickering candlelights, and listening to them sing the song first in Hebrew, and then in English.

When the song finished, Audra squirmed to get down from her mother's arms. As soon as Gen set her down, she ran over to Ricky and started begging to play dreidel.

"Which do you want to do first, play dreidel or open your presents?"

Surprisingly the kid thought about it for a minute and then she squealed: "Presents!"

Ricky laughed: "That's what I would have picked too."

We gathered on and around the futon using the various available chairs with Audra situating herself on the floor in the middle of the circle of adults.

When we were all comfortable, Adam asked Audra: "How many nights is Hanukkah?"

"Eight!" She answered proudly.

"Good. And how many grown-ups are here?"

She slowly counted around the circle and her eyes grew wide as she figured out the answer: "Eight, Daddy!"

"That's right. And how many presents do you think you're going to get?"

She stuck her finger in her mouth. You could almost see the wheels turning in her little blonde head. Finally she answered: "Eight?"

"Ding, ding, ding, ding. We have a winner! That's right. See it's another Hanukkah miracle. The number '8' pops up everywhere."

Audra's eyes were big as saucers: "Wow."

You could see the kid was impressed by the coincidence of the numbers. Presents starting appearing from bags and under the futon; even Cuddy pulled one out of her purse. I hadn't brought her a gift, yet 8 packages were sitting in front of the child. Then I remembered that there were 2 wrapped boxes that I had seen hidden in the closet; Elle intended one of the gifts to be from me.

It was amusing watching 8 adults sitting around watching one child open gifts. I'm not sure who had more fun: the adults watching or the kid opening the presents. Audra squealed with each gift and promptly thanked the giver with a hug and kiss. Her parents gave her a new baby doll and new outfits for said doll. Avi and Ricky gave her little toy ponies that apparently had their own TV show because Audra knew that the pink one was 'Twinkle Bloom' and the aqua colored one was 'Twirlerina'. Wilson and Cuddy must have consulted someone for advice because their gifts were colored markers and a little white pony that Audra could color herself.

This enthralled Audra. "I can color this pony anyway I want?"

Cuddy replied: "Yes, that's what the markers are for, to color the pony."

"I can make it rainbow!"

Cuddy smiled indulgently: "Any colors you want."

Audra launched herself at Cuddy and landed on her lap. She gave her a big hug around the neck and kissed her cheek. Cuddy closed her eyes and hugged her back. I could see that the gesture really meant something to Cuddy. I wondered if I could somehow use that to my advantage to get out of clinic duty next week.

After a hug for Wilson, Audra opened the last two boxes, which were from Elle and technically from me too, although I had nothing to do with them. Again there was the ear-splitting squeal when the contents were revealed. In first box was something called Sculpey and it was a sampler pack that contained 30 bars in various colors. The other box was a Sculpey kit that makes sea creatures, like starfish and turtles.

Gen explained that Sculpey was a clay-like substance that you could mold and then bake in your own oven, unlike regular clay that needed to be fired in a kiln. Apparently Audra thought it was da bomb and loved to make things with it.

Audra jumped into Elle's lap and gave her a big hug. "Thank you Elle, I really, really like it. I can make a lotta stuff with all that Sculpey."

Elle hugged her back: "I'm glad you like it, sweetie."

Nestled in Elle's embrace, Audra rested her head on Elle's shoulder and looked at me. "Thank you, House."

I nodded solemnly at her: "You're welcome."

Avi piped in: "That's all? You're not going to give House a hug and kiss like everyone else?"

I shot him a look: "She doesn't have to."

A little voice spoke up hesitantly: "House?"

I turned my attention back to Audra. She pointed at my right thigh: "That one is your boo-boo leg, right?"

I nodded: "Right."

Audra climbed off of Elle's lap, ran around the coffee table and climbed up on my left side. She threw her little arms around my neck and kissed my cheek. She stage-whispered in my ear: "I didn't want to hurt your boo-boo leg."

To my surprise, I gave her a small one-armed hug back. "Good job, kid."

Turned out that Audra had made little presents for all of us. Using Sculpey, she had created a little animal for each of us. Elle and Avi got a little dog. Cuddy and Gen got a pony and the rest of us got teddy bears. The creations were a little lop-sided, but you could definitely tell what they were meant to be. We all thanked her profusely. The creations were actually pretty good for a 3-year-old.

We had some dessert while Avi cleared the dining room table for the dreidel game. The doughnuts were really good and I ate 2 of them. As Adam had predicted, Audra had a cookie and part of a doughnut and became even more wired from the sugar.

Ricky produced the chocolate gelt and the game was on. Everyone played, including me once I realized that that it was essentially gambling, but with a top instead of dice. Wilson was surprisingly good at spinning the top, but he couldn't beat the twins for the pot. Between the two of them, they won every game.

We called it quits after an hour or so. Audra was getting cranky tired so the Friedmans decided to call it a night. We loaded her gifts into bags and they prepared to leave. We were all at the door saying goodnight, when Avi suddenly gasped.

"Oh, my Gawd, Elle. _Yesterday_. Yesterday was the 15th. I totally forgot. I'm so sorry."

"That's OK. Really. I'm glad that you forgot. It means we've all moved on. I didn't even have a nightmare."

He grinned and pulled her into such a tight embrace that if that man hadn't been gay, I would have been stepping in between them. Everyone was smiling except for Wilson and Cuddy who looked confused. Wilson shot a questioning look at me, but I deferred to Elle. I wanted her to answer his unasked question.

After a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek, Elle backed away from Avi and came over to me. She snaked her arm around my waist and I draped my arm across her shoulders.

Wilson started to ask: "Elle? Yesterday was? OH!"

I could see the realization of his face exactly when he figured it out. He covered his mouth with his hand and looked embarrassed.

Elle responded softly: "Yes, Jimmy, yesterday was the anniversary of my assault. I made it through the first year."

Adam said: "I can't believe we forgot."

"No, I'm really glad you did. I mean, really, what could you say? It's in the past; let's leave it there."

We said our goodbyes; the Friedman family and Avi and Ricky headed for home. I went to the liquor cabinet and poured us all a shot of scotch while Elle and Cuddy putzed around cleaning up the little bit of mess that remained. Wilson took the glasses over to the coffee table and we all sat down.

Wilson lifted his glass to Elle: "Thank you for a great night."

Cuddy chimed in: "Truly it was the best Hanukkah I've had since I was a kid."

"Great eats, sweetheart."

Elle grinned and lifted her glass: "To all of us, a good night."

We clinked glasses and bottomed up.

We slept in on Sunday. I actually woke up first, got out of bed long enough to limp to the bathroom and pee, and then climbed right back into bed. It was cold in the apartment and I had neglected to turn on the heat last night. I wrapped my arms around her warm naked body and pulled her close to me. She started to stir immediately.

"Hmmm, you're all cold. Why are you so cold?"

"It's freezing in here, and I got out of bed for just a minute."

"Did you put the heat on?"

"No, I just wanted to get back to your warm body."

"Damn it, Greg, why didn't you put the heat on while you were up? Jesus, I hate being cold!"

She threw back the covers and stalked naked out of the room. I was taken aback by her outburst; it was so unlike her to get so pissed about such a little thing.

I heard the hiss of the heat as it kicked on and then I heard the bathroom door slam. After a few minutes, I heard the flush and then Elle walked back into the room and got back into bed. She got under the covers and lay down on top of me. She was shivering from the cold and begged: "Warm me up, please."

I wrapped my arms around her and rubbed my hands up and down her back in an attempt to warm her up. I even wrapped my good leg partially around hers as far as I could reach. After a couple of minutes, she stopped shivering and reached up to touch my face.

"I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm sorry. I just hate being cold when I'm inside."

I kissed the top of her head. "Why do you hate the cold so much? I mean, this IS New Jersey, it gets cold here, unlike Florida."

"Don't let the state's sunshiny image fool you. It gets damn cold in North Florida. There was this one foster family that would never put the heat on. The dad was just so cheap. If we complained, he just told us to put on another sweater. I used to sleep in a sweatshirt over a long sleeved shirt with my jeans and 3 pairs of socks and I was still cold. I don't mind being cold when I'm outside, but not when I'm inside the house."

She sighed as she continued to stroke my cheek. I nuzzled the top of her head while I ruminated over this new bit of information about her childhood.

"Greg, what would you like to do for Christmas?"

"Sleep all day and have Chinese food for dinner."

She propped her chin on my chest so that she could look at me. "Really? You don't want a tree or any decorations? You don't want any presents?"

"Hmmm, well, presents would be nice, but none of those little pony things for me."

She giggled: "Oh, yeah, that's just what I was going to get you, a little pink pony named Twinkle Blossom."

I growled: "You better not."

She exclaimed gleefully: "Yes, I will. I know just what to get you now."

I rolled her onto her back and climbed on top of her, pinning her arms over her head. "You will not. Take it back."

"No! I'm gonna get my wittle Greggie a wittle pink pony. AHHHHHH!"

She screamed as I tickled her ribs. I urged her to take back her statement and tickled her harder every time that she said no. Finally she couldn't take it anymore and gave up.

"OK, OK! I won't get you a pink pony, stop!"

I immediately stopped tickling her although I still kept her pinned underneath me. It took a few minutes for her breathing to return to normal after that extended tickling session. She was flushed from laughing so hard and looked so beautiful. I tenderly gave each nipple a good tongue bath and then I rested my head in the valley between her breasts. She tenderly caressed my face and played with my hair.

Hesitantly, she asked: "So, really, would you like a tree?"

I sighed: "I don't know. It's been a long time since I've done that kind of thing."

She continued to play with my hair as she said: "Well, you let me know if you would like one. I don't want to push. You've been so sweet celebrating my holidays with me and I'd like to celebrate yours with you."

I tilted my head so that I could look at her. "You really want to do that?"

"Yes, but only if you do."

I closed my eyes and snuggled back into her valley, thinking of Christmases past. When I was a kid, there had been a few Christmases that Dad was away and it was just Mom and I. Those had been really nice holidays. We would go and buy a tree about a week before Christmas and stuff it in the back of the station wagon. It would take weeks afterwards to get all the needles out of the car and in the meantime, the car had a nice piney scent that I really liked. We would spend hours untangling the lights and decorating the tree. Every Christmas Eve, we would turn off all the lights and lay on the floor next to the lit tree. Then she would recite "T'was the Night Before Christmas" as we watched the lights twinkle on the tree. Then on Christmas Day there would be presents and a nice Christmas dinner.

I gently ran one fingertip around her nipple until it stood erect. "My Mom used to make a ham with those little pineapple rings on top for Christmas dinner."

"I could do that if you want."

I continued caressing her nipple as I teased: "My little Jewish girl going to make her goy boyfriend a ham for Christmas dinner?"

She shrugged: "Why not?"

"I bet you have never cooked a ham in your life."

"HA! You forget that I lived with all those foster families and none of them were Jewish. In the South, it's very common to have ham for Christmas. I helped cook a bunch of Christmas dinners. Did your Mom used to put little cherries in the middle of the pineapple rings?"

The answer came out as a soft whisper: "Yes."

She tenderly caressed my face and hair. Softly she said: "I'll make a ham and all the trimmings. Would you like that? And if you want, we'll invite Wilson since you two always have Chinese together on Christmas. I'd hate to break the tradition of you two spending Christmas together. And we could have fried rice to go with the ham. I could make a sweet potato soufflé or would you prefer scalloped potatoes? Oh, and cinnamon apples would go nicely with the ham."

Elle continued her one-sided discussion about the menu. It felt so nice laying on Elle listening to her talk about Christmas dinner. I don't know how she did it, but she made me feel loved and warm all over. According to Wilson, she had bought me a Christmas present; she _wanted_ to make me a nice dinner. How did I get so lucky to find her and how long before I fucked this up? I shook my head to try to rid my brain of that thought. I reminded myself to really enjoy this while it lasted.

I twisted my head so that I could look at her. Hesitantly I said: "I like the way the pine trees smell. There's something about that." I wanted to say that reminded me of happy times with my Mom, but I couldn't seem to voice that.

She grinned at me: "You wanna get a real tree? We could get some decorations and put those little twinkly lights on it."

_Lights, yeah. It has to have lights._

Slowly I nodded. "OK, but we'll have to get a small tree. I don't think I could carry a big one."

She gave me a big smile: "That's what we have Wilson for."

**_WILSON_**

The clock said it was 10:47AM and Lisa and I had still been asleep when the phone woke me up. I grabbed it, hoping to catch it in time before it woke her.

I groaned out a hello.

A chipper voice replied: "Hey, it's Elle. What are you doing this afternoon?"

"Don't know yet."

"Oops, you're not out of bed yet, are you? I woke you, didn't I? I'm sorry. Do you want to go back to sleep?"

I yawned: "Naw, it's OK. We should probably get up anyway. What did you want to ask me?"

"Greg agreed to get a tree. Can you come with us to get it?"

"He did? Really? Wow. What did you do, drug him? Threaten to cut off sex if he didn't agree?"

She giggled: "No. I think he really wants one. He says he likes the pine smell. And I'm going to make ham for Christmas dinner and you're invited."

"I'm shocked. What have you done to the real House? Is he tied up in a basement somewhere?"

Our conversation had awakened Lisa. She snuggled closer to me and I planted a soft kiss on her forehead. She mumbled: "That Elle?"

"Yeah, she's just telling me that House is going to do Christmas."

She looked skeptically at me, mumbled: "Yeah, right" and settled back down on my chest.

In my ear, I heard Elle ask: "Would 2:00 be OK?"

"Yeah, that's fine. Hey, how about brunch? I'll go get some bagels and we can have eggs and the leftover latkes too."

"Sounds like a plan."

We agreed on noon-ish and I closed the phone. Lisa reached up and kissed me on the mouth.

"House really agreed to get a tree? He hasn't celebrated Christmas since Stacy left."

"I know, but that's what Elle said. I guess they just need some help with getting the tree home, so we're going to go at 2:00. Gonna make brunch first. Are you hungry?"

"I just want some coffee but, if you don't mind, I think I'll skip the brunch and the Christmas tree shopping as much as I would love to see House haggling over a tree. I have a meeting with an important donor tomorrow and I need to get some paperwork done this afternoon."

I nodded: "It was a nice weekend, I hope you enjoyed it."

"I did. The dinner party last night was a lot of fun. And _you_. You shouldn't have been so extravagant, but I do love the earrings."

I smiled: "And I really like my new cufflinks."

"Did I thank you properly?"

I felt my grin get bigger: "You did, but I'm not sure that I thanked _you_ properly."

Lisa giggled as I rolled her over onto her back and climbed on top of her.

After a lovely thank you, we showered together and then got dressed. I planned to walk her to her car and then head over to the bakery for the bagels. While pulling our coats out of the front closet, I happened to glance at the front door and noticed a white envelope was sticking out from under the door. I pulled it out and looked at both sides but there was no name on it. Assuming it was for me, I opened it. I had momentarily forgotten that this was really Elle's apt and it was quite obvious from the contents of the envelope that it was really intended for her. I hastily shoved the envelope into my coat pocket as Lisa walked into the room. As I helped Lisa with her coat, I knew that there was no way that I giving this to Elle without showing it to House first.

I walked Lisa to her car, we kissed good-bye and I headed over to my own car. As I drove to the bakery, I pulled out my phone and dialed House's cell phone.

"Pick up, pick up," I mumbled to myself as I drove through the light Sunday morning traffic.

He answered gruffly: "What? You know what kind of bagels we like."

"That's not why I'm calling. Are you alone? Elle doesn't need to hear this."

"She's in the bathroom. Why?" He was immediately suspicious.

I explained about the envelope and its contents.

He exploded: "God damn it! That son of a bitch!"

"You think he's behind this?"

"I'd bet my left nut that he was. There's absolutely no risk of my losing it, cuz I'm sure he _is_ behind this. You need to give me that envelope when you get here, but not in front of Elle. Slip it to me."

I agreed and we ended the call. I got the bagels and headed back to the apartment. When I walked in, Elle was already making coffee and rummaging in the refrigerator for eggs and butter.

I exclaimed: "Oh, the latkes are in my fridge. I forgot to bring them over. I'll just,"

Elle motioned me to relax: "Take your coat off. I'll go get them. Be right back."

As soon as she slipped out of the door, I handed the envelope to House. He glanced at the contents quickly since Elle wouldn't be long retrieving the latkes.

I asked him: "How do you think she is going to take this?"

He shook his head. "Mixed. Part of her will be glad that she doesn't ever have to worry about that bastard anymore and the other part is going to be so pissed at him for making it happen after she specifically told him not to do anything."

We heard Elle's door close; she would be in here any second. House slipped the envelope under his shirt and starting limping down the hall.

He announced: "Gotta take a dump. Be right back for breakfast."

Elle rolled her eyes at his retreating figure. "Thanks for sharing! Spray the air freshener when you're done this time."

She shook her head at me: "Sometimes that man," She didn't finish the sentence.

I just nodded. All too often he was just a big kid in a man's body.

I helped Elle prepare breakfast while House was in the john examining the letter and pretending to take a dump. I hoped he would remember to flush and spray the air freshener or Elle would know something was up.

**_HOUSE_**

I quietly locked the bathroom door and pulled the envelope out from under my shirt. There were 3 pieces of paper in the envelope and I lay them side-by-side on the vanity. One piece of paper had been worded with cut out letters from a magazine. It said: "Justice prevails. You can sleep better now."

The second piece of paper was a copy of a coroner's report. The date on the report had been circled in red; it was December 15, the anniversary of Elle's assault. The report stated that prisoner number 897548925, also known as Alfred Elliot Crocker, had died from a stab wound. He had been stabbed in the back and the blade went right through his aorta. He bled to death within minutes.

The third piece of paper was a copy of a more detailed report. It seems that Crocker was out in the prison exercise yard and pissed off a young punk named Juan Jose Valdez. When Crocker's back was turned, Valdez stabbed him with a homemade shiv.

This particular inmate, Valdez, was already serving one life sentence for the murder of a drug dealer who had been horning in on Valdez's territory. He wasn't getting out on parole for a couple of decades. I figured someone had paid him well to commit another murder, knowing he had nothing much to lose. What's a few more years tacked on to his already long sentence? He could get the death penalty, but no one had been executed in New Jersey in many years. If this guy had killed a drug dealer and now a rapist, who would care enough to give him the death penalty?

I sighed as I folded the papers and shoved them back into the envelope. I knew this was Tony's doings. I wanted to strangle him with my bare hands for doing this after Elle had specifically told him not to do anything to the guy. She had been happy that no one had remembered the anniversary and now here was this report, with the date circled in red. Someone had remembered after all.

I flushed the toilet and sprayed the air freshener before opening the bathroom door and then I quickly moved into the bedroom. I shoved the envelope in a drawer, under some t-shirts; I'd deal with it later.

As I hurried down the hall to rejoin them in the kitchen, I realized that Elle was bound to find out about this sooner or later, but I figured the later the better. Things were going so well right now; I was afraid of how she would react. She was trying so hard to put it all behind her. I didn't want her to have a setback and start having nightmares again. I really would kill Tony if that happened.

When Elle's back was turned, I managed to convey to Wilson that we would talk later. We sat down at the coffee table to a lovely brunch of eggs, bacon, bagels and leftover latkes. After stuffing ourselves, we piled the dishes in the sink to be dealt with later, and headed off to find a Christmas tree.

It's a good thing that my apartment has high ceilings because we ended up purchasing a 7-foot tall Fraser fur. Wilson drove us to a lot on Nassau Street that had a big selection. After poking around and shaking a lot of trees, we settled on this one. It looked good and didn't drop many needles when Wilson gave it a good shake. I thought it was too big, but the other two outvoted me. Elle was smiling, her cheeks red from the cold, so I agreed. We also bought the tree stand and a wreath for the door from the same guy. We tied the tree to the top of Wilson's Volvo and schlepped it home.

After a small struggle, we managed to get it inside the apartment and set up. I collapsed on the couch and watched as Wilson hung the wreath on the door and Elle poured water in the tree stand. My leg was aching more than usual, partly due to the extra exertion combined with the cold weather and partly due to the stress of thinking about that letter. I closed my eyes as I rubbed my aching thigh. The apartment already smelled nice and piney and I tried to distract myself with the scent.

I opened my eyes when I felt Elle by my side. She had knelt on the floor next to me and started rubbing my thigh.

"It smells all piney in here, doesn't it?"

I smiled at her. Elle knew that I hated being asked how I felt when it was so obvious that I was in pain and she was so good about not asking directly but just being there for me.

"Yes, it's nice. Very Christmassy."

"I thought I would go to Wal-Mart and get lights and decorations. Shall I get the white twinkly lights or multi-colored ones?"

"Get the multi-colored ones and some of those icicles. And anything else you want."

I pulled out my wallet and handed her some bills. As she tucked them into her pocket, I puckered up my lips and made kissy noises at her. She gave me her special smile, the one that lit up her whole face, as she leaned over and kissed me. I wrapped my arms around her and held her tightly against me as we sucked face for a few minutes. Finally we broke for air.

"I wanna unwrap you under the tree later."

She giggled: "As long as we don't have to wait until Christmas to do it."

"Oh, no waiting. You are going to be my 'third night of Hanukkah present'; I'll unwrap you under the Christmas tree and light your fire. That will be a good way to combine the two holidays."

"When I'm at Wal-Mart, I'll pick us up some red condoms for a festive look."

I kissed her again. "That's the holiday spirit."

Wilson and I parked ourselves on the couch, pretending to be engrossed in a football game, but in reality we were just waiting for Elle to leave so that we could discuss the letter. She dropped my bottle of oxycodone on the coffee table in case I needed it, gave me one last kiss and headed out the door.

We waited a few minutes before speaking in case she forgot something.

Finally Wilson broke the silence: "So what did you think about the letter?"

"I think I want to strangle Tony for doing this. She's going to find out. I just don't know the best way for it to happen."

"If you just want to get it over with, we could say we found the note while she was at Wal-Mart."

"Crap, I don't want to do it so soon. She's so happy. It's still Hanukkah, and she's all excited about making me Christmas. I don't want to fuck that up."

I didn't want to admit this to Wilson, but for the first time in years, I was actually looking forward to Christmas and I didn't want it fucked up because of Tony.

He pondered on that for a while: "Well, we could _find_ the note a day or two after Christmas. What about that?"

"I like that better. Get through the holidays first. If she's still upset by New Year's Eve, I'll get her really drunk and we'll go kick Tony's ass."

He chuckled: "Yeah, as long as his goons aren't there. But what if she finds out before Christmas? Do you think Tony would call and say, hey did you get my note?"

"He'd be a total ass if he did that. He's too smart to discuss something like that over the phone."

Wilson slowly nodded: "Yeah, you're probably right. So he won't phone and he certainly won't send an e-mail or a text message."

"Right. If he is going to discuss it, he'll do it in person. And he knows that she will be mad, so I don't think he'll show up. I think we'll be OK until after Christmas."

Elle got home about an hour later. The three of us spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening decorating the tree. Since they are both Jews with little experience decorating Christmas trees, I had to explain to them that the lights go on first and then the other decorations and at the last, the icicles. We managed to do a fairly decent job of it.

Elle set the menorah up on the kitchen island and she lit the 3 candles for tonight. Then we shared a pizza for dinner. After we finished eating, I gave Wilson the _look_ and he took off for his own abode, giving us our much-needed privacy. While Elle was out of the room, I turned off most of the lights except for one small lamp and the lights on the Christmas tree.

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas."

I turned towards her and noticed that she had returned with a couple of pillows and a blanket. Elle walked over to the tree and spread out the blanket and arranged the pillows.

"You like the lights, huh? I'm ready to unwrap my present."

She had an impish grin on her face: "Shall I get _under_ the tree or is standing next to it OK?"

I moved quickly to her, placed my hands on her hips and pulled her close to me. Her arms snaked around my neck as my lips crashed down on hers. My fingers found the button on her jeans and popped it open. The zipper was next and I pushed her jeans down over her hips and she shimmied until they fell to the floor. Gripping my arms for support, she stepped out of them and kicked them away. Next I grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head, flinging it into a corner. In the soft light, I could see that she was wearing a red lacy bra and matching panties. It was a nice Christmassy color.

In a low voice, I asked: "Did you get the red condoms to match?"

Elle pulled 2 condoms out of her bra. The plastic overwraps had pictures of Santa on them. I chuckled when I saw them.

"I think you should lay down so I can finish unwrapping my present."

Elle arranged herself on the blanket with her head on one of the pillows. I watched her get comfortable as I kicked off my sneakers and pulled off all of my clothes except for my boxers. I slowly and carefully got down on the floor next to her. The floor was pretty damn hard and I was glad she had thought to bring a blanket; otherwise it would be cold as well as hard. I knew we would have been much more comfortable doing this in bed, but for some strange reason, I really wanted to make love to her under the tree. It just sounded like,fun.

I rolled onto my left side and looked at her. There were times when she looked so exceptionally beautiful that she took my breath away. This was one of those times. Her long hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back. Her big blue eyes glimmered with lust, unbelievably, for me. I felt old and ugly next to her beauty. My hand floated down to cover my scar. I knew she has seen it a hundred times, but suddenly I felt repulsive and embarrassed for her to see it. Someone as beautiful as Elle deserved perfection and I was far from perfect.

She saw the direction that my hand was taking and she quickly intercepted it, guiding it to her face. She kissed the palm and then placed my hand on her breast.

Softly, in a teasing tone, she said: "You haven't finished unwrapping me yet."

I teased her nipple through the bra and said: "The paper is so pretty that I almost hate to remove it."

"I think you'll like what's underneath it even more."

She reached down and stroked my dick through my boxers. "Do I get to unwrap you too?"

Mt Gregory was at full salute. "Of course."

Eagerly, she said: "Can I open my present first?"

I grinned: "Ladies first."

She quickly removed my boxers and moved in between my legs. Tenderly, she kissed the sensitive skin on my inner thighs, occasionally flicking her tongue up to lick my balls. Then she focused completely on my balls, licking and gently sucking first one and then the other into her mouth. She completely ignored my cock, which was throbbing with anticipation and desperately needed some attention.

"Elle, please."

I twitched my cock at her.

She took a handful of her hair and started stroking me with it. "Please, what?"

I moaned. That felt so good. "Please don't stop."

"I like it when you say please."

Naughty little minx. Did she want me to beg tonight? I could do that.

"Elle, suck me please. Suck my cock, baby. I need you."

Her eyes grew even darker with desire. She moved, cat-like, from between my legs until she was turned around, her face hovering over my cock and her hips right next to my face. I put my hand between her legs and found her panties completely soaked. I tugged them off and started caressing her wet folds. She moaned as she enveloped the head of my cock in her mouth. The sensation was incredible. Slowly she took me deeper into her mouth until she finally swallowed my whole cock. I loved it when she took me from this angle; she could take me in deeper and I could give her love muffin some tongue action too.

As she sucked me up and down, I maneuvered until my face was in between her legs and her dripping pussy in range of my hungry tongue. When I first touched her clit with my tongue, she moaned with my cock deep inside her throat and the sensations almost sent me over the edge. When we were 69'ing, we could never last very long. Our excitement would grow exponentially very quickly until we were ready to explode. Tonight was no exception, it was just a matter of who would either come first or cave first and beg to be fucked.

It was my turn to cave tonight. My hand groped around on the blanket until I found a condom.

"Elle, fuck me. Climb on board and fuck me, baby."

With a tight lip lock, Elle slowly slid up my cock and with her tongue gave a final tease to my opening. She grabbed the condom out of my hand and rolled it onto my dick. She turned around and straddled me, taking my cock in her hands and using it to tease her clit.

"Wow, you should see your face. I must be really juicy tonight."

I could feel the stickiness all over the lower half of my face. I reached up and grabbed the back of her head and pulled her down into a deep kiss. I wanted her to taste herself on me. As our tongues tangled, she continued to rub her clit up and down on my cock.

I needed to see the girls. I quickly popped her bra and it fell off of her shoulders. I pulled it off of her and tossed it aside. The girls were happy to see me; her nipples were completely erect. I leaned up, took one into my mouth and suckled eagerly. Elle cried out with pleasure.

I was so close and I hadn't even been inside of her yet. I moaned: "Elle. I need you. Come on, baby, ride me."

Moaning with pleasure, she slid down my length. I gripped her hips and bucked up into her. As she rode me, her head kept bumping one of the branches of the Christmas tree until a couple of icicles fell off and landed in her hair. The silver strands glittered against her brown hair.

Just as I was about to come, I pressed my thumb over her clit and she cried out, falling over the edge with me. We rode out our orgasms with several more thrusts and then Elle collapsed onto my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and held her next to me. I could feel her strong rapid heartbeat against my chest.

It took a few minutes for our breathing to return to normal. When I started to soften, Elle climbed off of me, careful to grab the condom and keep it from falling off prematurely.

She gently pulled the condom off of me and held it up. She seemed fascinated by the little sac of spunk.

"What do you think this is worth? The sperm of a tall, handsome, blue-eyed, extremely brilliant, famous doctor?"

"It's priceless cuz it's not for sale."

She giggled: "I bet we could get a good price for it on Ebay. What should the 'buy it now' price be?"

"Ten million bucks."

I grabbed the condom from her, tied a knot in it and tossed it in the trashcan before she could get any other silly ideas.

A/N: _The Hanukkah Song_ by Adam Sandler


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing. I love hearing from you. WarningSmut alert at the end of the chapter. Mature audiences only!!**

**Chapter 43**

**HOUSE**

It was Monday afternoon and I had just settled in to watch General Hospital when my phone rang. I considered ignoring it until I read the caller ID. When I saw that number, I picked it up right away.

"House."

"Bill Arnello. I have some news for Elle. I assume you want to be there for it."

"Is it bad news?"

"I don't think so, but I'm not sure how she is going to take it, so I figured I would run it by you first. That way you can be there if you feel you need to."

"I'll be there. Are you going to give me the heads-up now, or do I get the news when she does?"

He paused and then said: "Well, it really is public knowledge so I guess I could tell you now. The man who raped her is dead. He was stabbed to death by another inmate."

"Really? And who arranged that?"

Harshly, he said: "No one arranged it. He got into a fight with another inmate and the guy stabbed him with a homemade shiv. That's the whole story."

"Somehow I think there is more to the story than just a prison yard fight."

"Well, you can think whatever you want. I just want to notify Elle about this so she knows the guy will never be able to bother her again. Now, do you want me to just set up a time with her or do you need to check your calendar too?"

"Let's get this over with. Suggest to her that you will come to my place tonight at 8:00. If she doesn't agree to that, go with whatever time she wants and I'll be there."

Elle seemed nervous when I got home. As she made dinner, she told me that Bill had called and was coming over later to tell her something.

"Bill wouldn't tell me anything over the phone. He said it would be better if he told me in person. It must be something bad, like there's going to be a retrial or something."

I pulled her into my arms, wondering if I should just tell her and relieve her anxiety or not. I debated for a minute and then decided not to tell her. I thought it would be better coming from Bill than from a pasted up letter that Wilson had found under her door.

Bill arrived promptly at 8:00. Wilson had come over for dinner and moral support. The three of us sat on the couch with Elle in the middle and Bill sat his ass down in the armchair.

"Elle, I'll get right to the point. The bastard's dead. He was killed in a fight in the prison exercise yard. Another inmate stabbed him to death with a homemade shiv."

Elle covered her mouth with her hand and didn't say a word. Her body started trembling and I wrapped my arm around her.

Bill leaned closer: "Elle, I know this is a shock, but it's not like it's bad news. The SOB is dead. You don't have to ever worry about him again."

Wilson spoke up: "Elle, are you OK? Say something."

It was a minute before she could speak. "I don't know what to say. Part of me feels a huge relief that he's gone. But I can't help but wonder how convenient this is. Tony had something to do with this, didn't he?"

Bill shook his head: "Elle, come on. Tony wouldn't do that after you told him not to. Plus how's he gonna get to a guy in prison? How's he gonna set it up for another inmate to stab him?"

Elle gave him a frosty look. "Do you think I'm stupid? I know what Tony can do and this is completely within his capacity to pull off."

She sat there for a minute, taking deep breaths as if she were trying to calm down and then asked: "When did this happen?"

Bill answered vaguely: "A couple of days ago."

Elle was talking through clenched teeth now. "Again, Bill, I'm not _stupid._ You're evading my questions and I'm getting pissed off. When did this happen? On what exact date?"

Bill glanced at me. _Idiot!_ Elle noticed it, of course, and gave me a curious look. Then she looked back at Bill and repeated: "The date?"

He sighed heavily: "It was Friday, December 15."

Elle slumped back against the couch and then she snorted: "Well, _someone_ remembered my anniversary after all."

She turned her attention to me: "You aren't saying much? You don't seem surprised by this at all. Did you know about this before Bill came over?"

I hesitated and then said: "We had talked about it over the phone. We were concerned how you were going to take the news."

She stared at me for a full minute and then turned her attention to Wilson. "You don't seem surprised by the news either."

Wilson stammered, clearly got off guard. "Uh, no. House told me."

"When did he tell you?"

"This afternoon, at the hospital, after he spoke to Bill."

Her eyes narrowed: "Exactly when, this afternoon? I seem to recall that after you finished your clinic duty, you came right to my office where we discussed today's pain patients. When we left my office and went back to yours, Greg had already left for the day."

Wilson blinked several times and tried to answer: "Um."

This is why Wilson always loses at poker. His face gives him away every time.

Elle hissed: "You're lying to me."

She swung back around and jabbed her finger at me: "YOU are lying to me. When did you find out about this?"

The cat was out of the bag and it had really sharp claws. This was going to hurt. I looked at Bill to gauge his reaction to my answer: "Yesterday."

I could see the flash of surprise on Bill's face, but I was quickly distracted by Elle's outburst.

"Yesterday? _Yesterday?_ And you didn't think that you should tell me? Were you keeping it as a surprise for Christmas or something?"

Then her voice dropped: "You mean, you knew, when we were, under the tree?"

I closed my eyes; I could hear the disappointment in her voice, I didn't want to see it in her eyes.

She sounded like she was on the verge of tears when she asked: "Jimmy, did you know this yesterday, too?"

Quietly, he said: "Yes. House, are you going to tell her or shall I?"

I shook my head and stood up. "I'll get it."

I retrieved the letter from its hiding place and brought it back to the living room. I handed it to Elle and simply said: "This was slipped under your door sometime yesterday morning. Wilson found it when he left to get the bagels at noon. He showed it to me. I didn't want to tell you about it. I wasn't sure how you would react and I didn't want to spoil the holidays. I planned on showing it to you after Christmas."

She took the envelope from me and opened it. Slowly she read the 3 pages, her hands trembling slightly.

There was a barely contained rage in her words when she finally spoke: "Look at this, Bill. And don't tell me that Tony wasn't involved. Don't ever insult my intelligence like that again."

She handed the pages to the lawyer and he looked them over.

Elle sneered: "Cut out letters? The date circled in red? He's been watching _'Law and Order'_ again, hasn't he? Who else would shove this under my door? He thinks he's given me a nice Hanukkah present by killing the man who raped me."

Bill shook his head: "Elle, I didn't know. He didn't say anything to me."

She held up her hand to stop him. "You wouldn't say anything even if you did. I am smart enough to know that. You can tell Tony that he needs to stay outta my face for a while. I am so angry with him. I told him _not_ to do this. Remind him that if I _need_ a favor that I will _ask_ for it. I know he has my back if I need him, but damn it, he can wait until I ask for help, not just march in and take over."

She snapped her fingers and pointed at the papers. Bill handed them over to her and Elle folded and stuffed them back in the envelope.

Her voice was cold as she asked him if there was anything else he needed to tell her. He shook his head.

Elle stood up and coolly thanked him for coming and escorted him to the door. She shut the door behind him and leaned her head against it, lightly pounding her fist on the door. I knew she was mad.

When she turned around, I could hear the disappointment in her voice: "You lied to me."

I wanted to explain, but she cut me off. "I know you were trying to protect me. I'm sure you were concerned how I would react, whether I would start having nightmares again or start drinking or something. But you should have told me. Especially tonight when I kept telling you how worried I was about what Bill had to tell me."

She paused and then went on. "I am so angry at Tony right now; I can hardly think straight. I can't believe he did this. But Greg, I'm so disappointed that you lied to me and that you didn't think I was strong enough to handle this."

She finally let me get a word in edgewise. "No, I do think you're strong. Elle, you're the strongest person I know. You were just so happy about the holidays and I wanted that to last. I didn't want the holidays to get spoiled because of Tony's perverted idea of justice and need for revenge."

Wilson piped in: "It's true, Elle. We were going to tell you right after Christmas. We just wanted you to enjoy the holidays."

She pressed her hands against the sides of her head, as if she had a tremendous headache, and stared down at the floor for a few minutes. She seemed to considering everything that had been said here tonight.

Her face was strained when she finally looked at me, like she was going to burst into tears at any second. I took a step towards her, but she stopped me with an out-stretched hand.

"I need to be alone for a while. I'm going to my place. Please don't disturb me."

She turned and walked out the door without another word.

I sank onto the couch and buried my face in my hands. I had fucked this up, just as I knew I would. My actions had resulted in her becoming angry and disappointed in me. This wave of feelings came over me; it was not unfamiliar but it was damned unpleasant. I had been in this place many times before with someone that I wanted to love me and be proud of me being only angry and disappointed with me. As time went on, I figured out that he would never be proud of me and I stopped trying to secure his approval. I would always be a disappointment to him.

I really thought that waiting to tell her about the letter was the right thing to do at the time. I hoped that, when she replayed everything in her mind, she would understand that I was looking out for her best interests. But then again, so was Tony in his own overblown fashion. I'd made the wrong call on this one. I had to wait for Elle to return to see if this was a major or a minor fuck-up.

I did my best to squash my insecure feelings back into their little box while I pondered on what to do now. I needed to do something. I went into the kitchen and starting washing the dishes for a lack of anything else to do. It also kept me from hitting the sauce. I wanted to be sober when Elle returned.

Wilson followed me into the kitchen. "Is she always this quiet and controlled when she's angry?"

I shook my head: "Usually there's yelling. I think she's so pissed this time that she is beyond the yelling stage."

I washed and rinsed while Wilson dried and put the dishes away. After wiping down the countertops, he grabbed a couple of beers and we sat on the couch. I let him have the remote and he flipped channels endlessly while we sat in morose silence, sipping our beers.

An hour or so later, Wilson broke the silence: "House, it's almost 10:00. Do you think she's coming back or will I need to sleep on your couch tonight?"

"She'll be back. We never go to bed mad at each other."

He gave me a skeptical eye. "Really?"

"So far."

He nodded and turned back to the TV.

I hoped that was still true when Elle finally returned.

**_ELLE_**

I threw myself down on the futon and clutched the pillow to my face. My head was pounding and I wanted to block out the light. I let myself cry for a little bit. My mind was cluttered with too many emotions: relief, anger, sadness and disappointment.

I couldn't believe that the bastard was dead. I would never have to worry about him hurting me or one of my loved ones again. I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of me. Sadly, that was overshadowed by my anger at Tony. He shouldn't have done this. The guy was in jail. He couldn't hurt me from there. I could have understood if the guy had been out on the streets and a potential threat to me that Tony would take him out. Having him killed in prison was above and beyond any sense of duty that Tony should have felt towards me. It actually worried me how far Tony would carry something. I had needed him to take care of Charlie for me. After all, Charlie had physically hurt me and was still threatening me. Then after David dumped me, Tony had wanted to 'teach him a lesson' for me, which I felt was unnecessary. What if Greg and I broke up? Would Tony do something to Greg if he hurt me emotionally? I would have to set Tony straight on this matter and soon.

I went to the liquor cabinet and poured myself a small shot of Jack. I wasn't going to get drunk tonight, but I did want a little something to take the edge off. I sat back down on the futon and sipped it slowly.

I thought of Greg and sighed. He had lied to me, but he had done it to spare me some pain. He said he didn't want to tell me until after Christmas so it wouldn't spoil the holidays. The look in his eyes told me that he was telling the truth. As much as he was trying to contain it, I knew he was looking forward to Christmas. The few remarks he had made about the holiday had actually spoken volumes. I was touched by the fact that he was willing to get a tree for the first time since Stacy had left him. I really wanted to make this a nice holiday for him. I was sure that he would like the gifts that I bought for him when I was in New York, but I thought I would do a bit more shopping. It would be fun for him to have several presents to open.

There were times when he seems so insecure, like he's just waiting for me to give up on him and leave. He had that look in his eyes last night when we were under the tree. It only lasted for a brief moment, but I saw it as he was trying to hide his scar. Does he really believe that the scar is so ugly that he's unworthy of being loved? No, that wasn't it. The real scar was much deeper than just skin and muscle and had been forged over a much longer time. And he was really good at hiding that one.

I glanced at the clock; it was almost 10:00. We needed to make up before bed and there was something else that in my anxiety about Bill's visit, that I had forgotten to do. I needed to do it before bed.

The boys were sitting in their usual spots on the couch when I entered. Jimmy was flipping channels and Greg was just staring at the tube. He looked over his shoulder at me as I approached. I thought I could see a touch of fear in his eyes, mixed with a bit of hope and a smidge of sorrow. I knew he felt bad; he didn't have to say anything more.

I moved until I stood right behind him and placed my hand on his cheek. He covered my hand with his own and gave it a little squeeze.

"Greg?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"In all my anxiety tonight about Bill's visit, I forgot to light the candles."

"So you did. But you can light them now."

In a small voice, I asked: "Will you light them with me?"

His look was tender as he nodded. "Of course."

I stroked his cheek with my thumb and squeezed his shoulder with my other hand.

I turned to Jimmy. He had been listening in on our little interchange the whole time while pretending to be concentrating on the TV.

"You too, Jimmy."

He looked a bit surprised and then he nodded: "Sure, Elle."

I went over to the kitchen island and prepared the menorah. The guys came over and stood next to me. When everything was ready, I lit the shammus and said the blessing; Jimmy recited it along with me.

I lit the first candle and then handed the shammus to Greg. He lit the second candle and glanced at me, unsure of his next move. I tilted my head towards Jimmy who extended his hand and Greg passed the shammus to him. After Jimmy lit the third candle, he handed the shammus back to me and I lit the last candle.

Softly I started singing _Maoz Tzur_ and after a couple of bars, Jimmy joined in. I wrapped my arm around Greg's waist and gave him a squeeze. I looked up at him as I continued to sing. His eyes looked more relaxed and he had a slight smile on his face. He kissed the top of my head and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me close to his side. I threw my other arm over Jimmy's shoulders. He looked quite surprised and even faltered in his singing as he glanced at Greg with concern. Whatever passed between them was quite literally over my head, but after a minute, Jimmy relaxed and even draped his arm over my shoulder.

Greg muttered: "Just keep your hands where I can see them."

I giggled, interrupting the song, but I felt the tension in my body begin to dissipate.

Jimmy rolled his eyes: "Like I would do anything inappropriate to Elle."

"Says the man who is currently screwing his boss."

Jimmy shot Greg a smirk: "Under the tree? How _romantic_."

"Oh, shut up, you moron."

"Sentimental sap. You don't fool anyone with that poker face of yours."

"George _I-cannot-tell-a-lie_ Washington. If you _had_ a poker face, you might not lose your shirt every week at the game."

I smiled as I listened to the two of them sniping at each other. Things were back to normal on Baker Street. Now I just needed to figure out how to deal with Tony.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

After the drama of Monday night, the rest of the week was fairly peaceful. I went shopping after work on Wednesday with Gen while Greg was playing poker. The game was still on when I got home so I hid the gifts in my apartment. On Thursday afternoon, he texted me to say he needed to stay late for a patient, so I took that opportunity to wrap all the gifts and hide them under our bed. I had bought two Christmas stockings when I was shopping with Gen. I got those out, wrote our names on them with a felt-tipped marker and hung them on the mantle. With the Christmas tree lights on and the stockings on the mantle, the living room looked really festive.

Greg got home around nine. I heard his distinctive footsteps enter the foyer and then I heard him knock on my door. I wondered what he was up to, so I went over to the door and looked through the peephole. I saw him hand Wilson a shopping bag and they spoke for a moment. Then he turned to come into our place and I quickly scurried over to the couch and flopped down. _He was leaving a shopping bag with Wilson. He must have gotten me_ a _present._ I was so excited that I could hardly contain myself. I managed to compose myself and click on the TV while he was putting his key in the lock. He put his coat and backpack in the closet and I walked over and gave him a big hug and kiss. He settled in on the couch and I warmed up some supper for him just like any other night. At one point, he gave me a quizzical look and I wondered if he picked up on my barely concealed excitement. I distracted him by pointing out the stockings that I had hung on the mantle. He chuckled slightly and teased me about them.

"Right, Santa is coming to fill stockings for a Jew and an atheist. I admire your optimism, sweetheart."

"Santa doesn't care what religion you are. You just have to believe in HIM and his elves and his reindeer."

"And you believe?"

"Of course."

He chuckled and picked up the remote. As he flipped through the channels, I suddenly grabbed his arm. 'Scrooged' with Bill Murray was on.

"Ooooo, let's watch this. I love this movie."

"Aw, why do you want to watch this? It's just a modern remake of 'The Christmas Carol'."

"But I love that story. It is totally my favorite Christmas story and this version is so funny. Can we watch it?"

He tossed the remote onto the coffee table. "Fine. You're as bad as Wilson with the sentimental crap."

I snuggled into his side and said: "Yeah, but I'm a girl. I can get away with it."

He chuckled, wrapped his arm around me, kissed the top of my head and settled back to watch the movie with me. Within 5 minutes, he was laughing at the antics of Carol Kane as the Ghost of Christmas Present.

At last, Friday night was here and we had a lovely 3-day weekend ahead of us. Greg was on-call, of course, but the hospital would call Chase or Cameron first and then, if needed, one of them would call Greg in. Greg actually let Foreman take the Christmas holidays off, so he could go home and visit his parents, but he had to be back before New Year's.

Jimmy and Lisa were going out to dinner tonight. They had invited us along, but we had declined. We were going to see them a lot this weekend, so we decided to spend the evening at home, just the two of us.

We hadn't had any snow yet, but the weather had gotten really cold. I decided a nice pot of chili was in order, so I threw all the ingredients in the crockpot this morning before work. That way, dinner was mostly ready and we could really relax this evening.

Greg actually beat me home tonight. I could smell the chili as I came in the door. I found him in the kitchen with the lid off of the crockpot and a spoon in hand, having a taste.

I teased: "You couldn't wait until dinner?"

"Hmmmm. This batch came out really well. You outdid yourself."

"Flattery will get you everywhere."

I headed into the bedroom and changed into some jeans and a sweater. The heat was very temperamental in this building. I couldn't get it adjusted just the way I liked it. It was either way too hot, or not quite warm enough. I was learning to live with the 'not quite warm enough'; otherwise we were walking around in shorts and tank tops.

I boiled some water and made egg noodles to go with the chili. Most people like rice with their chili, but I love having it with noodles. I carried the bowls into the living room and Greg brought the beers. While flipping channels, Greg found "A Christmas Story" and we settled in to watch that while we ate. It is not the best movie to eat by, as it is so funny that you are likely to choke while you try to swallow and laugh at the same time.

After the neighbor's dogs ate the Christmas turkey, the family went out for Chinese food. Greg nudged me: "See, they're having Chinese on Christmas like Wilson and I always do. It's not so weird."

"I didn't say it was weird. I know you guys do that every year. That's why I'm serving fried rice with the ham to honor that tradition of yours."

"We're really going to have fried rice?"

"Yeah, but I'm not making it. I'm getting it from Ling's. Don't you think it will go good with the ham?"

He gave me a strange look: "Yeah."

I took the dishes into the kitchen, washed everything up and put away the leftover chili. When I returned to the living room, I was surprised to see that Greg had turned off the TV and put on some soft music. He had turned on the Christmas tree lights and set up the menorah on top of his piano. All the candles were in place and ready to be lit.

"On top of the piano? Are you sure?"

He nodded: "I put down some aluminum foil."

He turned off all the lights except the small lamp by the couch and the tree. I lit the first four candles and said the blessing while he lit the last four. He took my hand and led me over to the couch. Once we were settled, snuggled up next to each other, he turned off the lamp. The candles were burning, the tree was twinkling and Etta James was softly singing. Greg tugged me onto his good leg and I ended up sitting partially on his lap, his arms wrapped tightly around me. I leaned my head against his shoulder and sighed with contentment. He tenderly kissed my forehead and then rested his cheek against the top of my head.

We sat there quietly, listening to the music until the candles burned themselves out, and then we went to bed.

We went to a Saturday afternoon matinee with Jimmy and Lisa. A new comedy with Ben Stiller had just been released called 'Night at the Museum' and it looked really funny. It had a great cast and we really enjoyed it. Afterwards, we went to dinner at the Alchemist and Barrister. We went to the pub side, as usual, because Greg prefers the food there. He thinks the food on the restaurant side is too pretentious. This side serves a nice steak without all the frou-frou trimmings. Greg and Jimmy both got the steak, Lisa got a portabello mushroom salad and I got a burger.

Over dinner, Greg teased Jimmy and Lisa about 'coming out' about their relationship at work. I think he was still amazed that his two closest friends were attempting a relationship, especially considering Jimmy's track record. Greg liked to tease them, but we both knew that the main reason they were keeping it quiet was because of Jimmy's impending divorce.

It would take a minimum of a year for his divorce to be finalized and he was not interested in getting Lisa involved in any of that legal crap. I knew it could be a problem at work too since Lisa was technically Jimmy's boss. They would have to tread carefully if they decided to continue seeing each other. For right now, they seemed content to keep things casual and spend time together on the weekends.

I guess this subject had been brought up just a few too many times for Jimmy because he harshly told Greg to back off and surprisingly, Greg did. There was something in Jimmy's tone that I had never heard before. Usually he glossed over the things that Greg said, or teased him back. This time he was quite assertive in telling Greg that what was going on between Lisa and himself was no one's business at the hospital and that Greg had better not open his mouth about it or there would be consequences. The two men locked eyes for a moment and then Greg gave him a slight nod and broke the eye contact.

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence at the table for a few minutes. So I piped in and asked if they had plans for New Year's Eve.

Jimmy took a deep breath and grabbed Lisa's hand before replying. "I'm taking Lisa to New York for the weekend."

"Oh, cool, are you going to watch the ball drop in Times Square?"

"That's the plan, but I've booked a hotel room that overlooks Times Square, so if it's too cold to be outside, we can watch the fun from inside the room."

Greg piped in: "That's even more fun. You can stand there naked at the window, sipping on a nice glass of bubbly while watching all the silly people down below freezing their asses off."

Jimmy chuckled. I was happy to see that things were OK between them.

"Yeah, House, we just might do that. And what are you guys going to do?"

We hadn't talked about it. I had been so focused on making a nice Christmas for Greg that I hadn't given a thought to New Year's. I could tell by the look on Greg's face that he hadn't thought about it either. He was probably wondering what I would like to do and debating if he should try to top what Jimmy and Lisa were going to do.

I decided to answer for us: "Get drunk and have sex. What else is New Year's for?"

Greg raised his left eyebrow and grinned at me: "That's my girl."

**_HOUSE_**

We slept late on Sunday and lolled around in bed for another hour after we awoke. By then it was 1:00 and we were starving. Elle made us a huge breakfast of eggs, bacon and French toast. We spent the rest of the day just hanging around the apartment. There were lots of Christmas movies on TV and we watched a few of those. Elle dragged some presents out of their hiding place and stuck them under the tree. I wondered if they were all for me. She hadn't mentioned getting anything for Wilson or Cuddy, and since she didn't exchange presents with Avi and the gang, I didn't think she would with these guys either.

I looked around at all the holiday stuff; I still had a hard time believing that she had done all of this for me. While she was in the bathroom, I went across the hall and grabbed her presents. I had them gift-wrapped at the store so I just placed them under the tree and tucked the smaller ones into her stocking.

When she walked back into the room, she noticed the additional boxes immediately. "Hey, there're more presents under the tree."

I shrugged: "They multiply like bunnies."

I was sitting on the couch in my usual spot; Elle moved to stand behind me, and wrapped her arms around me. She nibbled on my earlobe and whispered: "You got me a present?"

"Naw, Santa came while you were in the bathroom. He said he brings the Jewish presents early and makes the other kids wait until after they go to bed."

"Funny boy."

She kissed my cheek so tenderly that I felt a tingling sensation all the way down in my groin.

"I thought I might give you one of your presents tonight, if that's OK. It's one you would not want to open in front of anyone else."

"Sure, bring it on. I'll open it tonight. Which one is it?"

I glanced at the boxes under the tree.

"Oh, it's not one of those. I'll go get it. Just give me a minute to finish wrapping it."

I smirked: "I'll be waiting."

Smugly she replied: "It will be worth the wait."

Oh, now my curiosity was aroused. Wilson said that she brought me something cool while she was in New York; I wondered if this was it.

I flipped around the channels while she was gone, searching for something non-Christmassy to watch, but no luck. Every channel had Christmas programs on. I wondered what Jewish people really did on Christmas. There was nothing good on TV for them, and most everything was closed.

My ears suddenly perked up when I heard the click-click of high-heeled shoes on the wood floor. Why would Elle have changed into high heels to bring me my present?

I had my answer in just a minute. A certain part of my anatomy stiffened immediately as she stepped into the living room. Elle had transformed herself into a very sexy Mrs. Santa. She was wearing a red velvet mini dress that had white fur adorning the cuffs, hem and neckline. A wide black belt with a silver buckle cinched her tiny waist. A Santa cap and black fur-trimmed mules with four-inch heels completed her ensemble.

She posed, hands on hips, head tilted to one side: "Have you been a good boy this year, Gregory House?"

"OH, yes, Mrs. Santa, I've been a very good boy."

She placed one finger on her chin as if deep in thought: "Hmmm, I seem to remember your name being on the naughty list."

"Oh, I'm sure that must be a mistake. Let me show you how good I am."

She giggled: "I bet you're really good at being naughty."

"And I think you are just naughty."

She giggled as she strutted over to the stereo and pushed some buttons.

The music started and she turned to face me. Her fingers were playing with the fur on her neckline and she had that sexy little pout on her face. At the appropriate point in the music, Elle started singing. The song was _"Santa Baby"_ and no one, not Eartha Kitt, not Kylie Minogue, has ever sung it as sensually as Elle sang it for me that night.

As she sang, she lightly traced her finger down her neck, across her chest to the first button on the dress. Slowly she undid the first button and teased the neckline open a bit more. I could just see the red lace of her bra. As she sang, she continued to unbutton until she reached the belt. She slowly unbuckled it. Just as she started to sing _'come and trim my Christmas tree with some decorations bought at Tiffany's',_ she got the belt completely undone and whipped the dress open.

I was so ready to trim her tree and hurry _up _her chimney. Underneath that red dress Elle was wearing only a red lace shelf bra and a red garter belt. After flashing her goodies, she turned her back to me and looked over her shoulder as she continued to sing and slowly inch the dress down her body. The dress hit the floor at the same time as the song ended. Then she turned to face me, smiled sweetly and said: "Merry Christmas, baby."

I was so hard that I wasn't sure I could walk. That had been one hot number.

"Sweetheart. That was, without a doubt, the best present I've ever had. And if you climb in my lap right this minute, I'll give you one of _your_ Christmas presents."

Tossing her hair and pouting her lips in a very seductive way, she walked slowly towards me and straddled my lap. I pulled her tightly against my body and buried my face between her lovely breasts. I popped her bra and flung it across the room. Now all she had on was the garter belt, stockings and her heels. I ground my jeans-covered erection against her naked core and she rocked against me.

Elle placed her hands on my face and her lips found mine. Her tongue sought entrance, but I pushed mine into her mouth instead. I felt greedy; I wanted to possess her completely. She acquiesced and my tongue explored her mouth thoroughly.

Next my mouth moved to her neck and I went for her sweet spot. I bit it, a little harder than usual and then soothed it with my tongue. Elle gasped when I bit, but starting purring as I licked it. I spent some time on that spot, alternating between licking and sucking on it. My mark would be on her tomorrow and that's just what I wanted.

I slipped my hand between her legs; she was extremely wet. I looked down to see a damp spot on my jeans where she had been rubbing against me.

"You got wet stripping for me, didn't you, naughty girl?" I plunged my fingers inside of her.

She squealed: "YES!"

Elle rocked against my fingers, moaning whenever I would lightly press my thumb over her clit. She tried to angle her body for more pressure, but I wanted to stretch this out for a bit longer.

I pulled my fingers out of her, stuck one in her mouth and one in mine. We each licked a finger clean, our faces so close together that we were breathing each other's air. When we had finished, I instructed her to take my shirt off. Elle obliged by pulling it over my head and tossing it over the back of the couch. Then she rubbed her breasts against my naked chest and nipped my neck.

I put my hands on her waist and pushed her away. "Get up. I gotta get these pants off."

Elle climbed off of me and I stood up, a bit wobbly-legged. I stepped away from her, unbuckling my belt as I walked towards the leather armchair. I turned to face her, unzipped my jeans and dropped them to my ankles. I sat down in the chair and instructed her to finish removing them.

Elle knelt in front of me and untangled my jeans from my ankles. Then she moved between my thighs and mouthed my cock through my briefs. I watched her through half-closed eyes. Even through the material, it felt really good, but I was ready for more.

"Take those off too."

I lifted my hips slightly to make it easier for her to pull them off. As soon as she had untangled them from my feet, her mouth was back on my cock again. I ran my fingers through her hair as I watched her suck me. The sight was incredibly erotic and I felt myself getting closer to the edge than I wanted to be at the moment.

I stopped her with a finger under her jaw; she looked up at me with my dick still in her mouth. I took a mental snapshot of that image. No matter what, I always wanted to remember this Christmas Eve, her sexy little strip tease, and the way the Santa hat on her head waggled as she blew me.

Her eyes were dark with lust as she continued to flick her tongue against the underside of my cock while awaiting my next instructions. It was absolutely delightful.

But I was ready for Mrs. Santa to ride my sleigh.

"Condom?"

She winked and slowly withdrew me from her mouth. She circled the tip with her tongue, licking up my pre-cum and then she slowly stood up. She fished a condom out of her garter belt and opened it up. She rolled the condom onto my cock; I grabbed her hips and guided her towards me. Elle positioned me at her entrance and slowly slid down my cock. She cried out as I thrust up into her and then we fell into a rhythm.

My hands were all over her, squeezing her ass, cupping her breast, tweaking her nipple, but my eyes never left her face. I loved watching her expression as her body moved closer and closer to the edge, the half-mast lids, the little smiles, the lust-filled eyes.

She was almost there and I was ready to fall. I stuck my thumb in her mouth to lick and then I gently pressed it on her clit. That light touch was all it took for her and she cried out my name as she came. Her walls clamped tightly around my cock; that took me over the edge and I exploded inside of her. We thrust against each other a few more times and then she sagged against my chest. Our bodies were covered with a fine sheen of sweat, our breathing was ragged, but I'd never felt better in my life. There wasn't even a dull throb in my leg at the moment. Elle's Christmas magic had cured my pain, even if it were only for a few moments.

Elle leaned back and lifted her hair off of her sweaty neck. I could see that my mark had already appeared. I leaned forward and took another quick nip to reinforce the color. Elle gasped in surprise.

I licked it soothingly as I muttered: "Mine. All mine."


	44. Chapter 44

Chapter 44

**_HOUSE_**

Wilson came over mid-morning on Christmas to help Elle prepare the dinner. He had spent the night at Cuddy's place and she was joining us later for dinner. Elle and I had only been awake for a short while when he arrived, just long enough for the coffee to finish brewing.

We had gone to bed after our little armchair interlude last night, and the discarded pieces of clothing were still on the floor. Wilson smirked as he looked around the living room. When Elle's back was turned, Wilson picked up the bra that she had been wearing last night. He held it up, inspecting it, and then shot me an amused look.

"Looks like someone's been naughty. I'm surprised to see that Santa left any presents at all."

Elle turned around right at that moment and saw what he was holding. She marched over to him and snatched it out of his hand.

"We may be _naughty_, but we're very _nice_ to each other, so I guess Santa feels we deserve presents after all."

Elle walked around the room and picked up all the stray clothes. She put the Santa hat back on her hat, shot Wilson a smirk and walked over to me. She tiptoed up, put her hand on the back of my neck and pulled me down for a kiss. I obliged her desire and we shared a nice open-mouth kiss. I grabbed her ass and pressed her closer to me. As we broke apart, she cupped me and gave my package a gentle squeeze. Her eyes were lust-filled, her smile sensual and mysterious as she mouthed the word: "Mine." Then she turned and headed down the hall.

I smirked; I was a bit surprised that she had done that right in front of Wilson. His expression gave away his own shock at her action.

Then he laughed: "She really is a little spitfire, isn't she?"

My mind flooded with the memories of last night's events and all I could do was nod in response to his question.

Elle and Wilson started working on Christmas dinner right after breakfast. Elle doused the ham with a can of cherry coke; that seemed really weird to me but she swore that I would love the way it tasted, so I shrugged and let them carry on. After applying the pineapple rings and cherries, the ham went into the oven. They continued on with the dinner preparations while I wandered into the living room.

I sat down on the couch and picked up the phone from the end table. I stared at it for a few minutes. I needed to call my parents and wish them a Merry Christmas, but I didn't seem to be able to dial. I had been talking to Mom 2 or 3 times a month since her visit, but it had always been on Sunday mornings when Dad was off fishing with his buddies. I hadn't actually spoken to him in months, but I knew I couldn't get away with that today.

I took a deep breath and blew it out while stabbing at the numbers on the phone. I told myself to just get it over with; maybe if I was lucky he would be in the john and I wouldn't have to talk to him. As the phone rang, I pondered on the fact that a slang term for the toilet was the same as my Dad's name.

To my bad luck, it was his gruff voice that answered the phone. "Hello."

He couldn't even answer the phone in a pleasant manner on Christmas.

I tried to keep my voice calm as I spoke: "Hey, Dad. Merry Christmas."

"Well, well, well. My son finally remembers to call his folks for a change. What do we owe the pleasure of this call? Oh, yeah, it's Christmas."

My hand fisted. This was not going to be an easy call. "I guess I've missed you the last few times I've called. Mom said you were out fishing."

"Yeah, convenient how you always call when I'm not here. Some people would think that you don't want to talk to me. What are ya ashamed of your old man?"

"Not at all, Dad. It's just been convenient to call on Sundays right before the 1:00 game comes on."

"So you call your mother right before you sit down to watch football and drink beer with Wilson? Or does your little girlfriend watch football with you too?"

_Crap_. Mom had told him about Elle; I had been hoping that she wouldn't.

"Her name is Elle and yes, she watches football with us."

He snorted: "L? That's not a name; it's just a letter of the alphabet. What kind of people would name their kid something like that?"

I gritted my teeth: "It's spelled E-L-L-E. It's short for Arielle, which is a biblical name, by the way. It means 'lion of God'."

Again he snorted: "I never heard that name in the bible."

"In the book of Ezra, Ariel was Ezra's messenger to the Levites. And in Isaiah 29, Ariel was a code name for the city of Jerusalem."

"Look at that. My atheist son is quoting the bible. I thought you didn't believe it in God."

"I don't, but I have read a lot of literature including the bible. Shakespeare used the name Ariel in 'The Tempest' and so did Milton in 'Paradise Lost'."

"A: the bible is NOT just literature. It is the word of God. And B: I _have_ read some literature. Your old man's not as stupid as you seem to think he is. Shakespeare's Ariel was a real prankster. Is that what your girl is like?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, Dad. You asked about her name; I was just giving you some information about it."

"Yeah, you think you're so smart. Did you know that Uranus has 3 moons, one of which is named Ariel? Your girlfriend's a moon that revolves around _your anus."_ He snorted with laughter.

I gritted my teeth; I just wanted to say hi to Mom and finish this phone call.

Before I could open my mouth to ask for her, Dad blundered on.

"Ah, you didn't laugh at my little joke? Did ya lose your sense of humor, son?"

"I didn't find it very funny, Dad. I would prefer that you not talk about Elle like that."

"Why, what's the harm in a little joke? I'm sure she would understand. Put her on the phone and let's see if she laughs at it."

"No, I won't have you talking to her that way."

He chuckled: "My, you are awfully protective of her aren't you? Are you in love with this one, gonna marry her, or are you just going to shack up with her like you did with Stacy?"

"It's really none of your business how I live my life."

"I'm your father; it is my business. You know what your problem is, Greg? You have it too good. You've shacked up with women getting all the benefits of marriage without the responsibility. You got two legs, yet you think you're such a cripple that you need a handicapped-parking sticker. I know guys,"

I growled: "Don't go there."

I could hear Mom's voice in the background pleading: "John, for pity's sake, don't argue with him on Christmas. Give me the phone. Let me say hello."

Dad's voice got distant as if he was holding the phone away from his mouth. "Fine, Blythe. Talk to him. Say Merry Christmas to his little slut for me."

"John! She's a nice girl. Don't say things like that."

"Nice girls don't shack up."

I shouted into the phone: "I told you not to talk about her that way."

His voice was louder this time. He must have put the phone back up to his mouth. "I'll say any damn thing I want. If she puts up with the likes of you, how nice can she be? She's probably a slutty bitch like Stacy. You seem to attract that type."

"Stop it John! Give me that damn phone."

"Don't you cuss at me, woman. Here! Talk to the jerk we call our son."

Finally Mom got the phone away from him. "Greg. Merry Christmas, dear."

Through gritted teeth, I hissed: "It was until I spoke to him."

She sighed: "Greg, dear."

After that conversation, I was finding it hard to be civil even with Mom.

"Please don't make excuses for him this time. He has no right to say those things about Elle. His behavior is completely unacceptable."

"He just doesn't know how to talk to you."

She sounded so sad, but I just couldn't take her peacemaking efforts today.

"Yeah, you'd think after 47 years, my dad would have figured out how to talk to his son. Some people just should not have kids. I gotta go, Mom. I hope you have a nice Christmas and I'll talk to you soon."

I ended the call and threw the phone across the room, shattering it into several pieces. I looked around the room; I wanted to break something else. Then I glanced towards the kitchen and saw the worried faces of Elle and Wilson. _Crap!_ I guess they heard the whole conversation. Great, just what I needed, two people worried about my feelings. I couldn't deal with this right now. I grabbed my jacket and my helmet and headed out the door as fast as my crippled leg could take me.

**ELLE**

"Jimmy, he took his helmet. That means he's taking the bike!"

I rushed to the window just in time to see Greg rev the engine and take off down the street. He hadn't ridden the bike since the weather had turned so cold.

Jimmy tried to reassure me. "Elle, don't worry. After that phone call, he just needs to burn off some steam or he'll be taking it out on one of us. Look what he did to the phone."

"I understand that, I'm just worried about the condition of the roads."

"Well, we haven't had any snow or ice storms."

"Not here in Princeton, but he likes to ride out in the country and who knows what it's like out there? It could have snowed."

He looked worried now. "You're right."

I started picking up the pieces of the phone scattered across the room. "Greg kept saying my name. He and his father were fighting about me. Why would they be fighting about me? Greg kept explaining about my name, what was that all about?"

He shook his head: "I don't know. John House doesn't deal well with the unusual and I guess you have an unusual name as far as he is concerned."

"How stupid is that, fighting about my name?"

"John will find something to pick on. When House was with Stacy, he used to make lawyer jokes and rag on him endlessly about the fact that they weren't married. John kept making jokes about getting the milk without buying the cow. House hated that."

"Why does he do that?"

He shook his head sadly: "I don't know, Elle."

"Greg was defending me. He kept saying don't talk about her that way. What on earth could his dad have been saying about me? He hasn't even met me."

Jimmy just shrugged; we had no answers.

I was really concerned; Greg seemed quite upset and I didn't know what he would do. If he was ruminating on the argument in his mind while he was riding, he might not pay close attention to the road conditions and get into a bad situation. I wanted him to just come home. I knew he wouldn't want to talk about it, but I wanted him safe. How incredible that his dad managed to ruin Christmas and he wasn't even here.

"I'm going to call him and try to get him to come home."

Wilson warned: "He might not answer and even if he does, he might be in such a bad mood that he takes it out on you."

"I know and I'll deal with it. I just want him home and not driving around in a foul mood on bad roads."

I found my cell and called his. To my dismay, I could hear his phone ringing back in the bedroom. I looked at Jimmy; he heard it too and just shook his head.

I closed my phone and blew out a puff of air in frustration. "I should just attach a GPS device to his ass. At least, then, I'd know where he was."

There was nothing else I could do but wait for him to come home. I headed back into the kitchen and started working on the rest of Christmas dinner. I needed to keep busy or I would just go nuts with worry. Jimmy joined me and we worked side by side in silence.

**_HOUSE_**

I couldn't believe that my old man managed to ruin the first Christmas that I had been looking forward to in years. I was doubly pissed that Elle and Wilson had heard the conversation. After seeing their faces and knowing how concerned they would be, I just couldn't face the two of them. Wilson would definitely want to talk about it and I'm sure Elle was wondering why her name kept popping up in the argument.

My old man was such an ass. Nothing I ever did pleased him. He was never proud of me. Most parents would be proud of their kid when they graduated from medical school, but not him. As far as he was concerned, the military should have been the only career for his son. Once it became clear that I wasn't going to take that path, there was nothing else I could do to please the man.

I could take him ragging on me. After all, he has done that practically my whole life. But I couldn't take him attacking Elle. Not that I should be surprised that he is saying things about her; after all, he attacked Stacy constantly. I suppose he feels that any woman, who would debase herself to be with his loser son, must be an idiot/tramp/slut/loser herself.

I was so distracted by my thoughts that I failed to really pay attention to where I was going. When I saw the Burlington County sign, I realized that I had ridden much further than I thought. Suddenly I was feeling the cold. I was on my bike in December, going 60 MPH and wearing just my leather jacket. Oh, man, and Elle saw me leave like this. She is gonna be really worried. She had planned a really nice Christmas for me and I was fucking it up. She didn't deserve this; she deserved much better.

I pulled over at a gas station and cut the engine. I searched my pockets for my cell phone and naturally, I didn't have it on me. I wandered over to the pay phone and someone had ripped off the handset so it was completely unusable.

The gas station was closed, of course, it being Christmas and all. I was freezing and my thigh was starting to really ache from the cold. I turned around and headed back towards Princeton, keeping my eyes peeled for a diner or any place that would serve coffee. After 5 miles, I found a little hole-in-the-wall place that was just about to close for the day. I convinced them to give me the dregs of the coffee in a to-go cup. It was disgusting, but at least it was hot. I stood with my back to the wind as I gulped as much of the nasty stuff as I could stomach. I tossed the empty cup in the trash and climbed back on the bike.

The wind was really whipping; it felt like the temperature had dropped, but I was probably just feeling the cold more now that my blood was no longer boiling from the fight that I'd had with my dad. My leg was really cramping from the cold and not only did I not have my cell phone in this jacket, I didn't have any oxycodone either. It was going to be a long cold ride home.

I revved the bike and headed north, hoping like hell that Elle wasn't mad at me for ruining Christmas. All I wanted right now was to feel her envelop me with the warmth of her love. I was comforted by the fact that no matter what my dad thought of me, I had an amazing woman who loved me. I sped on down the highway; I didn't want to keep her waiting any longer.

Elle looked relieved when I walked through the door, but she didn't run over to me like I thought she would. I felt like she was holding back from either yelling at me for worrying her or hugging me for making it home alive. We locked eyes for a moment and then I looked over at Wilson.

We've known each other for so long that I didn't have to say anything; he got the message.

"I'm, just going to go across the hall and, check on the food over there."

I stared at the floor until he had departed. When the door closed behind him, I looked up at Elle. I felt bad for worrying her but I didn't know what to say.

My eyes pleaded with her: "I forgot my phone."

"I know. I tried to call you."

I held out my arms and she walked into my embrace, but then quickly backed up. "You're so cold! You must have been freezing on the bike. Want me to run you a hot bath?"

"No, but I need to lay down for a while. My leg is really hurting."

"I'll get the heating pad, OK?"

I nodded and she scurried down the hall to the bedroom. I shucked off my leather jacket, tossed it over the couch and limped down the hall behind her. Elle had already pulled the covers back and set the heating pad down on the bed. I sat heavily on the bed and, with an effort, managed to toe my sneakers off. I had spent way too long on the bike in this freezing cold weather.

"Want some pajamas?"

I nodded, suddenly so weary that I felt like I couldn't keep my eyes open for much longer. The argument had taken a bigger emotional toll than I thought.

Elle pulled some clean PJ's out of the drawer and walked back over to the bed.

She hesitated and I knew why. She knew I hated to be babied and fussed over; she was probably afraid I'd snap at her if she tried. Today I wanted her comfort; I wanted anything and everything that she would give me.

My eyes pleaded with her: "Elle."

Silently she helped me pull my shirt off. She slipped a clean tee over my head and then smoothed my hair lovingly. She helped me with getting my jeans off and the PJ's on and then tucked me into bed with the heating pad over my damaged thigh.

As she pulled the covers up to my chin, she asked: "This OK?"

I patted my chest: "Warm me up."

Elle kicked off her shoes and quickly shucked her jeans and sweater. Wearing just her bra and panties, she climbed under the covers and wrapped her warm body around me. I heard a sound, like a wounded buffalo, and then I realized I had moaned out loud. Her warmth felt so good. She planted little kisses all over my face and rubbed her hands over my neck and shoulders until I stopped shivering.

I squeezed her tightly. "Thank you."

"For what, baby?"

"For not being mad."

"I was never mad. I was just concerned about you riding in this weather. I didn't know if the country roads would be icy, so I was worried. I just wanted you safe."

I felt a huge relief. "So I didn't ruin Christmas?"

"No, of course not. We're still going to have dinner and open presents later."

Hesitantly Elle said: "Greg. Not now, but maybe later, if you feel up to it, would you tell me what you were fighting about? You kept mentioning my name and I can't help wondering what it was all about."

I knew she would be curious, but I didn't want to tell her, at least not all the details of what he had said. But she did deserve a bit of an explanation.

My hands lightly stroked her, up and down her back.

"He was making fun of your name. He has to find something to poke at, and since he doesn't know anything about you, he attacked the one thing he does know. If he knew you were a pharmacist or that you're Jewish, he would rag on that. I don't care if he says bad shit about me; he always has and always will. But when he started saying crap about you, I couldn't take it. He hasn't even met you and he's denigrating you just because you're with me, his loser son."

Elle lifted her head and looked me right in the eye. "You're _not_ a loser and if he can't see what a wonderful man you are, it's his loss."

I closed my eyes, feeling overwhelmed with emotion.

She gently caressed my face: "Dinner is about 2 hours away. Do you want to take a little nap before dinner?"

I nodded.

"Want an oxy?"

"Please."

She started to climb out of bed but I grabbed her and held on tightly. Burying my face in her neck, I whispered: "You're da bomb."

Her hands stroked my hair as she softly replied: "I love you too."

After a few more minutes, I finally let her get up. She found my pills and shook one out of the bottle for me. As I dry-swallowed it, Elle pulled the covers up over me again. Lovingly she stroked my hair and kissed my forehead: "I'll wake you right before dinner, OK?"

I nodded and drifted off to sleep.

**_ELLE_**

I closed the bedroom door behind me. As I walked back down the hall, I really hoped that the nap would make him feel somewhat better. I did want him to enjoy the rest of the day.

I went over to my apartment and found Lisa had arrived and both she and Jimmy were in the kitchen.

As soon as he saw me, Jimmy jumped right in: "How is he?"

"He's very tired and his leg is hurting. He's going to take a little nap."

"Did you find out what happened?"

"Not the details. But you were right. His dad was ragging Greg about me like he used to do to Stacy. Nice thing to do on Christmas, huh?"

Lisa shook her head: "The two of them have never gotten along. When we were at Michigan, House never went home for the holiday breaks. He just stayed at school and worked over the holidays."

I took a deep breath. "Well, let's make the rest of the day nice. I'll let him sleep for a couple of hours and then I'll wake him for dinner. How's the pie doing, Jimmy?"

We chatted and worked on dinner, going back and forth between the two apartments. We set up the card table at Greg's place because I thought it would be nice to eat over there with the tree and all. When everything was ready, we brought these dishes over to Greg's place and set up a buffet on the kitchen island.

Just as I was about to go and wake up Greg, he wandered out into the kitchen. He had dressed in his usual blue jeans with a sky-blue button-down shirt replacing his usual tee shirt.

He eyed the food like a starving man and then walked over and took me into his arms. He embraced me tightly. It took me just a moment to respond; it was so unusual for him to be this demonstrative in front of other people, even Lisa and Jimmy. I wanted to ask him if he was OK, but I didn't want to do it in front of the others.

"Are you hungry? I have some appetizers."

He gave me one of his evil grins and then replied in French: _"Are you one of them?"_

"_No, but I can be dessert."_

"_Even better. I'll eat you after they've gone."_

I smiled and planted a big kiss on his lips. He was doing better. We were going to have a great Christmas after all.

**_HOUSE_**

We each plated our food from the selection on the island and sat down at the table. Everyone was rather subdued and I was sure it was due to the earlier drama. I needed to change the mood pronto.

"I think it's rather bitchin' that I'm spending Christmas with 3 Jews. There is no focus on that whole manger bit; there's just the Santa angle. So there are presents without the religious crap. Me likey. And I'm pretty stoked about the food. Who would have thought that my little Jewish girl could make such a great ham?"

Elle held up a piece with her fork: "Told ya you would like it with the cherry coke poured over it." Then she popped it in her mouth.

"It is indeed tasty. And the fried rice is a wonderful accompaniment for it."

Lisa asked: "So what's the deal with the fried rice? Everything else is home-made except for that."

Elle explained: "Greg and Jimmy have a tradition of eating Chinese food on Christmas. They've been doing that for several years. I didn't want to break that tradition with my little dinner."

Wilson sputtered: "Little dinner? There is enough food here to feed an army."

And indeed there was. In addition to the ham and fried rice, Elle and Wilson had made scalloped potatoes, a sweet potato soufflé, green beans, cinnamon apples, crescent rolls and a cranberry Jello salad. Elle had passed around some deviled eggs and stuffed mushrooms for appetizers. Cuddy had brought some wine, a Zinfandel Rose that went very well with the ham. It was truly a feast.

We ate until we were completely stuffed. Cuddy even broke her usual vegetarian diet and ate some ham. When I called her on it, she just shrugged and said: "What the hell? It's Christmas."

I leaned back in my chair and asked: "So, what's for dessert?"

Wilson groaned: "House! How can you still be hungry? You went back for seconds three times."

"Didn't realize you were counting. I smelled something really yummy baking and I want to know what it is."

Elle said: "I made a caramel apple cheesecake pie."

I groaned; that sounded delicious, but I doubted that I could stuff anything else in my stomach at the moment.

Elle thought we could clean up and relax a bit, before having dessert. Everyone else thought it seemed like a good idea so they all pitched in and helped while I strolled over to the stereo. I selected 5 CD's of jazz and blues and loaded them, setting the player on 'shuffle'.

As the first song played, Wilson teased: "What, no Christmas music?"

I rolled my eyes: "Yeah, right. I'll roast your chestnuts over an open fire if you want, but the sleigh bells will be silent."

Cuddy joined in: "Oh, too bad. I was hoping either you or Elle would play some Christmas music for us."

"How much are you gonna pay me to do that? I'll accept cash or being excused from clinic duty for the next, oh, millennium."

It was Cuddy's turn to roll her eyes: "Forget it, House."

As we all found seats in the living room to collapse upon, Wilson went over to the tree and pulled out a long flat box. He handed it to me and said: "Well, in keeping with tradition, Merry Christmas, House."

I rattled the box, pretending to be excited: "What could it be? Hmm, sounds like a tie!"

I ripped the paper off, wondering what degree of ugliness he had bought for me this year. I ended up being rather surprised, my jaw dropping slightly until I realized it and shut my trap.

Wilson chortled: "He's tongue-tied."

He started cracking up at his own joke. The ladies just stared at him, wondering what was so funny, until I held the tie up next to my shirt. Then Cuddy started laughing and Elle gasped.

"Oh my Gawd! It's the Rolling Stones tongue! It matches your,"

Then she clapped her hand over her mouth. It was nice of her not to reveal that I had matching boxers. Wilson would never let me live that down.

Wilson was still laughing at his own joke: "Yeah, there's a tongue on his tie. He's tongue-tied."

Elle started to laugh: "It does give a whole new meaning to tongue-tied, doesn't it, Greg?"

I knew she was referring to the way we have found other uses for Wilson's past gifts.

I decided to put it on. "Wilson you have outdone yourself this year. It's the first time you have bought me a tie that I would actually consider wearing."

(Reminder: see the tie in my faves)

Cuddy teased: "So did you get a gift for Wilson?"

I adjusted the tie so that it hung properly: "Nope that's part of the tradition."

Wilson nodded: "Exactly. I get him a tie; he gets me nothing. And I get to pay for the Chinese food. Since Elle cooked this year, I got off easy, not having to buy dinner."

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "You're impossible, House."

"That's part of my charm."

We hung out for a while until everyone was finally ready for dessert. The pie was fantastic; everyone raved about it until Elle blushed. I was happy that everyone had such small pieces; that left more for my midnight snacks. After dessert, Wilson and Cuddy said goodnight and headed across the hall.

Elle threw herself down on the couch. "Wanna open your presents?"

"OK." I started pulling up on her sweater. I managed to expose her tummy before she started batting at my hand.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm opening my present. Aren't you my present?"

She giggled: "No, I'm your dessert. You're going to eat me later, remember?"

I grinned: "Oh yeah. I'll just have a taste now."

I leaned down and planted several noisy wet kisses on her bare tummy. As usual, it tickled her and she started laughing. I pulled her sweater back into place and loudly smacked her cheek. "Ummmm, tasty."

I leaned back against the couch and looked at her. She was flushed from laughing and she was smiling broadly. She looked so happy that I couldn't help smiling back at her.

"So where's my presents, sweetheart? What did Santa bring me?"

Elle walked over to the tree and picked up two of the packages. She handed them to me and sat down on the end of the couch. I put one box down on the coffee table and proceeded to open the other one.

It was John Mayall's 1966 "Blues Breakers" album with Eric Clapton, the one known as the "Beano" album because Clapton was reading a Beano comic on the cover. It was the actual album, not the CD. It was extremely rare to find this old album and it seemed to be in great shape.

I was extremely touched by her thoughtful gift. "Elle, this is fantastic. How did you find this?"

Mysteriously she just said: "I have friends. Open the other one."

The other box contained John Mayall's 1967 album, "A Hard Road". I couldn't believe she had found these on vinyl. I had the CD's, but vinyl was so much better.

This was amazing. Wilson was right; she had put a lot of thought into finding me just the right present.

I gingerly set them down on the coffee table and pulled her into my lap. I wrapped my arms around her and buried my face in her neck. Her hands stroked the back of my neck, tickling the fine hairs there.

In a casual voice, she said: "So, you likey?"

I squeezed her tighter and then my lips found hers. I kissed her as lovingly as I could before I answered: "Yes, me likey."

**_ELLE_**

I think he really liked the albums. He didn't say much but he grabbed me and held me close for several minutes. It wasn't a prelude-to-sex kind of hug; it was an I-need-to-be-close-but-don't-know-how-to-tell-you kind of hug. It was the kind of hug he gave me when I crawled in bed with him earlier today. I held him and caressed him and just tried to convey to him how much he means to me.

"Santa brought something for you, too."

"He did, huh?"

"Grab that box with the silver paper."

I went over to the tree and picked up the designated box. I brought it back to the couch and slowly tore the paper off. I gasped in surprise when I saw it: Santa had gotten me an I-Pod Classic. It was the newest version with 80GB of memory and had just come out a couple of months earlier. It was capable of holding 20,000 songs; more than I could even comprehend loading.

I squealed with delight: "Oh, it's just what I wanted. How did Santa know?"

Solemnly Greg replied: "Santa is all-knowing. He even knows what music you like and has loaded a few tunes for you."

I quickly scrolled through the song list; Greg had loaded a lot of my favorites for me, including Janis Joplin, John Prine and Bon Jovi. "I see that. Santa is amazing."

I gave Greg a big hug and kiss and he sputtered: "Hey, what was that for? I'm not Santa."

"You may not be Santa, but I'm sure you gave him some hints as to what I would like, so I'm thanking you too."

He smirked: "Well, Santa got you a couple more things you might like. Open the big box with the green paper."

That box turned out to contain an I-Pod docking station with speakers. This was great; we could listen to music together with this.

"Oh, this is great! I love this. Thank you so much."

These were wonderful presents; I was so excited. I had something else for him that I had bought on the spur of the moment and I went to the tree to get it.

As I handed it to him, I explained: "I thought this might be fun for the office. Something to do when you're hiding from Cuddy."

He had a gleam in his eye as he took the box from me. "I like the way you think, woman."

I had gotten him a remote-controlled robot soccer game. It was portable, unlike the foosball table where Jimmy and Greg spent so much time.

He tore into the box and chuckled when the contents were revealed. "Oh yeah, this is great! Something to do when we get tired of foosball, and it's compact so we can hide out anywhere and play it."

He kissed my cheek: "Me likey. There's something else for you. It's in your stocking."

"Something else? But you've already gotten me so much?"

He shrugged: "Hey, it's not me. It's Santa. I guess he thinks you've been an especially good girl this year."

He opened up the box and started putting the batteries in the controls as I went over to my stocking and pulled out two wrapped packages. I opened the flat box first.

I cracked up with the contents were revealed: "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol?"

He shrugged: "You said that was your favorite Christmas story. I remember watching this version when I was a kid. It's better than the Alastair Sim version."

I giggled: "Well, I can't wait to see this version."

The other box was a small square wrapped in gold paper. It was the size of a jewelry box. I couldn't imagine Greg getting me something like that, but I couldn't imagine what else could be in a box that small.

My curiosity got the best of me and I ripped the paper off quickly. Greg noticed and chuckled: "Don't get so excited. It's not Cartier or Tiffany."

I ignored him and lifted the lid off of the box. I stared at the contents for so long; that I guess I worried him. "Hey, if you don't like it, you don't have to wear it. I just thought it was kinda cute."

I'm sure I sounded awestruck when I said: "No, I do like it. It's beautiful. And I know that this one's definitely not from Santa. This is from my cowboy."

Nestled in the box was a charm shaped like a cowboy boot. It was white gold with little diamond accents all over it. There was even a spur on the heel. The boot was attached to a white gold 18-inch chain necklace.

I squealed: "I love it. Put it on me, please."

He mumbled: "I'm busy here," but he set the robots down and fastened the necklace for me while I held my hair up. I ran to the mirror and took a look. It was just beautiful. I wasn't really into jewelry, but this was so perfect.

I flew back to the couch and threw my arms around his neck. He was still playing with the robots so he acted aggravated at the interruption, but I knew he really wasn't pissed.

"Geez, you're _this_ happy over a little trinket. What would you do if I actually got you something from Tiffany?"

"You'll just have to find out some time."

**_HOUSE_**

Elle gave me some cool stuff. The albums were amazing and the robot soccer was going to be great fun at work. She laughed when she opened the Mr. Magoo DVD and she totally loved everything else, especially the necklace. It's funny how I just happened to see that in the jewelry store window and bought it on impulse. After the earlier drama, it was nice to have the day end on a happy note.

Elle cut us another slice of the cheesecake pie and we settled down to watch Mr. Magoo. It was as silly as I remembered it and Elle liked it too.

When it was over, Elle sighed. "This was such a nice weekend. I hate to see it end and have to go back to work tomorrow."

She picked up our empty plates and carried them into the kitchen.

I fiddled with her I-Pod until I found the song I wanted. As she walked back into the room, I started it and held out my hand to her. She took my hand and I pulled her into my arms as the Righteous Brothers begin to sing '_Unchained Melody'._

The months of swimming had paid off. My leg still hurt a lot, but the remaining muscles had gotten a lot stronger. I could do more than just sway with her now; I could actually take a few steps and shift my weight a little better. Although Elle didn't say anything, I knew she could tell; her smile gave her away. I slowly danced her around until we were behind the couch. Right at the end of the song, I leaned up against the couch and put my arm under her ass, pulling her up off the floor and encouraging her to wrap her legs around me. I had been wanting to do this for a long time. Although my leg wasn't strong enough to completely support her weight without the aid of the couch, this came very close to what I desired. It made me feel strong, I felt like a man again. I wanted to carry her to the bedroom like this, but I couldn't do that yet. One day.

I held her tightly and she squeezed me with her legs. Our mouths collided and we kissed deeply. My tongue explored her delicious mouth, tasting like the caramel apple pie that we had just eaten. I could feel my desire becoming more urgent.

I pulled away from her mouth just far enough to whisper: "I'm ready for my dessert."

"You just had a piece of pie. Oh,"

She smiled knowingly and slowly disengaged from my embrace. This time, she was the one who held out her hand. I took it and we walked down the hall towards the bedroom.

We cuddled afterwards, Elle's head resting on my shoulder and my chin resting on top of her head. After a few minutes, I could hear her soft even breathing, signaling her arrival into dreamland. My last thoughts, as I was drifting off to sleep, was that Elle had given me the best Christmas that I'd had in years.

**_WILSON_**

Lisa was heading for home and I was walking her out to her car. We had just stepped out into the foyer when we heard the music.

_Oh, my love, my darling_

_I've hungered for your touch_

Suddenly she stopped and tilted her head: "Isn't that the song from _'Ghost'_?"

I listened carefully and then said: "Yeah, I believe it is."

_A long lonely time_

_And time goes by, so slowly_

"Wow. I can't believe that House is listening to that. It's such a romantic song."

I found myself smiling: "Elle has been really good for him. She is definitely bringing out a side of him that I was sure had died when Stacy left."

_And time can do so much._

Softly she said: "I hope it lasts. I don't know if he could take another heartbreak."

"I have a good feeling about them. I think they'll make it."

_Are you, still mine?_

I looked at Lisa as the song continued on. I was enjoying the hell out of being with her. Impulsively I grabbed her and we started dancing to the song right there in the foyer. We slowly waltzed until the song ended and then I kissed her deeply.

When we broke the kiss, I gently touched her cheek and whispered: "Stay."

Her eyes met mine and she nodded.

I took her hand and led her back inside.

_I need your love; I need your love._

_God speed your love to me._


	45. Chapter 45

A/N: Mature warning alert. Lots of sex in this chapter. Don't read it if you are underage or if that type of writing offends you.

**Chapter 45**

**_HOUSE_**

Thankfully it was a short week. We only had to work 4 days and then we had another 3-day weekend. Wilson had made reservations at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square so they would be spending Saturday to Monday in New York. Avi, Ricky, Adam and his clan were heading up to the family cabin so it looked like we were going to be alone for the weekend. After spending so much time planning Christmas, Elle didn't seem to show any interest in making plans for New Year's, so naturally that intrigued me.

As we slouched on the couch after dinner on Wednesday evening, I finally broke down and asked: "So, New Year's?"

"Yeah, it's coming up. Sunday night. Hard to believe that the year is almost over and it's gonna be 2007."

"Yeah. Wilson and Cuddy will be in New York watching the ball drop."

Elle nodded: "I know."

She wasn't making this easy. "Right, is there something you wanna do?"

A shoulder shrug: "I thought we already made plans."

Now it was my turn to be puzzled: "We did?"

"Get drunk and have sex. You seemed to like the idea the other night."

"I always like that idea. I just didn't know if you wanted to do anything else, you know, cuz, it's New Year's and all that crap."

"I don't know. If there's something you want to do, that's fine. I never really liked going out on New Year's that much. All the amateur drunks are out on the road and it's not safe to drive. I'm cool with staying home with a movie, Chinese food, a bottle of scotch and you."

What planet was she from? I'd never met a woman who didn't want me to spend some enormous amount of money on overpriced entertainment and food on New Year's Eve. "Seriously?"

Her face was completely serene. "Yeah."

"Wilson's taking Cuddy to New York for the whole ball dropping thing."

"I know. They told us and you just mentioned it. It may be too late to make hotel reservations, but did you want to do that?"

"Not really."

"Are _you_ OK with staying home, Greg?"

"Yeah, but."

She waited for me to go on and when I didn't, she asked: "But what?"

"I figured you'd want something more than take-out and a movie. We do that all the time."

"But I like doing that. There's no rule that says we _have_ to party just cuz it's New Year's. Everyone does that. We can do our own thing."

"Seriously?"

She burst out laughing: "Yes, seriously."

Elle carefully straddled my lap being ever mindful of my thigh. She cupped my face in her hand and tilted my face up to look at her. "You don't believe me, do you? I guess most women want a fancy time on New Year's. I bet that's what you're used to. You should know me by now, that I'm not like most women. Besides I have my own agenda."

_Oh, great. Here it comes._

She stroked my cheek with her thumb. "There was one last little present that I forgot about on Christmas. I thought we could unwrap it on New Year's and play with it."

"Oh, yeah. What is it?"

She had quite a saucy look on her face: "Hmmm, let's just say, it's clothing of a certain nature. I think you'll approve."

My hands glided up her back under her sweater. "So you're saying we could have our own little costume party, just the two of us."

She started nibbling on my earlobe: "Mmmm, hmmmm."

Remembering Christmas Eve, I quickly said: "Sounds like there will be live holiday porn in our living room."

She giggled: "Something like that. You bring the movie and the scotch. I'll take care of everything else."

After work on Friday, I bought a bottle of 18-year-old Macallan. It has a nice fruity palate with spices and cloves and just a hint of wood smoke flavor. I wasn't sure what type of movie she was expecting. I got _Talladega Nights,_ a comedy with Will Ferrell that had just been released on DVD. I thought perhaps we could watch that during dinner. And since she seemed to have an interesting evening of sexcapades planned, I also grabbed some porn. I hadn't watched any porn in a while. Basically I had no need to, since Elle had come into my life. After all this time together, we had not watched any porn together, so I thought that might make for an interesting New Year's Eve at home. I secured my purchases on the seat next to me and headed home for a nice long weekend.

We ordered a Chinese feast for New Year's Eve. Potstickers, chicken lo mein, Sizzling Shrimp and Hunan Beef were on the menu tonight and we watched _Talladega Nights_ while we ate. Elle cleaned up the debris and we snuggled on the couch while we finished watching the movie and then listened to some music while we sipped on the lovely scotch.

Around 10PM, she gave me a saucy look and asked: "Ready for your last Christmas present?"

"Sure, bring it on."

Elle reached under the couch and pulled out 2 boxes. She handed the larger one to me and indicated that I should open it. I started ripping off the paper and she did the same to the smaller box.

"I think you confused the boxes, sweetheart."

Innocently she replied: "Oh, why's that?"

I held up the scrap of clothing: "I don't think this teddy will fit me."

She giggled: "And I think this might be better on you."

Elle held up the contents of her package, and started laughing when she saw the expression on my face. At first glimpse it seemed liked an ordinary pair of black bikini underwear, but then she turned it around and displayed the front side. This pair was unusual in that right over the crotch was a pair of big red lips and the 'mouth' had an opening right where the fly is normally situated.

Elle was just cracking up: "The box said that it's for the guy who has a mouthful to offer. You, my sexy stud, have way more than a mouthful, but I thought you would look great in it."

"You expect me to wear this?"

"Oh, yes, please! I wanna see you in this. I want your dick to poke out of the 'mouth' and then I'll put my lips over those lips."

"I wear these and you'll give me a blowjob?"

She nodded eagerly.

Well, if Elle wanted to give me a blowjob while I was wearing these bikinis who was I to disappoint her? I felt myself growing hard at the visual image of Elle on her knees, sucking me off.

I handed her the teddy: "OK, but you have to wear this."

She took it from me: "I'll just go change. You put these on; I'll be right back."

Elle scampered down the hall leaving me holding these silly briefs. As I started pulling my clothes off, I had to chuckle at her costume fetish. She did really like to 'dress' for me. I stripped and pulled the briefs on. I was half hard already and starting to poke out of the mouth. Feeling rather self-conscious, I pulled my jeans back on. I'll make her work a little bit for her fun but I pulled the zipper only ¾'s up and left the snap undone. I also slipped a small yellow tablet into my mouth and dry-swallowed it.

I turned when I heard the click-click sound of her heels on the wood floor. My half-hard erection threatened to pop out of the 'mouth' when I saw her. She was wearing a tuxedo style teddy, which had keyhole openings down the front with little red bow tie accents. The lace-trimmed demi bra was cut low enough that her nipples peeked over the top and it rode so high on her ass that it was basically a thong.

"Spin," I commanded.

Elle slowly turned completely around for me.

"Nice," I dragged that word out so it was a few syllables long.

Elle smiled as her eyes wandered my body. "You look quite hot yourself. I love seeing you like that, shirtless with your jeans just a bit open. Very sexy."

"Someone mentioned a blowjob earlier. Hmm, think that was you."

Elle walked towards me: "I think you're right."

She ran her fingertips down my chest and then pressed her breasts against me. Her hands slipped inside the waistband of my jeans and caressed me all around the waist.

I grabbed her ass: "I'm always right, baby."

"Yes, cowboy." She murmured into my mouth right before she pressed her lips to mine. Meanwhile her fingers were busy, tugging my zipper down. She pushed on my jeans until they slid down over my hips and then she pulled away from the kiss.

My fully erect cock had popped through the hole in the briefs. She glanced down at my crotch and then back up at me. "I need to kiss that mouth too."

"Yes, you do."

Elle bent down and kissed the base of my cock right up against the lips of the 'mouth'.

"On your knees."

Elle quickly knelt and took my cock in her hand. She gently licked off the pre-cum and then rubbed the head all over her face. She ran her closed lips over the entire shaft and then licked it from top to bottom. Then she took just the head into her mouth, her tongue circling the hole. All the time, she kept looking up at me with an incredibly sultry look on her face. I could have blown my wad right away, but I wanted this to last much longer. I also wasn't sure if I could remain standing after a powerful orgasm; I figured it would be better to sit down.

I stopped her and moved over to the armchair. I pushed my jeans down to my knees and sat down. Waving my hand over my jeans, I said: "Get rid of these."

Elle knee-walked over to the chair and pulled off my jeans. She tossed them to the side and ran her fingertips slowly up the inside of my legs, gently parting them as she went. Then she moved in between my legs and planted little kisses on my throbbing member. Her tongue teased me into an agonizingly hard erection.

I groaned: "Suck me."

With her eyes on mine, Elle took the head in her mouth, suckling lightly and circling it with her tongue. Then she suddenly and swiftly deep-throated me. The head of my cock hit the back of her throat. Her lips kept a tight seal as she slid up and down my length. I was so close that it didn't take very long for me to get to the edge. With my hand on the back of her head, I thrust a few times into her mouth and then I exploded, moaning her name as I came. Elle swallowed all I had to give and then continued to gently lick me as I came down from my high.

I stroked her cheek until she looked up at me. My softening member was gently resting inside of her mouth. It was such an erotic picture.

"You like to suck me, don't you? I bet you're all wet for me now, aren't you?"

She smiled and nodded, her tongue circling my head again.

"I wanna feel. Kneel up here."

I patted the arms of the chair. Elle carefully balanced herself so that she was straddling me by kneeling on the arms of the chair. Her core was right at the level of my face and I gently stroked it through the fabric.

"There are little snaps."

And so there were. The teddy opened up completely from front to back with these little snap closures. I unsnapped all of them so that I could get to her.

"Come closer and hold on."

Obediently, Elle edged closer to me and held on to the back of the chair. I gripped her ass to keep her right where I wanted her. My tongue darted out and lightly caressed her clit. She moaned loudly and I dove in for more. She was extremely wet and I took great delight in lapping around her folds and drinking it up. I kneaded her ass while I licked and suckled on her clit. I felt her thighs start to tremble and I knew she was tiring in this position, but I figured she was also pretty close. I stepped up my pace and drove her over the edge. She screamed and clutched the back of my head, grinding into my face. I suckled her clit until it got to be too intense for her and she cried out: "Too much, no more."

Her legs slid off the sides of the chair so that she was completely straddling it, her upper body pressed against mine, her breathing rapid and shallow. I wiped my mouth against her shoulder, leaving behind all of her excess juices.

When her breathing was back to normal, I whispered: "Go lay down on the rug."

She mumbled: "You expect me to move, after that?"

"The night is still young and there's more to come."

"Fuck, cowboy, that was so good, I don't know if I can do it again tonight."

"Oh yeah, you can. Come on, let's lay on the rug for a bit."

She finally managed to scramble off of the chair and crawl over to the rug. She took a big sip of scotch and then I had her arrange herself on the rug so that she was facing the TV. I popped in the porn DVD, picked up the remote and joined her on the rug, laying behind her so she could use my chest for a pillow. I reached around and pulled her teddy a bit lower so that the girls were completely exposed. I cupped one of them and with the other hand, I pressed start and the porn started rolling.

I chose one that was not too hard-core; it contained multiple acts of different couples doing it in a variety of positions. It didn't take long for me to get hard again between the visuals and the contact of her sweet ass pressed against my cock. I started to grind against her, relishing the feel of her skin rubbing against my dick.

"Wow, you're hard again. This stuff must really turn you on."

"It doesn't turn me on as much as you do."

Confession time. "I took a Cialis, baby, cuz I wanna fuck you all night."

She pressed back against me: "Ummmm, now that is so much more fun than watching some silly ball drop."

I continued to slowly rub against her as we watched the film. The next scenario was a rather silly cliché. Man comes home and finds the new housekeeper in a skimpy French maid's costume. Raging with lust, he bends her over the kitchen table and screws her from behind. I felt Elle press her ass against me and then heard her soft whisper: "Touch me."

I reached over and started playing with her soft hair. She moaned softly and pushed against my hand, seeking more contact. I became more aroused and somewhat amused that this little scenario seemed to have turned her on. I figured it must have been the costume since she loves dressing for me. I wondered how far I could take this little role-playing.

I shoved the coffee table a few inches away to allow us some more space. I started speaking softly in French: _"Come here, my lovely wench."_

I positioned her at the end of the coffee table. _"Bend over. I want to take you from behind, just like he is doing to her."_

I wasn't sure if she would play along; she still wasn't always comfortable with this particular position, but to my surprise, she complied. Elle leaned over the coffee table, stuck her lovely ass up in the air and smiled at me over her shoulder. There was no doubt what she wanted.

I quickly grabbed one of the condoms that I had conveniently left on the end table and dressed myself. I teased her entrance with the head and she pushed back against me, trying for deeper penetration.

"_My little sex kitten. You get me so hot with these little outfits that you wear. I know you do it on purpose. Just like the little maid in the movie; you want to inflame the desires of the man of the house, don't you?"_

As I spoke, I penetrated her a little more deeply with each thrust. I looked down, growing more excited by watching my cock stabbing in and out of her.

Elle moaned and met me thrust for thrust. _"Oui, monsieur, I'm a naughty girl."_

I was pumping hard now; my hands were gripping her hips tightly as I stabbed deeply into her. _"Yes you are. You're a very naughty but very sexy girl."_

The Cialis was helping with my stamina. I felt like I could screw her all night. I reached up with one hand and squeezed her breast as I continued to pump.

Elle managed to pant out: _"You like naughty girls, monsieur?"_

My hand slid down to tangle in her pubic hair: _"Ah Oui, I enjoy naughty girls. I like to fuck them. I like to fuck you, my naughty little girl."_

My hand moved over to her clit and as soon as I touched it, Elle came hard. She screamed incoherent words. I felt a fresh flood of wetness as her pussy clamped tightly against my dick. I thrust into her tightness a few more times until I came with an extraordinary intensity. I moaned Elle's name as I rode out my orgasm. Then I collapsed on top of her, squashing her between the coffee table and me. Between gasps of air, I planted small kisses on her shoulder and neck. When I had recovered somewhat, I grabbed hold of the condom, pulled out of her and rolled both of us onto the rug. I lay spread-eagle, completely exhausted, the condom still clinging to my softening cock. Elle laid her head on my shoulder and tossed her arm across my chest.

We lay like that for a while, the movie droning on in the background. Finally I fumbled around until I found the remote and clicked it off. The TV went back to broadcast mode and it was just as the countdown was starting in Times Square. We looked into each other's eyes as we listened to Dick Clark and Ryan Seacrest shout out the numbers. The ball dropped and there was a cacophony of noise accompanying the event.

Elle smiled and looked at me with such love in her eyes.

I gently kissed her lips: "Happy new year, baby."

Elle caressed my cheek: "It sure is."

_**HOUSE**_

It was a week before Elle's birthday and I had no fucking idea what I was going to do about it. I had blown my wad of ideas at Christmas and, as I stood on the cold balcony, waiting for Wilson to finish up with his current dying patient and come out to talk to me, I pondered on the unfairness of the fact that her birthday and Christmas were way too close together. If her birthday had been in, say, April, I'm positive that I would have come up with something else by then.

Finally I heard his door open and his footsteps crunched on the light layer of snow as he walked over to the short wall that divided our shared balcony.

"Brrrr. It's freezing out here, House. Why are you out in the cold?"

"I was hoping that the cold would stimulate my brain cells and help me think of something to get Elle for her birthday since my bestest buddy is tied up with patients and isn't available to help me out."

Wilson sighed loudly: "I'm out here now, aren't I? I'm finished with my appointments until the afternoon. Instead of freezing our asses off out here, why don't we go into one of our nice warm offices and talk?"

My leg was starting to ache from the cold so I hopped the wall and we went into his office.

While Wilson briskly rubbed his arms to warm them up, he asked: "Haven't you found anything for her yet?"

"I found an out-of-print blues CD that I've been looking for. It's a collection of women in blues that I think she'll like. But it's just a dinky CD, definitely not birthday worthy."

"Well, it's a start."

"A very small start. C'mon, I'm out of ideas. Think of something."

He leaned back in his chair, his hands folded together with the index fingers extended and tapping together while he thought.

"Think she's ready for another dog yet?"

"_I'm_ not ready for a dog. We haven't been living together long enough to take that kind of step."

He chuckled: "Five years with Stacy and you still weren't ready for a dog."

I glared at him and he backpedaled. "OK. OK. No dog. Hey, you should get her something to commemorate the national championship game. I bet they have some cool t-shirts out now."

A few days earlier, Elle's alma mater, the University of Florida Gators had beaten the Ohio State Buckeyes for the National Championship. The three of us had watched the game and Elle's excitement at their victory was immense. She probably would like a t-shirt or a ball cap, but again, those were such small gifts and I wanted to get her something more.

"Yeah, a t-shirt and a CD, those would be great presents if I were her high school boyfriend instead of a grown-up doctor."

He mumbled under his breath: "I'm not so sure about the grown-up part."

"I heard that."

He chuckled "I'm sure your little 'Elle-E-Gator' will love anything you give her."

I blew out a puff of air in frustration. I made that name up during the championship game, but made the colossal mistake of saying it in front of Wilson. He was going to rub this in my face until the end of time.

"Don't call her that. Only I get to do that."

"Oh, I won't call her that to her face, only when speaking to you."

"Moron."

"Limping twerp."

"Stop being a pain in the ass and help me think of something."

"I'm trying, but honestly, I can't think of anything."

Great. If the Panty Peeler of PPTH couldn't help me think of a gift, I was totally screwed.

"If Cuddy's birthday was tomorrow, what would you be getting her?"

He shrugged: "I'd probably get her a necklace or some other jewelry, but Lisa likes jewelry. Elle's not really into it."

I had to admit that was true although she adored her cowboy boot necklace.

"How about lingerie?"

"That's really more of a present for me, but I'll put it on the short list while we continue to brain-storm."

"Hmmm, she loves music, but you got her an I-Pod already. You have a piano, so she doesn't need her own. What about a new guitar?"

I frowned: "I don't know. Instruments are kinda personal. As a musician, I think Elle would want to pick out her own. And she likes her guitars; I've never heard her mention wanting a new one."

He threw his hands up in the air: "Well, I give up. Unless you can wrap up her favorite musician and put a bow on his head, I am completely clueless as to what you should get Elle."

A light bulb went on in my head. Slowly I said: "No, you're not completely clueless. Sometimes, in fact, your brilliance almost blinds me."

I hurried out the office door leaving behind a very puzzled looking Wilson.

Back in my office, I sat down at my computer and started surfing. I found websites for her favorite musicians and perused them carefully. Finally I found what I was looking for. Jackson Browne was performing in New York City in mid-March and as luck would have it, Bonnie Raitt was performing with him. This was perfect. We could spend the weekend in New York again and see the show. Unfortunately the only seats that were still available were in the nosebleed section, but I knew a guy that could find tickets to just about anything for a price. When he called me back, an hour later, he had located some fabulous seats for only twice the going rate. The seats were in the center section, 8th row and on the aisle. I told him that I would hit the cash machine and stop by his place of business after work.

That settled, I went to the Ritz-Carlton's website and made reservations for that weekend. As I printed out a copy of the confirmation, I decided I would slip the tickets inside that sheet of paper and wrap it up in a big box with the CD. I leaned back in my chair with a satisfied smile on my face. With a week to spare, I had figured out a great birthday present for my girl.

Elle's birthday was on a Thursday this year. Avi called me and asked if we had plans for that night. He wanted to organize a dinner party for Elle at Satchel's if we didn't already have other plans. I told him to proceed with the party; I would take Elle out on Friday so we could stay up late and not have to face getting up for work the next day.

Naturally, the day before her birthday, I got a complicated patient. Sixteen-year-old kid was making out with his girl in the car when he suddenly developed respiratory distress and turned blue. Matters got even more complicated when we couldn't reach the parents for consent for the tests. Foreman ended up performing the veniogram without consent when the kid's O2 stats plummeted. Good thing he did because the test showed he had bloody effusion although we couldn't see the actual bleed.

Cameron and Chase went to the kid's address but return empty-handed. It turned out that the kid lied and he doesn't actually live there. It just confirmed my theory that everyone lies. The ducklings confronted him and finally his girlfriend spilled the beans. His family is Romany, gypsies, and he refused to give his real address claiming that the doctors' presence will spiritually pollute his family home. Frustrated, I told the team to find some answers. They tried to do an arteriogram but the dye entered his liver and wouldn't leave due to a blockage. He was already starting to turn yellow from liver failure when they wheeled him in to do an MRI. Just as they spotted a granuloma on his liver, the kid's parents burst in on the exam and put a stop to it. Because of the granuloma, I was sure it was Wegener's, but I couldn't confirm it because the parents wouldn't let us perform any more tests.

I got Foreman aside while Chase and Cameron were arguing with the idiot parents. I told him that a liver biopsy would take too long anyway and that he should just start treating the kid with cyclophosphamide. He agreed to start it while the others were still arguing with the kid's parents. I left them to do their job.

It was 1AM when I finally got home. Technically it was the 19th and Elle's birthday. I wanted to wake her up and make love to her, but she was sleeping so peacefully that I didn't have the heart. I stripped off and crawled into bed, wrapping my arms and one leg around her. After the coldness of the night, her warmth soothed me immediately and I dropped off to sleep.

I halfway woke up when she tried to slip out of bed in the morning. I embraced her tighter: "Nuh, uh. Not going anywhere."

I felt her small hand on my cheek. "I gotta go to work, cowboy. I'll see you later."

"No. Stay with me."

Her lips brushed mine and then she whispered into my mouth: "I gotta go. Hopefully I'll see you tonight at Satchel's. Get some more sleep and go diagnose your patient."

_Satchel's?_ My brain woke up.

"It's your birthday. You shouldn't have to work on your birthday. Call in and stay with me."

She laughed: "You have a patient. You'll be going in shortly, so what's the point? I'll see you tonight at Satchel's or if you don't make it, I'll wait up for you. I'm warning you now: I'm gonna want some birthday sex."

I rolled on top of her. "Me too. Let's start the day off right. Wrap up Mt. Gregory and slide him inside."

Elle protested: "Greg, I can't. I gotta go to work."

I slid my hand between her legs and smiled at my discovery. "Your mouth says no, but your body says yes. Hate to let all this nice wetness go to waste."

She let out a moan as I caressed her.

"C'mon baby, just a quickie. A birthday morning quickie and a nice long one tonight."

"Greg, our quickies never are."

"This one will be. I promise."

My caresses had her past the point of no return. She moaned and rubbed her pelvis against me. I grabbed a condom and quickly rolled it on.

"What would madam like for her birthday? Missionary, doggie, cowgirl?"

Her eyes were lust-filled: "I want you on top. I love how it feels when your body is covering mine."

My pecker got harder just from her words. I teased her entrance with the head of my cock and then slowly slid inside of her. Mindful of the time, I didn't stretch it out as much as I wanted to. I got right down to business and kissed, rubbed and thrust until we both fell over the edge. It was short, but oh, so sweet.

She kissed me hard: "OH, that was so good. I hate to leave you now. There's more of that good stuff tonight, I hope?"

"You bet."

One more kiss and she jumped out of bed. I propped myself up on my elbow to stare at her ass as she hurried into the bathroom. Then I flopped back down on the bed and promptly fell back asleep.

When I woke 2 hours later, I might have thought that the sex had been a dream except that my now flaccid penis was still wearing the condom. I pulled it off and tossed it in the trash on my way to pee.

A call from Foreman alerted me to another complication; the kid had hemorrhaged from his bladder last night. This case was getting more complicated and the parents' resistance to Western medicine was hindering my team. I realized that it might be another late night and I might not make it to Satchel's. I hated the thought of Elle coming home alone on her birthday, so I decided to leave her present on the bed. That way, she could open it even if I wasn't home to actually hand it to her.

I dug everything out of its hiding place and wrapped the CD. I folded the confirmation page so that the dates and the hotel name were prominent and I slipped the tickets inside the fold. Then I stuck the whole lot inside the card and started to place it into the envelope. I stopped; I should write something on the card. It took me a few minutes, but finally I came up with something.

I placed everything inside the box and then wrapped the box. I left it on Elle's pillow to find when she got home tonight. I showered, dressed and headed off to the hospital.

I decided that the cyclophosphamide had caused the hemorrhage. I was sure Wegener's was the right diagnosis, just that the cyclophosphamide was wrong treatment. Instead of suppressing the immune system, we needed to change it. I mentioned an experimental drug, an immune modulator, known in research circles just as FT-28. Cameron naturally had a fit since it is not FDA approved yet, but it had shown promise with Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis so I reasoned that it could work on Wegener's. Foreman was willing to go along with my logic, so he was elected to convince the parents. They refused, saying that they wouldn't allow their son to be the subject of experimentation, comparing what we were doing to Nazi experiments at Auschwitz. They didn't seem to understand that we were trying to cure their kid, not just perform cruel experiments on him.

Foreman finally got the parents to leave the room, saying he needed privacy to change the kid's bandaged groin. He was just about to convince the kid to go along with the treatment when the kid starting writhing in pain.

He had to be rushed to surgery since his spleen had ruptured. Foreman scrubbed in on the surgery and he checked the spleen for any sides of granulomas. He couldn't find any. I told the surgeon to run the bowel and look for them, but he ignored me and started closing up. Frustrated, I quickly threw on gloves and a gown and ran the bowel myself. Nothing.

It was 5 PM and I was at the end of my rope. This case was not only driving me nuts; it was keeping me from celebrating Elle's birthday with her. I was still certain that the bowel was the problem so I told the kids to do a colonoscopy. Damn if it wasn't coming out normal, but right at the very end, Foreman spotted the problem. It was a fucking toothpick. Like his father, the kid was in the habit of chewing on them and he must have swallowed one. During his little make-out session in the car, one awkward movement must have sent it from the colon into his lung. From his lung, it traveled to his liver, then his kidney and finally to his spleen. A simple surgery to remove it and the kid would be as good as new again once all the little holes healed up.

Finally the case was solved and I could get out of here. I grabbed my backpack and headed out to Satchel's.

**_ELLE_**

My last appointment ran a little longer than usual, so I was running late. I ran home to change out of my work clothes. I unlocked my apartment and hurried into the bedroom, pulling off my clothes as I went. Wilson had moved into his own place at the beginning of the month. While I kind of missed having him across the hall, it was nice to have my own place back again. I occasionally needed some solitude and my own space provided that when I needed to be alone. Some of my stuff was still at Greg's, but most of my clothes were over here. I changed into some jeans and a sweater, pulled on some boots and then left for Satchel's.

Avi and the guys were already seated at our table when I arrived. There were cries of 'Happy Birthday' as I approached the table. After I got a hug and kiss from everyone, Ricky asked where Greg was. I explained that he had a complicated patient and that hopefully he would be able to join us later. We drank some beers and chatted for a while, and we were just about to order dinner when Tony showed up, bearing a wrapped box. I had not seen him since before Christmas, before I found out that my assailant had been killed in prison. I was not unhappy that the guy was dead; it was a huge relief to know that he could never harm me again. But I didn't want Tony to think that he had carte blanche to interfere with my life, especially when I told him that I didn't want his 'help'. We needed to discuss this matter.

I felt like the gang was holding their collective breath as Tony walked towards me and leaned down to kiss my cheek.

"Happy birthday, Bella. Just wanted to bring you a little something to commemorate the day."

He handed me a box wrapped with paper that had birthday balloons all over it. I took it from him and set it on the table as I stood up.

I looked him right in the eye and said: "We need to talk."

I saw his eyes grow steely and the stress line between his eyebrows deepen.

Calmly, but with a hint of menace, he said: "What about?"

Quietly, I said: "Not here."

Turning to face everyone at the table, I said: "Could you all excuse us for a few minutes? Tony and I need to have a little private chat."

Without waiting for a response, I turned and headed to the back room, fully expecting Tony and a lot of worried glances to follow me.

I led Tony into the back room where we gather before a show. He moved slowly, reminding me of a cornered animal, trying to determine whether escape or attack were his better choice.

I closed the door and pressed my back up against it. He stood in the middle of the room and waited for me to speak.

"Why did you do it? I asked you not to do anything."

He feigned ignorance: "Do what?"

I sighed in frustration: "You know what. You had him killed."

"Had who killed?"

"Stop pretending that you don't know. Are you going to tell me that it was just a _coincidence_ that the guy who raped me was killed in a fight, not too long after you said you would take care of him for me."

He shrugged: "Yeah, strange how those things happen. But the bastard got what he deserved and he won't be around to bother you anymore."

"Tony! I told you not to do anything!"

"What are you getting all agitated about? That bastard's dead; who gives a shit?"

Through clenched teeth, I hissed: "You had him killed."

He inspected his fingernails: "I'm sure a guy like that had plenty of enemies."

"He was in jail. He couldn't hurt me from there. I could understand it if he had gotten out, but he was locked up."

"He could have gotten out. Another appeal, early release, escape, there are ways he could have walked the streets again."

"So you took care of the problem before it actually became one?"

Again he shrugged. "Doesn't seem like there is a problem anymore."

I felt so frustrated at his seemingly calm demeanor: "Tony. _One_ time I asked you for a favor. I was scared to death that Charlie was going to seriously hurt me and I needed you to put the fear of God in him. But I asked you for that."

He protested: "And I did what you asked!"

"Yes, you did. The difference is that I _asked_ you that time. I didn't ask you this time; in fact I specifically told you not to do anything."

I sighed: "Tony, you can't take on everyone that hurts me. You wanted to 'take care' of David."

Tony interrupted: "I didn't do anything to him, although he deserves a good beating for what he did to you."

"This is just what I'm worried about. You can't 'take care' of everyone who does me an injury. What if Greg and I break up? What if he dumps me? Are you going to beat him up too?"

Tony growled: "He better not hurt you.'

"Greg would never physically hurt me. But seriously, what if our relationship ended and I was emotionally wounded, like with David? Are you going to want to beat Greg up too?"

His words were cold: "He thinks he's a crip now; he could really end up one if he hurts you."

I was so angry: "Listen to me and listen good. Don't you ever lay a hand on him. Greg would never hurt me, not like Charlie did."

"He's so possessive of you."

"And you're not? I'm not your girlfriend anymore. I am not yours to take care of anymore. You have a wife and 3 lovely kids. Take care of _them_."

I sighed: "Tony I really don't want to fight with you. IF I ever need your help, I promise that I will come to you and ask you. But don't you ever do something like this again."

Stone-faced, he said: "Married or not, I will always love you. I should have never let you push me away. We could have,"

I held up my hand: "No, don't go there. It was for the best. I wanted to sing with the band and you would have hated that. I wouldn't have been able to give you kids and I would have hated myself for that. We would have wound up miserable with each other. Now we can be friends and enjoy each other's happiness. You have a wonderful family; I would not have been able to give you that. Would you give up your kids for me?"

He stared down at the floor and didn't answer.

"Of course you wouldn't and I would never expect you to. I'm happy with Greg; I love him. You're happy with Nancy and your kids. Let's enjoy what we have now; we can't go back."

He grabbed my chin and tilted my face up to look at his: "You really love that asshole with the limp?"

"Yes, I do and he ain't limp where it counts."

I gave him a wink and a naughty smile.

He laughed: "The old guy fucks you good, huh?"

"He takes real good care of me."

His expression softened and he gently stroked my cheek with his thumb. "As long as you're happy."

Then he gently kissed my forehead and his lips lingered for a moment before he whispered: "If you ever need me, my bella Ella, you just have to ask."

I squeezed his arm and replied: "I know, Tony, I know."

**_HOUSE_**

I drove straight over to Satchel's. The gang was sitting around the usual table so I headed towards it. Strangely Elle was not in sight and the gang seemed somewhat uneasy.

Ricky noticed me as I approached the table: "Hey, House. Finish up with your patient?"

I nodded: "Where's Elle?"

The guys exchanged glances and no one answered for a moment. I saw her coat hanging over an empty chair so I knew she was here. I locked eyes with Ricky; I could usually get him to cave. I repeated myself: "Where's Elle?"

He frowned and looked away, but I kept staring at him until he finally caved. "She's in the back, talking to Tony. Privately."

_Oh, crap!_ Figures that he would show up on her birthday. She hadn't seen him since Bill dumped that news on us. Knowing Elle, she was probably blasting him a new one right now. His presence could put a serious damper on the birthday fun and I wasn't having any of that, especially since I managed to get out of work in time for the festivities.

I turned and limped quickly towards the back door but right before I got there, Elle and Tony walked through it. Tony looked unhappy, but Elle's face lit up when she saw me. She hurried over to me, threw her arms around my neck, squealing: "You made it! Perfect timing. We're just about to eat."

I hugged her back while keeping an eye on Tony over her shoulder. He was watching us studiously and then gave me a nod, before heading over to the bar.

I turned my attention back to Elle, wished her a happy birthday and gave her a kiss. She eagerly returned my kiss, caressed my cheek, and then dragged me by the hand over to the table. I wanted to know what happened between her and Tony, but it would have to wait. We sat and Elle started gabbing in high gear. One of the waitresses brought us beers and took our food order.

I had almost forgotten about Tony in the midst of all this commotion, but suddenly he reappeared at the table, balancing three glasses of an amber liquid, that looked suspiciously like scotch. He set down one glass in front of Elle and one glass in front of me, and then held the last glass aloft.

"I'm afraid I can't join you for dinner, but I am glad that I got to see you and wish you the best on your birthday. A toast, everyone! To Elle, a happy birthday, and many more."

Beer bottles and glasses raised, the sentiment was echoed around the table. Tony clicked glasses with Elle and then surprisingly with me. The three of us slugged the liquid back. It had been a good quality single-malt scotch that I didn't pay for. I suppose I should have savored it a bit more, but I was still wondering what was going on around here.

Tony set his glass down on the table and said: "I really must go. I hope you like the gift. It's just a little something to commemorate the event. Enjoy the rest of your birthday, Elle."

My eyes narrowed as he leaned down and kissed her cheek. Then he surprised me again by gripping my shoulder and addressing me: "Take good care of her, House. Hope you have a real special present for her." Then he actually smirked at me.

I snarked back: "Oh I do, Tony. I got a _real_ special present for my girl."

He chuckled and walked away, calling good night to the rest of the gang.

I looked at Elle: "What was that all about?"

"We had a little chat, cleared the air about a few things. I'll tell you later."

We ate and drank and still managed to get home at a reasonable hour, considering that it was a work night. We both had our cars so we drove home separately. I was still itching to hear about her talk with Tony, but as soon as we walked into the apartment, Elle made a comment about birthday sex and cupped my crotch. I grinned and the thought of having a serious conversation about her ex-boyfriend scampered back to a deep, dark corner of my mind. I chased her down the hall, as fast as a man with a huge hole in his thigh can go.

Elle paused at the doorway and as I grabbed her from behind, she squealed: "You got me a present."

I started nibbling on her neck: "Of course. I figured if there was no present, there would be no birthday sex."

"I wanna open it now, OK?"

"Sure, why not? It's your birthday."

She sat on the bed and picked it up. She weighed it in her hands and then shook it. "It's light."

I leaned against the doorpost and just nodded in response.

She glanced at me with a big grin and then proceeded to rip the paper off. She lifted the lid and stared at the contents. Then she pulled out the small wrapped box and the envelope.

Glancing between the two objects, she debated: "Ooooo, which one to open first? Wait; pull my boots off for me. My feet are hot."

She stuck her feet straight out in front of her and this time I had to laugh. She looked just like a little kid doing that. I obligingly pulled her boots off and set them down on the floor. She moved into the middle of the bed and sat cross-legged, still examining the items.

I sat on the edge of the bed and watched her, impatiently wanting her to get on with it, so we could move on to sex. Finally she made her decision and unwrapped the CD first. She smiled when she saw the title.

"_House of Blues: Essential Women in Blues_. Sweet! This looks great. Thank you baby."

Then she opened the envelope. The card had a picture of a huge sunflower against a brilliant blue sky and it was blank inside, well, except for what I had written. I watched her face as she read the card.

_My sweet Elle,_

_There was a hairline crack in the concrete wall. You chipped away at it with a pickax until the crack was large enough for you to squirm your way through. On the other side you found a moat without a drawbridge, but you dove in and swam across it. _

_When you scrambled up the banks, further progress was hampered by a fence of barbwire. You pulled out your trusty wire cutters and snipped your way through. There was a wide ditch that you had to jump across and bramble bushes that cut up your arms, but you pushed on through all the obstacles. In the middle of a small clearing was a battered old wooden box, which had seen better days. It had been kicked around and hurt by life, so much so that it had barricaded itself behind all those impediments so that no more hurt would find its way to it. _

_You opened the box and took out the contents, cradling it in your hands. It saw the light of love for the first time in many years. Gently you brought it to your bosom and held it there. You nourished it like no other. It desires no other home. It is right where it wants to be._

_My heart beats next to yours and I am home._

_All my love, _

Greg

I heard a sob escape and her hand flew to her mouth to contain the rest. What had I done? I was just trying to tell her what she meant to me and I end up making her cry.

Soothingly, I said: "Elle,"

She looked up at me, tears brimming in her eyes: "Oh, Greg, that was the most beautiful," She choked up, her jaw trembling, unable to go on.

Elle pressed the card to her heart and started again: "That was the most beautiful card ever."

She reached for me and I gathered her into my lap. She wrapped her arms around my neck and held me tightly. She kissed my face over and over again, but my face was wetter than it should have been from just kisses and I knew that she was crying a little too.

I tried to distract her a bit: "Hey, your real present was inside the card. Did you even see it?"

She sniffled a little and said: "No and I'm sure it's great. It's just this card is really special."

"Well, I know you like sunflowers but crap, I didn't think it would make you cry."

"You big dope. It's not the picture on the card; it's what's inside that's so special."

I took her hand, placed it over my heart and held it there. I felt the warmth of her small hand and relished in it. She looked up at me and whispered: "Like I said, it's what's inside that's so special. I love you, Greg. I love you with all my heart."

I kissed the top of her head. There was a part of me that was still amazed that this woman not only tolerated me, but also truly loved me.

I smiled down at her. "Before you completely dissolve into a puddle of tears, will you at least look at the rest of your present?"

She smirked and reached across the bed and grabbed the papers that had fallen out of the card. She glanced at the hotel reservation sheet and then unfolded the piece of paper. The tickets fell out.

Elle picked them up and read them, letting out a loud gasp of surprise when the realization hit. "Are these for real? These are fabulous. How did you get such great seats? These must have cost a fortune."

I murmured: "Nothing's too good for the woman I love."

Elle sighed and leaned up against my chest, smiling as she tucked the tickets back inside the card, and then put everything back inside the envelope. She carefully set the envelope on the nightstand and placed the box on the floor.

She turned to face me and slowly took her sweater off.

"Now, about that birthday sex,"

I grinned and reached for her: "I thought you'd never ask."

This morning's interlude had been quick but tonight we took our time. I slowly peeled her jeans and socks off to reveal tonight's lingerie: a red lace demi-cup bra and tiny string bikini panties.

I pointedly looked her over as I asked: "Sure it's not _my_ birthday?"

She smiled: "Wait until you see what I wear for that occasion."

Elle reached over and started unbuttoning my shirt, sliding it off my shoulders when she finished. She pulled the t-shirt over my head and it landed on the floor next to its cousin. I kicked off my shoes and toed off my socks while Elle's fingers unbuckled my belt and starting undoing my jeans. I stood up and pushed my jeans off and then climbed back into bed with her. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her gently. My lips wandered across her face, planting little kisses as I roamed. She sighed and rolled onto her back, eyes closed, a contented smile on her face. My lips continued their journey down her body. I mouthed her nipple through the fabric of her bra before reaching underneath her to unclasp it. I slipped the straps off of her shoulders and slowly revealed her breasts. Elle was watching me as I finally pulled the bra off and tossed it aside. I grinned at the sight of her lovely breasts.

"Unwrapping _your_ present?" she teased.

"Ummm, hmmmm," was my only response as I already had my lips wrapped around her excited nipple. I tried to pay equal amounts of attention to both of the girls, before my lips started wandering south again. I tongued her belly button while I rubbed her core through the fabric of her panties. Elle moaned and rocked against me. I could feel that she had already soaked through the panties, so I swiftly removed them.

I was still wearing my boxers, but they were tented now by a rock hard Mt. Gregory.

Elle tugged at the waistband of my boxers. "You should take these off. I bet he needs some air."

"What he needs is a tight, wet, warm cave and I know just where he'll find that."

I slipped them off and positioned myself between her thighs. The first touch of my tongue to her clit made her moan loudly and thrust her core up against my face. I licked around her folds and pushed my tongue into her entrance. Her moans and her movements signaled the heightening of her passion and I quickly rolled on a condom and slid inside of her. Her warmth was overwhelmingly delicious and I closed my eyes to savor the sensation before I started thrusting in earnest. I opened my eyes when I felt her hand on my cheek. The look in her eyes was at once loving and lustful. I felt like I couldn't get enough of her. I needed more. I raised her leg and lifted it over my shoulder so I could get even deeper inside of her. Elle moaned and thrust against me as best she could in that position. I lowered my head and licked her nipple, still maintaining eye contact as I licked and thrust. As she grew closer to her peak, a small smile starting spreading across her face. Suddenly it dawned on me, that I was smiling too. It made me happy to give her this pleasure.

Her breathing grew more ragged: "Greg,"

I altered my angle a little bit so I could brush harder against her clit. "Elle. Come for me, baby. I love watching you come."

She fell over the edge, moaning my name. A few more deep thrusts and I came right after she did.

I wrapped my arms even tighter around her and held her as closely as possible. We didn't speak for a few minutes as we caught our breath.

I felt her tongue lick the shell of my ear and her lips tug lightly on my lobe. Her breath in my ear felt warm as she whispered: "You're so amazing. I love you, Greg. I love you so much."

I squeezed her even tighter. My dick was still deep inside her nice warmth, my chest lying on top of hers, and our hearts beating next to each other. Her arms were wrapped around my neck and her fingers played with my hair. There was nowhere else I wanted to be. I was warm and happy here. I was home. Elle. Home. Each word had 4 letters, ended in an 'e' and had only one syllable. Amazing similarities.

My heart swelled with feelings that I couldn't express. I told myself that she knew; that I didn't have to say it. But it was her birthday and I realized that it would make her happy if I did.

I nuzzled her neck, swallowed the lump in my throat and whispered: "I love you, Elle."

Her arms tightened around my neck. Her lips brushed my cheek and she murmured: "_Vous êtes ma maison."_

_(Translated from French: you are my home)_

I was checking my e-mail just before noon on Friday when Wilson poked his head in my office. "Lunch?"

I nodded and closed the program.

As we headed towards the elevator, he asked: "How was the birthday celebration last night?"

I smirked: "The after-party celebration was the best part. But the dinner was entertaining too. Tony showed up."

"Really? Did you club him with your cane? I don't see any blood on it."

As we lay in each other's arms last night, Elle gave me the abbreviated version of what had happened with Tony. I was sure that there was more to the story than that, but I was blissfully post-coital and not willing to press the issue. I'd get the rest out of her over the weekend.

"Naw, Elle had straightened him out by the time I got there. Apparently they had a little chat and she told him to back off. He seemed to take it fairly well. Even bought me a drink."

The elevator arrived and fortunately it was empty. As we boarded, Wilson asked: "Interesting. So you never did tell me. What did you get Elle?"

"Great seats."

He raised one eyebrow, puzzled at my answer.

"I'm taking her to see Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt in New York in March. I scored some excellent seats and we'll spend the weekend at the Ritz again."

He chuckled: "Bet she was excited."

I smirked: "Oh, yeah. Very excited. She thanked me quite nicely."

He chuckled, completely understanding the meaning behind my words.

The elevator arrived at our floor and we turned left to head towards the cafeteria. "Oh, yeah, and you remember your idea about giving her a commemorative t-shirt, and I said that was something a high-school boyfriend would give her."

"Yeah?"

"Turns out I was close. Her college boyfriend gave her one."

He snorted: "You mean, Tony bought her a gift and it was a Gator shirt?"

I replied with a self-satisfied smirk: "Yep."

"Well, you called that one. You are _da_ man."

"Damn straight I am, and you're buying lunch."

"And why should today be different from any other day?"


	46. Chapter 46

A/N: Thank you for all your kind comments. And again WARNING: Adult content in this chapter.

**Chapter 46**

Friday March 16, 2007

**_HOUSE_**

We had packed the night before, so right after work; we just threw the bags into the trunk and took off for New York. Elle was in an absolutely giddy mood. Jackson Browne's _'I'm Alive'_ CD was in the player and Elle was singing along. I had tickets for the late show at Birdland, a club on the West Side and if the traffic cooperated, we would have enough time for dinner and drinks before the show.

We were lucky as traffic was heading out of the city for the weekend. The tunnel was clear sailing and we got to the Ritz at a decent hour. I had reserved the same type of suite as last time. After a quick check-in, we headed to the room to change. Elle felt like a shower, so I joined her because she always needed 'help' washing her back. After giving each other a good cleaning, we dressed and caught a cab over to Birdland.

We settled in with a scotch while we waited for our dinner to arrive. We started with some Louisiana crab cakes and then I had the baby back ribs while Elle had the jambalaya.

The Heath Brothers Quartet was playing and they were absolutely amazing. I danced with Elle on 3 songs. My moves were slowly getting better as my leg got stronger. I enjoyed wrapping her up in my arms and moving around the floor with her, our bodies pressed tightly together. As giddy as she started the evening, she grew even happier as the night went on. We also worked our way through several scotches, secure in the fact that we were taking a cab back to the hotel.

We were in a happy tipsy mood when we arrived back in our room and I promptly put on the stereo and poured us another scotch. Elle went into the bedroom and I figured she was changing into something for me. So I kicked off my shoes and settled on the couch with my scotch to wait for her appearance.

I didn't have to wait long. Elle reappeared in a burgundy colored baby doll nightie. There were thin spaghetti straps holding up the tiny lace triangles hiding her breasts. Under her breasts was a wide ribbon tied in a bow and the filmy fabric fell just barely to the tops of her hips. I could just see some tiny bikinis underneath.

I let out a wolf whistle and she giggled.

"Get over here. I need that ass in my lap."

She climbed on my lap and we kissed and nibbled each other as we sipped our scotches. I pulled down one of the straps and exposed her breast. I dribbled some scotch over her nipple and then licked it off. It was quite tasty.

Our excitement mounted with the foreplay and I thought it might be a good idea to head to the bedroom. As much scotch as I had consumed, I knew I was only good for one go-around, and I'd better be horizontal when it hit.

I squeezed her ass: "Bedroom. Now."

She giggled and got off my lap. I took one more slug of scotch and went after her. She just kept laughing and backing up, staying just one step ahead of me. I lunged for her and managed to catch her around the waist. I tickled her a little and made her laugh harder. Then I picked her up and threw her over my shoulder in a fireman's carry.

Elle shrieked from that position. "What are you doing?"

I smacked her ass: "Quiet, my little wench. I'm taking you to my bed to ravage you."

She pretended to struggle: "Oh, no, please be gentle with me. You're so big and strong and I'm so small."

I grinned at her play-acting. I stroked the ass cheek that I had just smacked as I slowly limped my way down the hall to the bedroom. I probably wouldn't have attempted this if I hadn't been drunk, but surprisingly I wasn't doing too badly. I used the wall for some support and when I made it to the bed, I flipped her off my shoulder onto the middle of it.

"Move back, head on the pillow."

Elle scrambled back on the bed until she was in my desired position. I stared at her lustfully as I stripped off my clothes, Elle squirming delightfully under my gaze.

My staff was fully erect. I climbed on top of her, pinning her arms above her head. "Are you my little wench?"

Giggling, she replied: "Aye, Captain. I am indeed."

"Laugh now, little one. You won't be laughing in a moment. You'll be moaning with desire for my big hard shaft."

"Yes Captain."

I kissed her hard, thrusting my tongue into her mouth. It was a delicious taste of scotch and Elle. I rubbed my cock against the fabric of her nightie. It felt nice, but I wanted some skin. I secured both her hands in one of mine and used the other hand to lift the nightie and tug down her panties. Now I had some delightful smooth skin to rub my cock against. I kissed her hard and senseless as I squeezed her breast and pinched her nipple.

"Like that, my little wench?"

She murmured: "Oh, yes, Captain. Please, sir, may I have some more?"

This time my mouth fell on her nipple and suckled hard. Elle gasped and arched into me. My free hand explored her soft hair and then touched her moist core. She moaned loudly and pushed against my hand.

I chuckled: "I knew you'd soon be moaning with desire. You want it, don't you?"

"Yes," came the whispered reply.

"Tell me what you want."

"I want you inside of me."

"Like this?"

I shoved two fingers inside of her core and finger-fucked her for a few strokes. She thrust back against me.

"Mmmmm, more."

"More what? More fingers?"

She mumbled her reply: "Your cock. I want you to fuck me."

I slowed down my thrusting: "Can't hear you, wench. What did you want?"

"Your cock. Fuck me with your big hard cock."

I removed my fingers and grasped my cock, teasing her entrance with the head. "Is this what you want?"

"Oh, yes!"

She pushed her pelvis towards me and managed to slide the head of my dick inside of her. I moaned at the sensation. It had been so long since we had been bareback and I was enjoying this. The horny drunk side of my brain took over and I convinced myself that I could just pull out in time, so that I could ride her once again without a raincoat.

I stabbed my cock inside of her and Elle arched her pelvis up to take me in as deeply as she could. I was still holding her wrists together above her head with one hand and supporting my body weight with the other. I shifted a little bit so that my pelvic bone was grazing her clit with every stroke. Elle's eyes were closed; she was in her zone and meeting me stroke for stroke. I felt the flood of fresh wetness as her walls clamped down on my dick and she cried out as she came. I thrust into her with a fresh fury and it wasn't long before I felt the telltale tingle in my balls that signaled my impending orgasm. I wanted to stay inside of her as long as possible so I continued to thrust inside of her until the very last second. I quickly pulled out and rubbed against her belly, my cum shooting between her breasts.

Elle's eyes popped open at my unexpected maneuver. I gave her a sleepy smile as I continued to rub my softening cock against her belly and then I leaned up to kiss her lips.

She struggled against my hand and I finally let go of her wrists. "Greg, you didn't put on a condom."

I snuggled my face into the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply of her scent. The sex and the scotch were taking over and sleep was starting to claim me. "It's OK. I pulled out in time."

"Are you sure? Maybe you should write me a script for Plan B, just in case?"

"Shh, you're killing my buzz. It's OK. I pulled out and didn't you just get over your period anyway?"

"I think it was a week ago."

"So it's OK. You're not ovulating anyway. And I pulled out."

She bit her lip. "I really don't want to get pregnant."

"I don't want you to get pregnant either. Sweetheart, it's OK. Really. I wouldn't take a chance if I weren't sure. Let's go to sleep."

Slowly, she said: "OK."

"Can you reach the lamp?"

Elle leaned over and turned off the lamp. Once that act was accomplished, I pulled her back into my embrace. After giving her a sloppy kiss on the mouth, I snuggled my face into the crook of her neck and fell asleep.

**_ELLE_**

Greg was snoring lightly in my ear and I had a little puddle of drying cum on my chest. Despite the long day and several glasses of scotch, I was now wide-awake. I couldn't imagine what Greg had been thinking, having sex without protection. He must have been drunker than I thought to take the chance.

I tried to remember the start date of my last period so I could figure out if I was ovulating or not, but I couldn't remember. I never could, which is why I kept a calendar. Unfortunately, that calendar was hanging on the back of my bedroom door in Princeton and I wouldn't be able to check it until Sunday night when we got back. That would be 48 hours after we had sex and if I needed to take Plan B, I needed to do it within the 72-hour window following unprotected intercourse. The sooner I took it, the more effective it would be also. I really didn't want to wait until we got back to Princeton to check. I'd have to talk to Greg about this in the morning. When he was sober, he would realize that this was too big a risk and remedy the situation by writing me a script. I tried to push all of this out of my mind by thinking of tomorrow's concert and I eventually fell asleep.

We were having a picnic out at the state park. Lunch was all spread out on a red and white check blanket, but I couldn't eat anything. I felt sick to my stomach plus gnats were tickling my neck. I tried swatting them away, but the tiny beasts were quite persistent. Slowly I came out of my dream and realized that I was in bed and the stomach queasiness was due to imbibing too much scotch last night and the ticklish feeling was Greg nibbling on my neck.

"'Bout time you woke up. Didn't want to get started without you."

I could feel his erection pressing against my thigh. He may have been in the mood, but I was a long way from ready.

I smirked: "Someone's horny this morning. You better not forget your raincoat this time."

He lifted his head and looked me in the eye. "Huh? What you talking 'bout?"

I took his hand and guided it to the dry patch of cum on my chest. "Someone decided on a bareback ride last night and made a deposit right here."

He frowned as he touched the crusty dry spunk.

"You don't remember? You assured me that not only was I in my safe zone, but that you had pulled out in time. I would have thought you were too drunk to remember dates, but you seem quite sure of yourself."

He rolled over on his back and draped his forearm over his eyes. "Oh yeah, I remember you pushing your pussy right onto my cock before I had a chance to slip one on. I figured you were OK with it, so I went for it."

I frowned: "I was in the throes of passion and I didn't realize that you hadn't put one on."

"I had just pulled my fingers out of you. When did I have time to rip one open and roll it on?"

My heart sank: "So this is all my fault? If I end up pregnant, you're going to blame me?"

He uncovered his eyes and propped himself up on his left elbow. "You're not going to end up preggers. I did pull out and you just finished your period. You have a few days left before you ovulate."

"Are you sure? Maybe you should just write me a script for Plan B, just in case. Better safe than sorry."

"You doubt my memory, woman? I'm good at dates. You're the one who keeps a calendar because you can't keep track of your own cycle."

"So, amazing Kreskin, what day did my last period start?"

Promptly he said: "The seventh. Yesterday was the 16th, so you're still in the safe zone."

I closed my eyes, desperately trying to picture the calendar and which date had a circle around the number. I just couldn't remember and Greg always seemed to have a much better memory than I did. He was probably right, but this was one part of life where I didn't want to take any chances.

"Maybe I should get the Plan B, just in case."

He shook his head: "NO. You don't need it, plus I don't want you taking any hormones after your DVT. Remember, that's why you went off the pill in the first place."

"Yeah, but Plan B is progestin only; it hasn't been linked to any risks like blood clots. And it's just 2 doses; it won't be a problem."

"No. I'm not writing you a script. I won't let you take the risk when you don't need it. Don't you trust me?"

He looked so sad that my heart melted. I trusted him completely but I couldn't figure out how to explain to him that no matter how much I trusted him, I just didn't want to take a chance on getting pregnant.

"I do trust you, but"

He threw the covers back and got out of bed. He headed out of the room, yelling over his shoulder: "If there's a 'but', it means you don't."

A minute later, I hear the TV click on and the volume was quite loud. Shit. He was absolutely convinced that he was right and now he was mad at me for not believing him. There would be no dissuading him until I could get to the calendar and then hopefully it wouldn't be necessary. The Plan B still had a good chance of working even if I waited until Sunday night to start taking it. I decided to put it out of my mind for now and make up with Greg before the rest of the weekend was ruined.

I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around his neck. He ignored me, keeping his eyes on the TV screen. I kissed his cheek.

"I'm sorry. I really do trust you. I'm just scared. Please don't be mad at me."

Harshly he said: "No, you don't. If you trusted me, we would be in bed right now, screwing. Instead, we are out here on the couch, arguing. You've done this before. You gave me flak about the DVT; you didn't want to go to the hospital."

I interrupted: "But that wasn't because I didn't believe you. I knew you were right; I just didn't want to go to the hospital after what happened to me the last time at PMMC."

I climbed over the back of the couch and knelt on the cushion next to him. I lay my hand on his arm to try to direct his attention to me and away from the TV. "Greg."

Softly he said: "I need."

Then he let out a big sigh and finally turned to face me. "I need to know that you trust me especially with medical issues. Stacy didn't trust my opinion about my infarction. I told her that I would get better; I didn't want my leg amputated."

After all these months together, he was finally talking about this. He looked wounded; the subject still pained him after all these years.

He turned his head and stared at the TV as he spoke: "After they cleared the clot, the pain was horrendous. The worst thing I've ever felt and the morphine wasn't touching it. I wanted to be put in a medically induced coma, sleep away the next 48 hours and wake up with the worst of it over. I knew that would do it. But Stacy didn't trust my medical opinion. I had already coded once and it scared her. She said I wasn't in my right mind because of the pain. So after I was put under, she exercised her right as my medical proxy and authorized the surgery to cut out all the dead muscle tissue. That decision carved this large hole in my leg. Because of her lack of faith in me, I'm a cripple and in constant pain."

He turned to face me and his eyes bored into mine: "She was scared too, scared that I was going to die. If she had just listened to me."

He didn't finish the sentence. He looked down at his mangled thigh and then pulled a sofa pillow over to cover it up.

Jimmy had told me most of this, but Greg had never talked to me about it. He had been in such a vulnerable position and Stacy had destroyed his trust. No wonder it was so hard for him to open up again. And here I was, questioning his medical opinion; he must feel betrayed all over again.

Tears were streaming down my face. He sounded so sad; I wanted to do anything to take that anyway.

I placed my hand over his heart and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "I'm sorry. I was wrong to doubt you. I know that neither of us want to have an accident and I just freaked. But that puddle of cum on my chest should have confirmed it for me that you pulled out in time. And you do remember things so much better than I do. I really do trust you, Greg. I'm sorry for doubting you. I'm so sorry."

My breath hitched and a sob escaped. I had hurt him and I never wanted to do that. I started to turn away and go have a good cry in the bathroom, but he surprised me by pulling me into his arms. I squashed my face into the crook of his neck and cried.

He let me cry for a few minutes and then he started making soothing noises and stroking my back. Finally I regained my composure and raised my head to look at him.

"Are you still mad at me?"

He shook his head.

I still didn't feel reassured: "So we're OK? Really?"

He gently stroked my cheek, wiping away some of the tears. "You believe me, that there is nothing to worry about?"

I nodded.

He kissed my forehead: "Good."

I snuggled deeper into his embrace and we just sat there holding each other. After a little while, I heard his stomach rumble.

"Shall we order some room service?"

"Good idea."

I started to get up to fetch the menu, but he tightened his hold on me, preventing me from rising. I looked at him questioningly.

His eyes were staring at some distant point. "Elle. If I'm wrong, if anything happens, we'll deal with it together."

I touched his face to redirect his gaze at me. "Everything is going to be fine, cowboy. I just know it."

I climbed off the couch and went in search of the room service menu.

We had a lovely breakfast. Greg had Eggs Benedict with roasted potatoes on the side and I had brioche French toast with caramelized banana. There was freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee with just a hint of vanilla flavor. The meal was absolutely delicious.

Greg still seemed out of sorts; there was a weariness about him. I wondered if the argument had drained him emotionally, so much so that perhaps it had increased his pain levels. I noticed he was rubbing his thigh more than he usually did.

He drained the last of his coffee and set the cup down. "What do you want to do today, sweetheart? Concert's not until 8:00."

I stretched my arms over my head and exaggerated a yawn. I noticed that his eyes went right to my breasts and I smiled inwardly. "I feel lazy today. I was thinking about a nice bubble bath and then a nap. Then we could go out to an early dinner before the concert."

He nodded: "Sounds good to me."

"I'll go turn on the water and start filling the tub."

I kissed his cheek and trotted into the bathroom. There was some lovely vanilla scented bubble bath and I poured that into the water. I swirled my hand through the water to get the bubbles forming nicely. Greg walked in when the tub was just about filled. I was facing away from him at that point, and I quickly scooped up a handful of bubbles and dabbed them over my breasts and pubic hair. Scooping up another handful, I stood up and turned to face him.

He smirked: "Nice bikini, sweetheart."

I walked towards him and smeared that handful of bubbles over his cock.

Giggling, I said: "You too."

He chuckled and gave me a small lop-sided smile. "Little minx. Get in the tub already."

I turned off the taps and climbed in. I stood while Greg climbed in and got situated and then I settled in between his legs. We soaked for a while, adding more hot water when it was needed. Greg played with the bubbles, forming and reforming bikinis and little mountains of bubbles on my body. When he tired of that, he wrapped his long arms around me and held me close. My head was nestled on his shoulder and his head rested on top of mine. There was some soft jazz playing on the stereo and we just relaxed in the warm water. I was just dozing off when he kissed the top of my head and murmured: "Let's go to bed before we both fall asleep in here. Waking up in cold water won't be any fun."

I nodded and leaned forward to let the water out. We rinsed the remaining bubbles off with the shower hose and then we climbed out of the tub, Greg leaning on me for some support. We started to towel each other dry, but Greg insisted that my breasts could only be dried off with his mouth. That led to his trying to dry me off in other places with his mouth, but somehow that only succeeded in making me wetter. I squirmed away and then knelt down to dry Mt. Gregory with my mouth. Greg groaned as I swirled my tongue around, getting him all nice and clean.

After a few minutes, he stopped me with a finger under my jaw. "Naughty little wench. Get in the bedroom where I can ravage you properly."

"Aye, aye, captain."

I sashayed into the bedroom and dove into the middle of the bed. He followed slowly, almost casually, but I could tell by his limp that he was hurting more than usual.

I patted the bed beside me: "Get over here."

He smirked: "Eager, aren't you? Maybe I should just take a nap instead of ravaging you."

I looked pointedly at Mt. Gregory who was awake and sniffing around. I replied sarcastically: "Yeah, right, you just want a nap. Come on, lay down, hot stuff."

Greg smirked with his mouth, but his eyes were gleaming with lust. As soon as he had flopped down on his back, I leaped out of bed.

"Hey, where're you going? I'm over here."

"Just a sec."

I ran back to the bathroom and grabbed the ties off of both the robes. Back in the bedroom I quickly straddled him and put his wrists together over his head. As I started typing them together, he whooped: "WHOA! What are you doing? I am the tie-er, not the tie-ee. Anyone gets tied up, it's gonna be you."

I ignored his protests and secured his wrists, looping the end over the headboard. It was loosely done, and he was strong enough to break it if he really wanted it.

I cupped his face and gently kissed his lips. "It's not tied tightly. You can break it anytime you want, but I think you'll like this. Trust me?"

His eyes searched mine for a long moment, and then he gave a quick nod. He seemed apprehensive so I moved quickly to reassure him. I planted slow tender kisses all over his jaw and cheek, occasionally brushing my lips over his. I nibbled his earlobe and then started my journey south. I kissed and licked my way down his body, stopping to pay extra special attention to his small nipples. By the time I'd worked my way to his pubic hair, Mt. Gregory was at full length and twitching in the air looking for a warm home. I wrapped my lips around the head and swirled my tongue around the opening, tasting his pre-cum. Greg let out a groan; I glanced up at him and his eyes were closed, his face looking completely relaxed. Pleased with his response, I slowly took him deeper and deeper into my mouth. When the head of his cock hit the back of my throat, he groaned again and thrust into my mouth.

"Elle. Oh Gawd, Elle. That feels so good."

I let him thrust into my mouth a few times and then with my lips locked tightly together, I slowly slid him out of my mouth.

His eyes were hooded and burning with lust. "No, don't stop. More. He needs a nice warm place right now."

I gave him a gentle stroke with my hand: "Does he? But it's my turn now."

I moved up the bed and I straddled Greg's face. My dripping core was just inches away from his mouth, just a little too far for him to reach with his tongue.

I murmured: "Are you hungry?"

He gave me that smile, the one that always makes me melt. "Yes, mistress. I am hungry. Please feed me."

I lowered my body until my core was within range of his tongue. He immediately lapped at my folds and I moaned with pleasure. He seemed quite hungry as he licked and lapped with such fervor that I found myself completely riding his face, holding onto the headboard for support. I had planned on just staying here for a few moments, and then moving back down to mount his cock, but the pleasure was so overwhelming that I just couldn't stop.

"OH, Greg, oh, that feel sooooo good. Oh, god, if you don't stop, I'm going to come right now."

He responded by thrusting his tongue up inside of me. Then he sucked my clit completely into his mouth and rubbed his tongue against it, hard and fast. I gasped from the sensation and then screamed as I fell over the edge. Waves and waves of pleasure filled my body as Greg continued to suckle gently on my clit. Finally I couldn't take anymore, my clit had become too sensitive and I pulled away.

My breathing ragged, I slowly inched my way back down his body. The lower half of his face was completely wet with my juices. I kissed him deeply, tasting myself on him. It wasn't my favorite thing to do, but I knew he really liked it when I did that. I swung my hair off to my left side and caressed his cock with it while we kissed for a few minutes.

Finally he moaned and thrust against my hand: "Elle. Climb on board, baby. He needs his nice warm cave."

I grabbed a condom and rolled it on him. I straddled him again, but this time I faced away from him. I couldn't remember the last time we did a reverse cowgirl and I know how much he likes to watch his dick sliding in and out of me. I thought he might really enjoy the view today, since his wrists were still tied and he couldn't touch me.

I slowly lowered myself onto his cock, watching his face over my shoulder. I loved watching his face relax as the pleasurable sensations hit him. I moved slowly as first and then I picked up speed as I sensed his heightened excitement. He started bucking up into me and I knew he was close. I wet my finger and touched the sensitive spot behind his balls, gradually increasing the pressure. Glancing again over my shoulder, I could see that his eyes were fixed on the action, his face flush with excitement, his mouth open and breathing hard. I squeezed my walls tightly and rode even faster. With a loud roar, Greg exploded inside of me. I rode out his orgasm, gradually slowing my motions. When I felt his total relaxation, I slowly climbed off of him. I removed the condom and tossed it away. My mouth went right to his cock and I gently licked him clean. When I considered him all nice and clean, I glanced up to see him watching me. His expression was gentle and he had a small smile on his face. He wiggled his fingers at me and I sprang into action.

"Sorry, I should have untied you sooner."

I rubbed his wrists and arms to take away any lingering stiffness. After a few minutes, he sighed and patted his shoulder. I snuggled into his embrace, my head resting on his shoulder.

"Are you OK?"

He chuckled: "Oh, yeah, better than OK."

He kissed the top of my head and then said: "You know, I never let Stacy tie me up."

The realization of his words hit me like a slap. He trusted me more than Stacy. I knew he wouldn't want to get into an in-depth conversation about that, but I was touched by his words, especially after our earlier argument.

I grinned up at him: "It was kinda fun, right?"

He gave me a loving smile: "Yeah, it was."

He kissed me again and said: "Sleep now. Need a nap after that workout."

I snuggled against his chest: "Me too."

**_HOUSE_**

We napped away the rest of the afternoon. I woke first and after spending a few minutes enjoying the view of her delicious nakedness pressed up against me, I gently kissed her awake. Her expression was sleepy, but she returned my kisses with such loving tenderness that I never wanted to let her go. I wanted to bottle these moments, put them on a shelf so I could return to them when the inevitable happened and I was once again alone and miserable.

We got up and went to have a shower. I liked the stall showers here at the Ritz. They were nice and roomy enough for two. There was even a small stool for me to sit on so Elle could easily reach the top of my head to wash my hair. For some reason, I found that to be particularly pleasurable. We washed each other's backs, dried off and dressed for dinner.

I was planning on taking her to Ben Benson's again since the food was fabulous and it was close to Radio City Music Hall. But as we were dressing, I changed my mind. I wanted to take her to a quieter restaurant. When we got in the cab, I directed the driver to take us to 51st and Eighth.

Tout Va Bien is a small French bistro well known for its authentic French cuisine. It was early so we had no problem securing a small table for two. Elle was in her element, chatting in French to the wait staff and I just sat back and watched her. I ordered a bottle of merlot and then Elle started with onion soup while I had the mussels. She ordered the lamb chops for her main course and I had the steak au poivre. We spoke in French throughout the entire meal; somehow it just seemed appropriate here. Elle's eyes were sparkling so beautifully. She looked so happy and I was pleased that we had managed to put this morning's unpleasantness behind us. The subject nagged at the back of my mind, no matter how much I tried to push it aside. I would not have taken such a chance if I hadn't been so drunk and I sincerely hoped that I pulled out in time and was remembering the date correctly. I didn't want us to go through a pregnancy scare, knowing the possible damage it could inflict on our relationship.

After sharing some crème Brulee for dessert, we took a quick cab ride over to Radio City. It was just a little too far for me to walk without suffering the consequences. We found our seats and settled in for the show.

Jackson and Bonnie did not disappoint. They put on a great show, including two encores. Elle was delighted when I bought her a concert tee and she insisted on getting one for me too. I protested, but she persevered, saying:

"You need one for your band shirt collection. Plus, I promise that we won't ever wear them at the same time and look like one of those silly couples that dress alike."

I relented and we left the Hall with matching tee shirts.

Back at the hotel, Elle headed towards the bedroom to change while I poured us both a small scotch. When she returned, she was wearing a simple white baby-doll nightie. She was the picture of sexy innocence. We sipped our scotch while we watched the last half of Saturday Night Live. Scotch and show finished, I clicked off the TV. In the semi-darkness, I ran my hand up her leg and delighted to find that she was not wearing panties under that baby doll nightie.

My hand moved between her thighs: "You look so innocent, and yet act so naughty."

She pouted prettily and said: "I am a naughty girl, monsieur."

"Well, I like naughty girls. Get in the bedroom and show me just how naughty you can be."

She smiled and then turned to scamper down the hall. I followed as quickly as I could, a smile on my face and my hands busy unbuttoning my shirt.

We were almost home Sunday night when my cell phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID and groaned. Foreman was on call this weekend, and I knew him well enough to know that he would only call if he had a new case.

I flipped open the phone and growled: "It's Sunday night, this had better be good."

Foreman let out a sigh: "I was hoping you'd be back in town by now."

"Almost. Why?"

"Thirty-five year old man presents with sudden onset of muscle rigidity, fever and altered mental status. The usual suspects have been ruled out. White count is normal, so no infection. Tox screen was clear. I double-checked the cocaine analysis, and it was clean. Wife said he was cleaning out the garage when it happened. Their 10-year-old son witnessed his dad drop a paint can and fall, babbling incoherently and he ran to get Mom who called for an ambulance."

"It could be serotonin syndrome. Is he on any anti-depressants?"

"Wife says no."

"She's probably unaware that he is taking the meds to put up with her. Draw a CBC, CPK, liver panel, renal panel and thyroid screen. Do a tox screen for lithium and MAOI's. Run blood cultures for the usual suspects. Hydrate him and ice him for the fever. Do an EEG and get Cameron to try to draw a better history out of the wife; get Chase to work on the kid."

Foreman sputtered: "He's only ten."

"So? That's old enough to snoop around and see stuff that your parents don't want you to know. I want some results by the time I get there."

I closed the phone. "Crap."

Elle glanced at me: "Do you want me to drop you at the hospital?"

I shook my head. "No. We're almost home. I'll just get my car."

We were home in 20 minutes. I helped Elle inside with the bags and grabbed my backpack. After assuring that I had my Gameboy, I-Pod and my other important equipment, I pulled her into an embrace.

I murmured into her ear: "I hate to run out on you."

"I know. It was a lovely weekend and I hate to see it end, but duty calls. Thank you for my wonderful birthday present. I really, really liked it."

I squeezed her ass: "Ummm, I'll let you thank me again as soon as possible."

"Looking forward to it."

We shared a long kiss before I reluctantly pulled away. I grabbed my backpack and keys and headed out to the hospital.

**_ELLE_**

I was a little bummed that Greg got called in. I had been looking forward to spending the rest of the evening with him, but that's the way it was with his crazy schedule. I unpacked the bags and dumped all the dirty clothes in the laundry basket. I stuffed his bag back in his front closet and then went across the hall with mine. I put mine back in the closet and checked the refrigerator for anything edible. After examining the contents, I decided to call for a pizza instead. That way, if Greg made it home later, he could snack on the rest of it. I went into my room and grabbed a tank top and some boxers to sleep in. As I turned to head back to Greg's place, I stared at my open bedroom door. All I needed to do was close it and check the calendar on the back to confirm that Greg had been right about the date. If he wasn't, I could still get a script for Plan B to take within the 72-hour window. I debated for a moment, and then decided not to. I resolutely walked out of my apartment and back into his. If I checked, it would prove to him that I didn't trust him and I didn't want him to think that. We had gotten past that tough spot and I didn't want to bring it up again. He trusted me and I wanted him to know that I trusted him too. He had an extraordinary memory and I was sure that he had remembered the date correctly. I would verify that next month when I go to the calendar to circle the date for my next period.

I picked up the phone and ordered a pie with pepperoni, sausage and mushrooms. I played spider solitaire on my laptop until the pie arrived and then I watched 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' while I ate. Greg thought the show was really sappy so we never watched it together. I found the families' stories so sad, that I often cried watching the show. He, of course, didn't understand the pleasure of a good cry, so I indulged myself with this when I was alone.

After the show was over, I cleaned up my few dishes and stuck the pie in the refrigerator. Greg called me at 10 and said he probably wasn't going to make it home at all tonight. We spoke for a few minutes and when his ducklings returned, we ended the call. I left him a note about the pizza anyway, just in case he made it home, and I went off to bed.

**_HOUSE_**

The kids were AWOL when I limped into the conference room. The file was on the table, so I dumped my backpack in my office and sat down to read the scant information. There was nothing in the chart that Foreman hadn't already told me over the phone, but I reread it anyway, hoping for a piece of evidence that he had missed.

I was listing the symptoms on the whiteboard when they returned.

Cameron, ever the socially polite one, asked: "Did you have a nice weekend?"

I snarled: "Until I got waylaid into coming into work on a Sunday night. What do ya got?"

Foreman dove right into the details: "White count was 8 upon admission, now it's 11. His CPK is elevated. Tox screen still negative for everything and that includes lithium and MAOI's. The EEG showed diffuse slowing. We drew cultures but it will be 48 hours before they grow anything."

Chase: "Mom sent the kid home so I couldn't talk to him. Patient's being hydrated with Lactated Ringer's at 150 ml/hr and he's covered with cooling blankets. His temperature is still at 100.5 F. His muscle rigidity seems to be getting worse. When he came in, he was somewhat confused, but realized that he was in a hospital. Now he is barely responding to voice commands and doesn't seem to recognize his wife anymore."

Cameron added her two cents: "His wife says he is not taking any medications. He is definitely not on antidepressants. She laughed in my face when I asked that. Said he was too health conscious to put that kind of 'poison' in his body. She said he has been very healthy up until now. He runs 3 miles a day, practices yoga, eats mostly organic foods, takes vitamins. He even grinds up flaxseed to mix in his yogurt every night for the Omega-3 fatty acids. And he drinks wild blueberry and pomegranate juice every night for the antioxidants."

I added the new symptoms to the board and pondered them for a minute.

"So the cognitive changes are getting worse. White count is going up and he still has a fever. Do a head CT to rule out tumor and if it's clean, do an LP to rule out meningitis."

They ran off to do my bidding. I angled the board so that I would be able to see it from my office and went to sit at my desk. I stared at it for a while as I tossed the ball up in the air and caught it with the hook of my cane. I got up to 44 before I dropped the ball. Not my personal best, but not too shabby either.

I glanced at the clock and decided to give Elle a call. I told her all about the symptoms and let her know that I didn't think I would make it home tonight. She said there was pizza in the fridge and a woman in my bed just in case I did make it home. I asked if the woman was Angelina Jolie and she snorted an answer: "You wish. This one's got smaller boobs but longer hair."

I smiled: "Your boobs aren't small."

"They're smaller than Angie's."

Softly, I said: "They're perfect. And tasty. And you can't give me a hard-on over the phone cuz the kids will be back any minute."

I swear I could feel her smile through the phone. "OK, I'll be good. But I'll be the small-breasted longhaired woman sleeping in your bed tonight in case you make it home. Don't call me Angie by mistake."

"Here come the kids. They look grim. I don't think I'll make it, sweetheart."

"I'll keep your side warm just in case. Good night, cowboy."

I closed the phone just as they strolled in.

The CT and the LP were both clean. We sat around the table and tossed out ideas, but nothing seemed to fit. During the night, he developed tachycardia, urinary incontinence and a tremor in his left hand. He hadn't spoken in hours and was only responding to painful stimuli.

I managed to catch a nap in between tests. As the day progressed, his symptoms got worse and we were no closer to finding an answer. Wilson brought me a reuben for lunch and Cameron's coffee kept me awake.

Around 3:00, we caught a break. The patient's kid showed up to visit his Dad and I told Chase to pry something out of him. Chase went over all the Dad's habits with the kid and the kid confirmed that his Dad was a health nut, although after soccer practice, he managed to convince dear old Dad to take him to McDonalds for burgers and fries.

He said the last thing Dad ate at night was his flaxseed yogurt concoction for a bedtime snack, but that the last few nights Mom had been making it for Dad. And she was putting more than ground flaxseed in it; the kid had witnessed Mom putting a dropperful of a clear liquid in the yogurt and stirring it up. Chase confirmed that the kid witnessed it for the first time 5 nights ago.

I sent Chase and Foreman out to the home and told them what to look for. Cameron went to the lab to run a couple more blood tests. I parked myself at my desk, turned on General Hospital and waited for them to return.

A few hours later, the rest of the pieces fell into place. Chase and Foreman returned from the home, Chase holding aloft a paper bag with the incriminating evidence inside. Cameron walked in shortly afterwards with the results of the blood tests.

I scanned the page; the results were what I had expected. I felt almost gleeful as I said: "Let go give the family the good news."

The wife was alone in the room with our patient. She must have sent the kid home again. It was just as well; the kid didn't need to hear what I was about to say. She stood up when we entered the room.

"Have you found out what's wrong with my husband?"

I took my time looking over the results despite knowing exactly what they said. "Well, we got some new bloodwork back. It was significant for a low normal testosterone level and for a high prolactin level. Prior to falling ill, had your husband been complaining of impotence or a loss of libido?"

She laughed harshly: "No. Quite the opposite, actually. He wanted sex every night and more on the weekends. He was never too tired for it or had any trouble getting it up."

I sneered: "A little too much action for you, perhaps? After a long day of work, taking care of the house and the kid, the last thing on your mind was a romp in the sack. You probably wouldn't mind if he started having a little difficulty in that area, would you?"

I could tell by the look on her face that I was striking gold. "Look, we have different sexual appetites. I'm really tired after a long day and just want some sleep. He wants to try out every position in the Kama Sutra. What difference does that make right now, when he is so sick? Did those blood tests tell you what's wrong with him?"

"These blood levels indicate that he should have been having trouble in the bedroom, but you state otherwise. It is very unusual for a man to have high prolactin levels. That generally indicates that he has a pituitary tumor."

I paused for effect and she gasped on cue.

After giving her a good moment to wrap her mind around that possibility, I went on: "Or it could be caused by certain drugs. But you said he wasn't taking any medications, right?"

Her face grew paler. After a moment, she managed to stutter out: "R-rright. No medications."

I smirked: "And once again, I confirm my theory, that everybody lies."

She tried to fake indignation: "I'm not lying."

"Really? Well, there is one other blood test that I didn't mention. His haloperidol level is 5.Why would he have such a high blood level of a drug that he isn't even on?"

She looked at the floor: "I don't know. Maybe he was taking it and didn't tell me."

I tapped my cane against the floor. "Amazing thing about the internet. You can learn all kinds of things on there. I bet if we looked in your computer history we would find a google search for meds that cause impotence. You discovered that not only does haloperidol cause decreased libido and impotence; it is also available as a colorless, odorless, tasteless liquid. You figured that you could add it to his nightly yogurt and he would be none the wiser. No one else ate his yogurt so it's not like you or your son would accidentally eat it. You could chemically decrease his libido and not have to deal with his huge sexual appetite. I'm sure that was your reasoning and that you didn't really want to kill him."

She looked at me with alarm: "Kill him? No, of course not. Is he dying?"

"He probably would have if you had continued to give him the haloperidol. He has neuroleptic malignant syndrome. It happens in about 1 of people within 2 weeks of their initial exposure to neuroleptic medications like haloperidol."

She gulped: "Malignant? That's cancer, isn't it? I gave him cancer?"

I smirked; she admitted to the deed. "No, it's not cancer. It is quite serious and untreated it can be deadly. Even with treatment, he could be left with permanent problems liked ataxia or a tremor or even dementia. He may recover and not remember who you are. I think I'd want to forget the woman who tried to kill my sex drive and almost killed me. Of course, if you hadn't _conveniently_ forgotten to tell us about the haloperidol, we could have treated him sooner and possibly have a better outcome. All we can do now is start the treatment and see how well he recovers."

She fell into the chair and started weeping into her hands. I felt absolutely no sympathy for her. She had brought this on herself. If the husband were lucky, he would fully recover and divorce this little bitch.

I turned to the ducklings: "Start the treatment. Give him dantrolene 3 mg/kg IV 3 times a day and bromocriptine 2.5 mg orally 3 times a day. Give him Valium 5 mg IV for the muscle rigidity tonight. Be sure and enter this as an adverse drug reaction in his file. Chase, it's your turn to do the overnight monitoring. Don't call me unless he is coding."

Cameron tilted her head towards the weeping wife: "What about her?"

I shrugged: "She wasn't really trying to kill him, just steal his manhood. So I guess we can't call the cops for that. Too bad."

It was almost midnight when I got home. Elle had left the lamp on in the living room for me. I hadn't spoken to her all day, but we had texted a couple of times. I had told her that I probably wouldn't make it home again tonight, so she had not waited up for me. I was glad to have wrapped up the case so quickly and get home to sleep in my own bed with my warm sexy woman.

Elle had left a plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes in the fridge for me. I popped open a beer while waiting for the food to heat up in the microwave. I watched some mindless crap on TV while I ate. A full belly, two beers and an hour of mindless crap later, I felt relaxed enough to fall asleep without a lot of tossing and turning. In the bathroom, I peed and then stripped to my briefs. I limped quietly into the bedroom and crawled into bed. Elle was wearing a cami top and some boxers; she still didn't like to sleep nude when I wasn't home. She was lying on her left side and I snuggled up to her, wrapping my right arm and leg across her body. I gently kissed her neck and whispered to her in French. She stirred and rolled to face me.

Sleepily, she said: "You're home."

She wrapped her arm around my waist, snuggled her face into the crook of my neck and went right back to sleep.

I smiled at her response, kissed her again and rested my cheek against the top of her head. I drifted off to sleep lulled by the warmth of her body and the knowledge that I was, indeed, home.

**_HOUSE_**

I woke up with Elle's pillow snuggled in my arms. Somehow she managed to slip out of bed without waking me. Her scent was on the pillow and I buried my face deeper into it. Finally the need to pee overwhelmed my need for additional sleep and I slowly climbed out of bed. After taking care of business, I headed to the kitchen for some coffee.

It was almost 10 and the coffee was jump-starting my brain. Despite my late night, I still needed to show up at work, so I headed into the shower. While washing up, I flashed back to our weekend and the fun times we had in that big shower at the Ritz. Then I remembered our argument and suddenly my grogginess dissipated. I had barely spoken to Elle since we got back; had she double-checked the calendar? Did she confirm that I was right about the date? Surely she would have called me and let me know if she still wanted the Plan B.

I hurriedly finished my shower. Once dressed, I headed right over to Elle's place to check the calendar, which hung behind the bedroom door. I walked into her bedroom and closed the door.

My jaw dropped; I couldn't believe it.

I stared at the big circle around the 4th of March. I had been off by 3 days and that put her smack within ovulation range when I had my bareback ride.

I shook my head in disbelief. I was so sure I had been right. Then I remembered that week. It was another week of difficult patients and staying late at the hospital. We hadn't seen each other in 4 days. I had been horn-dog ready for her when I arrived home on Wednesday night. I had stripped and crawled into bed, my erection pressing into her thigh as I kissed her awake. I remembered her soft voice informing me that she had her period and how she had kissed her way down my body to slide me into her mouth.

That's why I had confused the dates. I just assumed that it had started that day.

Elle must not have checked the calendar. Surely she would have called if she had. She would have insisted on getting the Plan B and I would have written her a script for it. Now I just had to hope that I really did pull out in time.

As I headed back to my apartment, I decided not to say anything to Elle. There was no point in telling her now. It was too late to do anything proactively to prevent a pregnancy and if she worried about it, that may delay the start of her next period. Keep her calm and hope that by the 4th of April she was buying another box of tampons again.


	47. Chapter 47

Chapter 47

Saturday April 7, 2007

**_HOUSE_**

Even through the closed bathroom door, I could hear her exclaim: "Crap!"

I closed my eyes; I tried to suppress my concern and sound like my usual cynical self: "What's amatter? Get your period right at the start of the weekend?"

She stormed back into the bedroom. "No! I wish. Didn't you say I got my period on the 7th last month? Cuz today's the 7th and it's not here."

So she had been worried about it. My eyes darted away; I couldn't look at her: "Yeah, that's what I said."

She froze and stared at me. "You sound strange. Wasn't that the right date?"

"Didn't you check?"

She slowly shook her head: "No. Should I have doubted you?"

"Perhaps."

She walked around to my side of the bed and tried to catch my eye: "What aren't you telling me?"

I didn't want to look at her: "You should have checked."

There was a slight tremor in her voice as she said: "So now it's my fault that I didn't check? Do I need to go across the hall and look now, or are you going to just tell me the date?"

Finally I met her eyes: "It was the fourth."

She blanched: "The fourth? That means I'm 5 days late! Oh my Gawd, why didn't you tell me?"

I shrugged and attempted to appear casual: "What was the point? By the time I looked at the calendar, it was already too late for Plan B. I'm just surprised that you didn't check when we got back on Sunday."

"You were so sure, it seemed wrong to doubt you again."

She sat down hard on the edge of the bed, elbows on her knees, her face buried in her hands.

I gently squeezed her shoulder: "I'll draw your blood on Monday. We'll see what's going on."

Her head whipped around: "Monday? I can't wait until then."

Elle stood up and started throwing on yesterday's discarded clothes.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to the drugstore _now_. I can't wait until Monday without knowing for sure."

I argued while she dressed, how it was too early for those home pregnancy tests. She paid me no mind and as soon as she was dressed, she flew out of the door. I groaned; a crappy weekend was in store. If she really was pregnant, then we would have to discuss what we were going to do and that would not be pleasant. At least I knew that neither of us wanted to have kids, so we were on the same page with this subject.

My brain started churning with everything that would need to be done if the test turned out positive. I figured she wouldn't want to have the termination done at PPTH where people know us. PMMC was definitely out for the same reason. We'd go somewhere else so it would remain private. And I wanted her to have IV sedation so she wouldn't remember the procedure.

I pulled on my boxers and headed out to the living room. I finally located the Yellow Pages and opened it up to the listing of 'abortion services'. A couple of the ads stated IV sedation, so I called those numbers to find out exactly what that meant. Satisfied with the answers I received at the second place I called, I circled that listing and closed the phone book. I shoved it back on the shelf so that she wouldn't see it first thing when she got back. Then I headed into the kitchen to make some coffee and wait for her return.

Elle returned twenty minutes later with a large paper bag. I was sitting on the couch drinking a cup of coffee and trying to appear calm and composed.

Her voice broke as she spoke: "How can you be so calm? I'm a nervous wreck." Her jaw trembled and she looked as if she would burst into tears at any moment.

I said with more assurance than I felt. "No point in worrying until we know for sure."

"Well we're about to find out in 5 minutes."

"Elle, those tests aren't reliable so early. Plus you need to use your first morning's urine and you've already peed today."

She pulled a pink box out of the bag: "This one is good 5 days _before_ a missed period. If it is that sensitive, I figure it will work just fine when I'm 5 days late and using the second pee of the day. And if it doesn't, I have another kit for tomorrow morning."

She dropped the bag on the coffee table, and clutching the test kit in her hand, she marched down the hall. I heard the bathroom door slam as I picked up the bag. I examined the other test kit. Sure enough it said it was sensitive enough to use 5 days before your missed period and it claimed to be 99 accurate. Great. Just great.

I gave her a moment of privacy to pee on the stick, and then I slowly headed down the hall. The bathroom door wasn't locked so I just went on in. Elle was placing a plastic cap over one end of the test stick and then she laid it down on the counter next to the open page of instructions.

Without looking at me, she asked: "Got your watch?"

"Yes."

"Time 3 minutes."

I did as she requested. I moved to stand next to her and put my arm around her shoulders. She put her arm around my waist and leaned into me while we stared at the little stick together. I saw some pink color moving in the background of the test field, indicating that the test was working.

One pink line meant the test was negative and two lines meant positive. I wasn't completely surprised when two lines started to appear, but still my heart sank as the results slowly emerged. I felt Elle grip me tighter. By the time my watch alarm went off, two pink lines were quite distinctive. According to this test, there was no doubt that Elle was pregnant.

I looked at her face in the mirror; she looked extremely fragile as if she were going to break. She saw me looking and a sob escaped from her throat. She covered her mouth and ran out of the bathroom.

I followed her into the bedroom. She had buried herself under the covers with the pillow over her head and she was sobbing her heart out.

I crawled under the covers with her and lifted the pillow off of her head. Pulling her into my arms, I did my best to comfort her. She sobbed on my shoulder for a long while. She cried for so long that she got the hiccups.

In between sobs and hiccups, she managed to stammer out: "I didn't mean to get pregnant, Greg. You know I wasn't trying to."

She couldn't possibly think this was her fault. This was all due to my drunken stupidity and my pride.

I pulled her even closer and kissed her forehead. "I know. My boys are better swimmers than I thought. A few managed to escape even though I thought I pulled out in time. And I got the date wrong. Shhh, it's gonna be OK."

I kissed her and held her until she calmed down and the hiccups stopped. Softly I said: "Look, there's a clinic that does IV sedation, so you won't remember the procedure. It will be fast and painless. I'll be with you the whole time."

She frowned at me, seeming to not comprehend my words at first. Then I saw her eyes grow wide and her mouth drop open as the fog lifted and she got the meaning of my words. She pulled back from my embrace as she said: "Greg. I don't want to have an abortion."

I was completely mystified by her words: "What do you mean, you don't want to have an abortion? You told me that you didn't want to get pregnant. Doesn't that mean you don't want to _be _pregnant now that you are?

She shook her head: "I didn't want to get pregnant. But now that I am, I can't go through with terminating it."

I felt my blood pressure rising: "Why the hell not?"

"What's the point? Look at my family history. I'm just going to miscarry anyway."

"If you think like that, why wait? Just have the abortion and get it over with. Why wait for a miscarriage to happen at some undesired time and place?"

She shook her head: "I just can't do it."

The volume of my voice rose with my anger at her irrationality. "You have to give me more of a reason than that. I'm not looking forward to the pitter patter of little feet and some rug-rat calling me daddy."

Elle kicked off her shoes and then sat up in bed with her knees bent and her arms wrapped around her legs. She rested her chin on top of her bent knees.

"My Mom had 6 pregnancies that resulted in only one live birth. My aunt was pregnant at least 4 times with no offspring. I've already had one miscarriage. So I figure my chances of miscarrying are more than 90."

"Your one and only miscarriage was in the first trimester which is quite common. It doesn't really mean anything. And since you don't know why your mom and your aunt miscarried their pregnancies, you don't know if the problem is hereditary or not."

She was quiet for a moment and then she said softly: "You're right. I have no proof that I have the same condition that they had, but I think I do. Greg, I have no family. I have no relations at all. My mom managed to have just one child. What if this is my one chance to have a family? I just can't throw that away."

I was stunned: "You want this baby?"

She squeezed her eyes shut, but a tear leaked out anyway. "I don't _want_ to want it too much, cuz I'm sure I'll miscarry. I'm sure I'll lose it. But yes, I want it. I want our baby."

I covered my eyes with my hands. "Elle, I would make a crappy dad. Look at mine. You haven't even met him but you know what he's like. That's the great example of a dad that I had."

Elle shook her head. "You wouldn't be like that. You would never treat a child the way he treated you."

Pain clenched my heart. For a moment, I thought I would sob. How could she have that much faith in me?

In a strangled voice, I said: "You don't know that. You don't know what I would do."

She placed her hand on my heart: "I know that under that rough exterior, you're a good man. You know what you have been through and you would never inflict that on a child."

"I'm 10 times more likely to inflict abuse than the average guy. I can't take that chance."

"You wouldn't do it. If you raised your hand, you would remember the fear you felt as a child when your father did the same thing. It would make you pause and not strike. You are not your father."

I muttered through clenched teeth: "You don't know that."

Her temper flared and her voice rose: "No, Greg, I don't. I don't know a lot of things. But I know what I believe. And just like I believe that I have the same problem as my mom and my aunt, I also believe that you would never hurt a child. And while your mother may have allowed him to get away with what he did, rest assured that I won't. I will not tolerate even the smallest slap or belittling remark. I told you about my life in foster care; there's no way that I would permit anything like that to happen to my child."

Then she cupped my cheek and her voice softened: "You would not hurt a child. I have faith in you."

My mind was awhirl. I couldn't think straight. "You shouldn't."

She closed the gap between us. "But I do."

Her lips found mine and we kissed deeply, hungrily. I clutched her like a drowning man clings to a life raft. I didn't understand how she could have such faith in me, but I couldn't think about that right now. I needed her; I needed her badly. We stripped away each other's clothes and made love with a desperate hunger.

_Three weeks later. _

By my calculations, Elle was now 8 weeks pregnant and the parasite was officially a fetus. She was acting a little hormonal, but not too bad. I think she was trying to hide her symptoms from me as much as possible, but I'd heard her retching in the bathroom on more than one morning. Ginger ale and saltines started appearing in the grocery sacks. She tired easily and often fell asleep on the couch after dinner. On the plus side, we were having bareback sex again and her breasts had already gotten a little bigger.

We had only spoken about it once since the day she took the test. She made it very clear that she was not having an abortion. She was sure that she would miscarry and hoped that I would stick around to help her through it. I told her that I would be there for her but I also made it clear that I didn't want kids. The subject of what we would do if she didn't miscarry was left up in the air and thus we were at an impasse. I figured that I would wait until she was in her 11th week and then press the issue again. If she had not miscarried by then, we would need to make some hard decisions before the option of a first trimester abortion expired.

Elle didn't want to tell anyone else about her pregnancy at this point, which was fine with me. She continued to order her usual alcoholic beverages at Satchel's to throw the others off the track, and then she just would sip at them very slowly. I'd end up finishing them off when she went back on stage. If Ricky or Gen noticed, they never said anything. She gained a couple of pounds but she was so thin to start with that no one seemed to notice. We went on with our usual routine and continued to enjoy each other's company despite the large pink elephant in the room.

**_ELLE_**

Three weeks after my positive pregnancy test, I made an appointment with my GYN. Kelly Alderman was only a year older than me and just had her first baby 6 months ago. We spend a long time discussing my family history and my concern about a repeat miscarriage. She seemed to understand my fears but tried to be reassuring that I did not necessarily inherit my mother's problem. She reminded me of all the reasons why I could have had a first trimester miscarriage. Of course, these were things that Greg had already told me, but I listened anyway and tried to believe it when she said that I could have a successful pregnancy.

After the history, I got into a gown and up on the table for the physical exam. Kelly told me that my uterus was about the size of an orange and that the fetus was about the size of a grain of rice right now. I grinned as I imagined a piece of basmati rice with Greg's face on it. As Kelly pulled off her gloves and motioned me to sit up, she stated that everything looked good. I was instructed to make another appointment in a month's time and to call if I was having any problems at all.

I left the office with a prescription for prenatal vitamins. I was excited that things were going OK so far and wished that I could share this feeling with someone and most of all with Greg. But I knew that he would not share my excitement and I had to remind myself that although things were going well now, the last time I had lost the baby at 10 weeks. I simply couldn't allow myself to get too excited about it, fearing the worst would happen. And if I didn't miscarry, what was going to happen between Greg and myself? Greg had expressly told me that he didn't want kids. If I didn't lose the baby, would he break up with me? Would he want any contact with the child at all? How could I handle being a single mom? These worrying thoughts dampened my joy as I headed towards the pharmacy to get my prescription filled.

_3 weeks later._

**_HOUSE_**

Elle was now in her 11th week. She had gained about 5 pounds and looked terrific. Her breasts were bigger and the areolas were already getting darker and larger. She had a tiny pooch to her belly now and I found her new curves to be incredibly sexy.

I couldn't get enough of her body. Happily, her hormones were running high, and so was her sex drive. Most nights she was ready to jump me as soon as I got home. We'd end up screwing on the couch with my jeans around my ankles and her blouse pushed up enough to expose those luscious breasts.

As much as I enjoyed these romps, the time for our talk was due. I loved her, but I still didn't want to be a parent. If I was going to convince her to have an abortion, now was the time.

Except it never quite seemed the right time. I'd get home from work and she would either jump me or dinner would be cooking. We'd get involved with sex or food and then settle on the couch to watch some TV before bed. Our time together was so enjoyable that it never quite seemed like the right time to bring up this subject. All the way up to the 10th week, Elle kept predicting that she would miscarry. When the 10th week came and went, she became silent on the subject. I was going to have to press the issue.

She was preparing dinner when I got home. Chicken, sausage, onions and rice were being layered in a casserole dish. She gave me a big smile when I walked in.

"Hey. I just about have dinner thrown together. Then it will need to bake for an hour and we'll have some time for."

She grinned lasciviously and wiggled her eyebrows at me. I couldn't help but smile. She was efficiently planning dinner and playtime. I felt myself starting to rise to the occasion. The serious stuff could wait until afterwards.

I moved behind her and put my hands on her hips. She rubbed her ass against my groin as she finished throwing dinner together.

Elle grabbed a can of cream of mushroom soup. "I just have to pour this over the top and stick it in the oven. Then you can stick your loaf in mine."

She popped the top and the smell of the cream of mushroom soup permeated the small kitchen. Elle gagged, clapped her hand over her mouth and ran towards the bathroom.

Her morning sickness was almost a thing of the past, but some smells still set her off. Apparently cream of mushroom soup was one of them. Damn! Just when the night was looking so good, she had to get sick from the soup.

I walked down the hall to see if she needed anything.

She had stopped retching by the time I got there, but she was still leaning over the bowl just in case. I wet a washcloth and brought it to her.

She accepted it from me and said: "Thank you. Sorry. I guess this put a bit of a damper on my plans for tonight. Could you pour the soup over the casserole and put it in the oven? Maybe I'll be able to tolerate it when it is cooked."

I nodded: "You want anything?"

"Some ginger ale would be great."

"Be right back."

I quickly pouring the offending soup over the casserole and stuck it in the oven. There was no ginger ale in the fridge so I started opening cabinets looking for a fresh bottle. I made a surprising discovery in one of the lower cabinets that I rarely opened. I grabbed the small bottle and headed back to the bathroom with it.

Elle was standing by the sink when I entered the bathroom. She rinsed her mouth with some water and then spit it into the sink.

Thrusting the bottle at her, I asked: "What's this?"

She shrugged: "My vitamins."

"You're taking prenatal vitamins?"

She nodded: "Yeah, I'm pregnant, remember? If I don't miscarry, I do want to have a healthy baby."

"You're not going to miscarry at this point. Your first trimester is almost over."

"I still could. My mom had one at,"

I tossed the bottle on the counter. "I'm tired of hearing about your Mom's miscarriages. You are not your Mom and you don't know why she had all those miscarriages. And for another thing, you were only 10 when you overheard this conversation and maybe you heard it wrong. Maybe you're remembering it incorrectly after all these years."

"I am not! I know what I heard. Plus I remember feeling the baby move in her belly before she lost the last one. She had to have been in her 6th month when it happened."

"And again, that was your mother, not YOU! Why can't you get it through your thick head that you do not have the same problem that she had?"

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do. You had one early miscarriage like millions of other women have and you just _assume_ that you have the same problem that your mother had."

"Oh, so I should just believe that you are right about this, just like you were right about the date? And you were right when you told me that you pulled out in time. The famous Doctor House is always right, didn't you tell me that once upon a time?"

I gritted my teeth: "You are not your mother. You don't know why she miscarried. There are so many reasons, chromosomal abnormalities, infection, hormonal problems, improper implantation of the embryo, her age, smoking, excessive caffeine."

"My Mom didn't smoke!"

"Fine! Cross that one off the list. Maybe she had fibroids or a weak cervix. Maybe she had a hormonal imbalance. If she didn't produce enough progesterone, the uterine lining can't be sustained to support the fetus and she would have lost it."

She was starting to tear up: "I don't know."

I tried to curb my anger and speak more civilly: "That's right. You don't know and neither do I. We can speculate until the kid is old enough for college and we will never know. The only way we can know for sure is to track down your mother's medical records. Elle, the bottom line is, we don't know that you have the same problem as your mother. Your own miscarriage was most likely due to chromosomal abnormalities just like the majority of first trimester miscarriages. You've made it to your 11th week now; I think you're good to go the distance."

Tears were streaming down her cheeks now. Softly she said: "But you don't want it."

I gripped her shoulders and leaned down to rest my forehead on hers. "Elle. I love you. We're good together. But I can't do this. I can't be a parent. I would be a crappy dad."

Her voice shook as she spoke: "But you don't know that. I know you could do it. And it's not like you'd be doing it alone. We're in this together. We both had crap in our childhoods and we know what we don't want repeated. We'd be a team, working together to do the best for our child."

"I can't, Elle. I don't want to be responsible for hurting an innocent child."

She was opening sobbing now: "You wouldn't. I know you wouldn't."

"I'm not cut out for the house in the suburbs with a white picket fence, wife in the kitchen, kids in the backyard life. That's not who I am."

"I'm not asking you to change. I don't want you to change. You're a wonderful man. I love you the way you are. Crap, we don't have to move or get married. We can stay right here. We can do this, Greg. I know we can."

I dropped my hands from her shoulders and stepped back. "I can't, Elle."

Tears were streaming down her cheeks. "What exactly are you saying? I have to choose between having an abortion and keeping you, or keeping the baby and losing you. Is that what you're telling me?"

The look on her face broke my heart. She had summed the situation up perfectly, and I was too much of a coward to face her. I lowered my head and closed my eyes so I wouldn't have to see her pain.

In a trembling voice, she whispered: "I want you both. I don't to give up either one of you. If I miscarry, that's one thing. But I can't deliberately dispose of our baby."

"It's _your_ baby."

The impact of my words hit her full force. She reeled as if I had slapped her. Her jaw trembled so much that I was amazed that she could still speak. "I guess I should get my things."

"I guess you should."

She looked dazedly around the bathroom and finally managed to pick up her toothbrush and her hairbrush. Then she wandered into the bedroom and opened her drawer. I watched from the doorway as she grabbed a few items and then shut the drawer slowly.

Without looking at me, she said: "I can't do this now. I'll get the rest of my stuff tomorrow while you're at work."

"Fine."

She walked to the bedroom door and I stood aside to let her pass. She paused next to me and took a deep breath.

Reaching up, she cupped my cheek and forced me to look her in the eyes. "I love you, Greg. And if you change your mind, you know where to find me."

I shook my head: "I'm not going to change my mind."

She gently caressed my cheek with her hand. "Stranger things have happened. Just remember that I love you."

And with that, she headed down the hall and out of my apartment.

I watched her go. The pain in my chest was so intense that I wondering if I were having a heart attack. I popped 2 oxycodones for good measure. Then I staggered to the living room and poured myself a double scotch. I had just thrown away the best thing that ever happened to me. But I knew I couldn't do it. I couldn't imagine having a baby in the apartment, and then that baby growing up to be a toddler and calling me 'daddy'. I just couldn't see me as a father. How could I nurture the growth of a young mind when my own dad had only seen fit to try to force me to fit his mold? How could I physically keep up with a young child with my bum leg? This was for the best. The child would grow up loved by his mother and not fucked up by his dad.

Elle will be OK. She'll be a great mom. I'll give her some generous child support so that the kid has everything he needs. I'll start a college fund. She'll find someone else to help her raise the kid, someone who would be a great step dad. The kid will have someone that he can call 'daddy', but it won't be me. Somehow, those thoughts didn't cheer me as much as I thought they would.

A buzzing noise permeated my gloomy thoughts. I finally realized that it was the oven timer; dinner was ready. I staggered to the kitchen, silenced the irritating noise, grabbed the mitts and pulled the casserole out. I stared at it for a minute, the gray glob on the top that hid a delicious nourishing meal underneath. The smell started to make me nauseous and I picked up the container. I hurried to the outside trash bins as fast as I could and tossed it in, casserole dish and all. A liquid dinner was on my menu tonight; there was no way I would be able to stomach anything else.

**_ELLE_**

I only managed to get as far as the futon before I completely broke down. I tossed all my things on the coffee table, hugged the pillow to my chest and sobbed my heart out. I couldn't believe he was doing this. I knew he loved me; how could he end our relationship just like that?

How could he have so much confidence in every other aspect of his life and absolutely zero with this part? His father sure did a number on him. I just couldn't imagine how his sweet mother put up with that man all these years.

I felt like a huge weight was pressing down on me. I alternated between crying and trying to figure out ways to convince Greg to come back to me. Then I cried even more when I couldn't figure how any new arguments to present to him. I wanted a drink so badly; actually I wanted to get shit-faced drunk, but I couldn't. I had to think of the baby.

It was nearly 10:00 when I managed to drag myself off of the futon. I hadn't had dinner, but I wasn't hungry. I brushed my teeth, slipped on a cami and a pair of boxers and crawled between the sheets. As I stretched out in my lonely bed, a fresh flow of tears started and I sobbed into my pillow. I wondered if my tears would ever stop. I was going to look like hell tomorrow at work. Thankfully, tomorrow was Friday and then I'd have the weekend to get all this crying out of my system.

One more week and I would be officially in my second trimester. I'd wait one more week and then I would tell the guys. My baby may not have a dad, but he or she would have a lot of uncles and aunts. I knew I could count on them to help me. I smiled when I thought of Avi's reaction; he would be so thrilled for me and I knew he would be there for me anyway he could. I wondered if I should ask him or Gen to be my labor coach. I'd have to find out if Avi were squeamish about blood.

I sighed; there were a lot of decisions to be made and I'd be making them all on my own. It wasn't the way I envisioned becoming a mother, but I couldn't get my hopes up that Greg would change his mind. I was going to have to assume that I was on my own now and make decisions accordingly.

I lay on my back and stared at the ceiling. I swallowed hard to try to stifle the tears as I rubbed my poochy belly.

I whispered in the dark: "Stay with me, baby. You're all I have now. If I lose you, I don't know what I'll do."

**_ELLE_**

It was rough at work on Friday. I looked like I had been up crying all night, which wasn't surprising since I had been. I knew that my co-workers could tell something was up, but they were polite enough not to ask. Finally the day was over and I hurried to my car. I wanted to get home without running into Greg. I really didn't want to clean my belongings out of his apartment, but I figured that I better get it over with.

I grabbed a laundry basket and started in the bedroom. I emptied my drawers and put my hanging clothes into the laundry basket and then took it across the hall. I grabbed the bathroom items next and then wandered into the kitchen. There were so many of my things in there. Pots, pans and other utensils had migrated over to his side over the course of our relationship. I stacked everything on the kitchen island and had to make 3 trips to take them all across the hall. I couldn't find the casserole dish that I had been using last night, and finally I gave it up as a lost cause.

It was good to stay busy. I reorganized the kitchen as I put the items away. I had left the programmable coffee pot for Greg, since I wasn't supposed to drink too much coffee right now. I only allowed myself a half-cup a day since I found out about my pregnancy. So I figured that I would just buy a small coffeepot that would suit my current needs.

I put away my clothes and the bathroom items. Exhausted, I flopped down on the futon. It was only 7PM and I had no idea what I was going to do now. Then I heard the outer door open and I held my breath, wondering if it was Greg. I heard his distinctive gait and then I heard his apartment door slam. The next thing I heard was his stereo going at full blast. Mick Jagger wasn't getting any satisfaction, and I thought: he ain't the only one.

I couldn't sit here for the rest of the night. Grabbing my purse and my keys, I hurried out to my car. I'd swing through McDonald's for dinner and then I'd head to Wal-Mart for a new coffeepot. As I put the keys in the ignition, I noticed that I still had Greg's door key on my chain. I suppose I should have given it back, but I decided to keep it for now. Maybe, just maybe, he would change his mind. Or maybe I'll remember something else that I'd forgotten over there and need to go back for it. It just felt too final to give it back and I couldn't deal with that tonight. I cranked the ignition and pulled out of my spot, heading towards McD's.

**_HOUSE_**

By the time I arrived home, Elle had cleaned out her stuff. I should have felt relieved that I wouldn't have to watch it happen and witness any more tears, but the missing items only made me feel as empty as the newly vacated drawers of my dresser. I cranked up the stereo to try to drown out the ache in my heart. Ironically the first song up was the Stones' singing 'Satisfaction'.

I heard the front door slam and I peeked out the front window. Elle was hurrying towards her car. Had she been watching to make sure that she didn't run into me? Is this what our life was going to be like now, doing our best to avoid each other?

My stomach rumbled and I realized that I hadn't eaten all day. I had dodged Wilson at lunch. I knew he would take one look at me and know something was wrong, hounding me to tell him about it. I checked the fridge and located some leftover meatloaf. As it heated up in the microwave, I considered that this was probably the last time I would eat Elle's delicious meatloaf. The thought made me even sadder, but I reminded myself that this was for the best.

When the meatloaf was warm, I took it and a beer to the coffee table. I clicked off the stereo and put on the TV, locating a monster truck rally broadcasting live from South Dakota. Feet up on the coffee table, plate in my lap, I settled in for a long evening alone.

**_ELLE_**

I woke up with a groan on Saturday and then there was a mad dash to the bathroom. I couldn't wait for the morning sickness to be over. As I retched over the commode, I was glad that I had remembered to bring the ginger ale and Saltines over from Greg's place. Certainly he wouldn't be needing them.

When I felt like I could stand without the room spinning, I gingerly eased myself over to the sink and rinsed my mouth. I felt lonely. Greg would usually get up when he heard me retching and bring me a wet washcloth. Well, those days were over, and I damn well better get used to it.

I headed into the kitchen and poured myself a small glass of ginger ale. It stayed down OK, so I went ahead and made some coffee and toast. I sat down at the table to eat it but the table felt too big and lonely, so I went over to the futon and clicked on the TV. Since it was Saturday morning, cartoons were on. That just reminded me of Greg and I burst into tears again.

I abandoned my coffee and toast and went back to bed where I cried myself back to sleep.

I woke up again around 1PM. I couldn't believe that I had slept the whole morning away. I felt a lot more refreshed so maybe sleep was just what I had needed. And instead of waking up nauseated, I was starving. A quick glance at my refrigerator reminded me that whatever was left of last week's groceries were still over at Greg's.

It was time to get myself in gear. I had a baby to feed and I needed to take better care of myself. I threw on some clothes and headed out. I would stop at Wendy's for a change of pace and then head over to the market to stock up on groceries.

After I scarfed down a chicken sandwich, fries and a Frosty, I drove over to the market and loaded up a grocery cart with necessary food items. Being pregnant meant that ice cream was a necessary item; after all, the baby needed calcium. And I'm sure that there was some important food groups contained in Little Debbie oatmeal crème pies. Just to make sure I hadn't missed any food groups today, I ate 2 of the little pies on the way home from the grocery store.

By the time I had unpacked the groceries, it was almost 4PM. It was our night to play at Satchel's and I hated the thought of going there without Greg. It just wouldn't be the same, plus I didn't like coming home alone so late at night. I knew Avi would give me a ride, but I wasn't ready to tell everyone what had happened just yet. I decided to tell him that Greg had a patient and wasn't going to make it tonight. That excuse worked and Avi quickly agreed to pick me up at 7 and take me home after we finished playing.

**_HOUSE_**

I had stayed up until the wee hours, watching TV and drinking. I had started with beer during dinner and then at some point switched over to scotch. So it wasn't surprising that I woke up with a huge hangover. I smelled for the reassuring scent of morning coffee and was disappointed at its absence.

I rolled over and felt around. All I found was the other pillow. The bed was empty. I cursed out loud. No coffee, no hot woman for morning sex, no lovely Saturday morning breakfast awaiting me, and it was my own damn fault. There was nothing to get out of bed for, except to pee. I performed that necessary function and hobbled right back to bed to try to sleep off my hangover.

I woke up a couple of hours later and this time managed to roll out of bed and stay vertical. I limped into the kitchen and started the coffeepot. As the coffee brewed, I checked through the fridge for anything edible. I found some frozen bagels, so I popped one in the toaster to munch with my coffee.

I had the whole weekend ahead of me and I couldn't think of anything to do.

I tried to remember what I used to do with my time off before Elle entered my life. Hookers, OTB, bars, TV and hanging with Wilson had been my former activities. None of those things sounded appealing to me at the moment, plus Wilson was still shagging Cuddy so his weekends were mostly monopolized with her.

I spent the day in my pajamas, watching TV and picking on the piano a little bit. I tried to read the latest issue of _JAMA_, but discovered that I couldn't concentrate on the articles. I found myself wandering around the apartment, looking for any item that Elle may have left behind, almost as proof that she had really existed in my life.

Around 7, I heard knocking on her door. I looked through the peephole and saw that it was Avi and Ricky. They entered her apartment for a moment, and then they all left, Elle and Avi each carrying a guitar. I had forgotten that they were playing tonight. If our relationship hadn't just bit the dust, that is where I would be tonight.

Well, there was no law saying I couldn't go there. I could sit in a dark corner, have a couple of drinks, and enjoy the show. I limped down the hall to shower and dress.

I got there around 9:30. I knew they would be in the middle of their first set and there would be no chance of running into Elle or any of the others wandering around the barroom. There was a new bouncer at the door, which was perfect. I was just another paying customer to him. I paid my cover charge and entered. When my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I saw an empty table in the back left corner and made a beeline for it.

When the waitress approached, I tugged my cap a bit further down over my face. Between the cap and the dim lighting, she didn't seem to recognize me. She just asked for my order and strolled off to get it. My beer arrived and I listened to the last 10 minutes of this set while sipping on my Grolsch.

They sit at their usual table during the break. I can see Elle pretending to sip on a beer, wondering how she is going to disguise that she is not really drinking it now that I'm not there to cover for her. Her tits have gotten so much bigger that they are about to pop out of her tank top and the extra weight looks so good on her. I wondered why the others hadn't noticed the change in her appearance yet. Maybe they're just glad that she has finally put some weight back on since her assault and don't want to remind her of that.

Even from this distant table, I can see how hard she is trying to act as if everything is normal. It's torture for me to be this close to her and yet not close enough to talk to her or touch her. I'm not sure why I'm doing this, and yet I can't leave, at least not until after she does her solo set.

**_ELLE_**

I did my best to get into the show tonight. It didn't help that some of the requests that I got were for Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt, reminding me of that ill-fated weekend when I got pregnant. Adam looked puzzled by my song choices and I admit I sung way too many slow, sad ones in a row, but it summed up how I felt. After I sang Bonnie's _'I Can't Make You Love Me if_ _You Don't'_ and Jackson's _'All Good Things Gotta Come to an End'_, he gave me a stern look while spinning his finger in a circle. I knew that meant he wanted me to pick up the pace, so I took a deep breath and walked out to the mike. I switched to Bette and sang _'Sold my Soul to Rock and Roll'_ which got the crowd up on the feet. Adam seemed happier about the crowd's reaction. I did my best to block everything out and just sing.

As the set was winding to an end, someone screamed out a request for _'Stay With Me Baby'_. I groaned inwardly; that was probably the last song I wanted to do tonight. But the boys went right into the opening chords and I had no choice but to sing along. I started slow, but as I sang, images of Greg kept popping into my mind, and I ended up pouring out my soul as I sang. It was as if he was actually in the room and I was saying these words right to him. I felt emotionally drained when that song was over and I was thankful that it was the last song of the set. I hurried off the stage and headed right to the bathroom to throw up.

**_HOUSE_**

At the beginning of her set, she sang a lot of slow sad songs, but after a while, she picked up the tempo. It looked like Adam had given her a signal to do so. And I'm pretty sure I groaned out loud when someone requested _'Stay With Me Baby'_. I thought about leaving right then, but she started singing and I was sucked in. Her voice was mesmerizing and she poured out her heart as she sang. As she reached that last chorus, she fell to her knees as if she were actually begging someone to stay. The crowd went wild, standing up, cheering and clapping so I was forced to stand also so that I could still see her. As she sang the last line of '_I can't go on'_, her arms reached up to the sky as if beseeching some deity for help. I felt that pain in my chest again as I watched her. She had proclaimed her love for me and her belief that I could do this; she had done everything except beg to convince me to stay. I could only hope that she could move on and that one day she would understand that it was for the best.

During the standing ovation, I grabbed my cane and hurried out. Getting shit-faced drunk was my plan for the rest of the evening and it'd be better doing it at home than here where she might see me.

**_ELLE_**

The guys were worried that I was sick but I brushed it off. I said it was probably just the heat from the lights getting to me. I wasn't sure that they bought that, but it got me out of pretending to drink for the rest of the night. I told Theresa I only wanted some ginger ale after my little toilet bowl hug. As we sat at our usual table, relaxing before the next set, Adam asked me what was up with all the sad songs. I just shrugged and said that it must be PMS. He rolled his eyes and mumbled something under his breath, which caused Gen to elbow him in the ribs.

I got through the rest of the night without any other incidents. I ate my usual potato skins while the rest of the gang counted and split up the money. I was exhausted, but tried to act as normal as I could.

As we pulled up in front of my building, the lights were on in Greg's apartment and naturally my companions noticed it.

Ricky said: "Hey, House is home. I guess he finished up with his patient."

Avi frowned: "Well, why didn't he come to the club to pick you up? He's done that before when he missed part of the show."

I just shrugged and grabbed my guitars, hoping to beat a hasty retreat. But Avi took one of them from me and they both escorted me inside. Ricky headed for Greg's door, but I just walked to mine and unlocked it. I walked in and they followed.

Avi set my guitar down and folded his arms across his chest: "OK, spill. What the hell is going on?"

I tried to play dumb. "What are you talking about?"

Avi started counting on his fingers: "House doesn't bring you to the club. You sing all these sad songs. You throw up after singing _'Stay With Me_ _Baby'._ He doesn't come to the club to pick you up after finishing with his patient, assuming that he really had one. And you head right into your own place instead of going to his. So what's up? Did you two have a fight?"

I ignored his question and walked into the kitchen, calling behind me: "You guys want a beer?"

I opened the fridge and realized belatedly, that I had no beer. I didn't see the point of buying any at the store today, since I couldn't drink alcohol due to my pregnant state.

Suddenly Avi was right behind me, peering into the refrigerator: "And that's another thing I noticed. Wait. Wait just a minute! You have no beer. YOU have NO beer? OK, now I know something is going on. What the fuck is wrong?"

I shut the refrigerator door and burst into tears.

The next thing I knew I was sitting on the futon, sobbing on Avi's shoulder. Ricky was sitting beside me, patting my back as I cried. Finally my tears subsided and I managed to tell them the whole story.

Avi exploded: "That bastard! How could he do this to you?"

Sadly, I repeated: "He just doesn't want to have kids. And I'll probably miscarry anyway, but he was tired of waiting for that to happen. He wanted me to have an abortion, but I didn't want one."

"Well, it takes two to tango, and I'm gonna set him straight on his responsibility to you."

Avi rose and started for the door.

I cried out: "No! Don't, Avi. Don't bother. Believe me, there is nothing that you can say that will change his mind."

"Yeah, well, how about a punch in this nose? It'd make me feel better anyway."

I smiled weakly at him: "I don't want you to hurt your hand."

Ricky put his arm around me: "Elle, you know that we're here for you. Anything we can do, just ask."

Avi sat back down next to me. "Yeah, that's right. We're here for you. We'll take you to the doctor, set up the nursery, whatever you need."

I wrapped one arm around each man's neck: "Well, Uncle Avi and Uncle Ricky, I'm sure I'll need help putting the crib together and lots of other things too."

Avi put his hand on my belly: "How far along are you?"

"Eleven weeks. I'm almost out of the first trimester and that's when most miscarriages happen, although my Mom's last one happened around 6 months."

Ricky said: "So that's why you haven't been drinking. I noticed that you would take a sip or two and then House would finish it when you went back on stage."

"Yeah, I didn't want to tell y'all cuz I figured that I would just miscarry anyway and since Greg and I disagreed about what to do, I knew you would argue with him and that wouldn't help matters any. So now you know and I don't have to hide it anymore and pretend I'm drinking when I'm not."

Ricky said: "Yeah, we'll buy ya ginger ale every night now."

Avi gave me a sad smile: "I'm thrilled to be getting another niece or a nephew. I'm happy for you, but I still wanna kill House for hurting you this way. How can he abandon you and his own baby?"

Softly, I said: "He just doesn't want to be a dad. We gotta stop talking about him or I'll just cry again. We just ended it on Thursday so it's still too fresh for me. I'm just going to have to make plans to be a single mom; that's all there is to it."

Avi kissed my cheek: "We're here for you, Elle. We'll do anything we can."

Ricky kissed my other cheek: "That's right. You won't be alone. You have us. Besides, every kid needs two gay uncles to give him hair styling and grooming tips."

Avi groaned: "Watch out, Elle. Ricky will be decorating the nursery with a sailor motif."

Ricky scoffed: "No way. Now, a _fireman_ theme might be nice if it's a boy."

"Oh, yeah, and what's if it's a girl?"

Ricky shrugged: "Girls think firemen are hot too."

Avi groaned: "That's not how you decorate a baby's room. You use bright colors and jungle animals or butterflies or something like that."

"Butterflies? And that's not gay? Yeah, whatever."

As they squabbled, I leaned against the back of the couch and closed my eyes. I dozed off to the comforting sounds of my two friends arguing over how to decorate the nursery for my unborn baby.


	48. Chapter 48

Chapter 48

**HOUSE**

_The following Thursday May 31,2007_

I ran out of coffee this morning. Not only did I no longer have the luxury of waking up to a freshly made pot of coffee, I no longer had someone who did my grocery shopping for me. The refrigerator was bare. There was no milk; the bagels were gone. I drained the last swallow of orange juice and tossed the container into the overflowing trashcan.

I missed her in so many ways. She took such good care of me. Now I was alone again since she decided that she wanted that blob of cells in her uterus more than she wanted me.

I decided to grab a cup at the coffee shop on the way in. I showered, dressed and stuffed my backpack with my essential items.

As I was pulling out my keys to lock the door, I realized that I still had her door key. I checked my watch; it was 10AM. Surely she would be at work now. I wondered if she had made any coffee. She had cut down to drinking only a half a cup when she learned about the parasite, so if she had made a pot, there could be some left.

I quietly unlocked her door and slipped in. The apartment was silent and felt empty. I tossed my backpack on her futon and limped into the kitchen.

There was a small coffee maker on the counter and the carafe was half full. I pulled out a mug and filled it up. Forty-five seconds in the microwave and I had a hot cup of coffee. I took a couple of satisfying sips while leaning against the counter. I started to feel better as the caffeine hit my brain.

I wanted to finish the coffee and rinse out the mug before I left so that she wouldn't know that I had been here. I wandered around the apartment as I drank. Everything was neat and tidy, as usual. The bed was made and that silly purple dog was sitting atop one of the bed pillows.

Then I saw something that surprised me. Wilson had taken a photo of us at Christmas time; I had been sitting on the couch and Elle was hugging me from behind, her cheek pressed up against mine. She had the most beautiful smile on her face. Elle had framed the photo; she kept it on the nightstand by the bed and it was still there. I picked up the photo to take a closer look, and when I moved it, something fell to the floor. I set the photo back down and bent to retrieve the item. It was the sunflower birthday card that I had given her.

I sat heavily on the bed. She was still keeping our photo and my love note right next to her bed. What did that mean? Was she missing me?

_Idiot._ Of course, she was. She didn't want this to end. I was the one who had pushed it to the brink. She'd still be sleeping in my bed and making me coffee if I hadn't kicked her out. I returned the items to their proper places on the nightstand and just stared at our photo for a few minutes. Despite the caffeine, I suddenly felt weary and lay down on the bed to rest. Her scent was on the pillow and I buried my nose in it for a moment, but it was more than I could bear. I grabbed the mug and headed back to the kitchen. I gulped the rest of the coffee, rinsed out the mug, and snatched up my backpack on the way to the door.

I needed a distraction to take my mind off of Elle. I wasn't desperate enough to spend time in the clinic yet, so I sent the ducklings off to look for a patient. Chase went to check out the NICU and Foreman and Cameron took the ER. I started perusing the case histories of the ICU patients, hoping to find something interesting.

I was concentrating on an ICU patient with a respiratory fungal infection when I heard my door open. I glanced up, hoping it was the kids but it turned out to be Wilson. I had been avoiding him all week, not ready to reveal the latest happenings in my life.

He flopped down in the chair: "Hey, where've you been? You haven't bugged me for lunch or anything else this entire week. And you bailed out on poker this week too."

"Been busy."

"With what? I know you don't have a patient. I ran into Chase and he told me that you sent them out to find one."

I shrugged and continued to read the patient's history. Turned out to be a run-of-the-mill Candida infection responding to fluconazole, so I moved on to another patient.

Wilson went on: "Have you guys seen the new Spiderman movie yet? Lisa and I thought we would see it this weekend. So I thought you two might want to come see it with us and have dinner."

"Naw, I don't so."

"Why not? It's supposed to be pretty good."

"Don't want to go."

He shrugged: "You want to see something else? Or just have dinner? We haven't been out with you guys in like a month."

I just shook my head without answering and tried to concentrate on reading my computer screen. Maybe he would take the hint that I was busy and go away.

He frowned: "You know I'll end up paying and you're turning down a free dinner. Something's going on. Did you two have a fight or something?"

"Something."

"What kind of something?"

I sighed inwardly. He wasn't going away. I might as well tell him; he would see Elle that afternoon regarding their pain patients and she would surely tell him then.

"We kinda broke up."

He exploded: "What? You broke up? What the hell did you do?"

"Why do you always think it's me who did something?"

"Cuz I know you and you can be a complete ass. She is so completely in love with you that I can't see her ending it, unless you did something horrible. Did you cheat on her? Did you screw one of your hookers?"

"NO! Goddamnit, it wasn't anything like that."

"Then what was it? Why would you throw away the best thing that has happened to you in years?"

I picked up my gray and red ball and started tossing it in the air so I wouldn't have to look at him. "She's pregnant. I don't want kids; I told her that but she refuses to have an abortion, so that's it."

He sat back in his chair with a stunned expression on his face. "That's it? That's IT? She's pregnant with your child and you've kicked her to the curb. Where the hell is your responsibility in all of this? I seem to recall from med school that it takes two to procreate."

"If she doesn't miscarry, I'll set her up with some child support, but I can't raise it."

"You think she is going to miscarry?"

I smirked: "SHE thinks she will because of her family history. Her mom had 6 pregnancies and only 1 live birth. So Elle doesn't want to abort what she thinks could be her only chance to have a family."

"And you can't see that point of view? She has no family; it's only natural that she would want one."

"I don't feel the need to procreate, if she wants to, that's her business."

Wilson shook his head: "So she's back across the hall in her own place, alone. You're going to watch her belly grow bigger with your child and not have anything to do with her? How will you be able to stand seeing her so close by and not want to be with her? You LOVE her!"

It had only been a week and I dreaded running into her now. Would it get easier or worse with time? Judging from my reaction when I sniffed her pillow, she was a long way from getting out of my system.

I shrugged: "Maybe she'll move. It's a small apartment. She'll probably want a bigger place."

He stood up: "So that's your answer? You hope she moves away so you don't have to look at her and feel guilty? Look, I know you have issues with your own dad."

I growled: "Don't go there."

He snarled: "I'll go wherever I fucking feel like going. Don't you see what you're doing? You think you'll be a crappy dad so you abandon the kid. What damage do you think THAT will do? The kid will grow up, knowing that his dad didn't want him from the start? _That_ will fuck him up."

"It's better than me personally inflicting the damage on him. And Elle will find someone else to play daddy for the kid. It'd be better if the kid didn't even know who I was. Maybe I can get her to leave my name off of the birth certificate. I'll offer her some extra child support if she does."

Wilson's face was red with rage. He leaned over my desk and jabbed his index finger at me: "You're an ass, House. You are going to regret this. Mark my words."

He wheeled around and marched out of my office, slamming the door as he exited.

_**WILSON**_

House's news nagged at me for the rest of the day. I felt horrible for Elle and what she must be going through. On Mondays and Thursdays, she usually came down to my office and brought me the files of the patients that she had seen that day. We would discuss any recommendations that she had and I would sign off on the charts. I decided I would go to her office today and save her the trip past House's office to get to mine.

Her last patient was scheduled at 4:00, so I headed up to her office at 4:25. As I got off the elevator, I saw a stout man leave her office. I didn't recognize him, so I figured it was one of Guskiewicz's patients.

I knocked on her door and she opened it right away.

She looked tired but she smiled when she saw me. "Hi. What are you doing here? I was just about to pop down to your office."

"I thought I would save you the trip."

She looked at me questioningly and opened the door wider so that I could enter. Once she had closed the door behind her, she said: "All of a sudden, you want to save me the trip to your office. Or is it that you want to spare me passing by _Greg's_ office?"

She tilted her head and gave me an intense look: "You know, don't you? Greg told you?"

I nodded.

She shook her head: "I'm actually surprised that he told you."

I took her arm and steered her towards the chair and then I sat down next to her. "I went to his office to invite you two on a double-date this weekend. He stalled and wouldn't really answer and then I got it out of him. I can't believe he is doing this. How are you holding up?"

She bit her lip. "As best as I can. I miss him terribly. For the first few days, I was just crying all the time, but it's getting a little better now."

"When did this happen?"

"Last Thursday. He found my bottle of prenatal vitamins and freaked out. I told him that if I didn't miscarry I wanted a healthy baby and I guess that hit him hard, that maybe I wouldn't miscarry and there might really be a baby. So he basically told me to decide between him and the baby."

"He told me about your family history."

"Really? I can't believe he told you all of that. That's why I can't have an abortion. Getting pregnant was an accident and maybe it happened for a reason. Maybe this is my one chance to have a family."

I squeezed her hand: "I agree. You shouldn't abort if you don't want to. House is being a total ass. He made his contribution, now he needs to own up to the responsibility."

She sadly shook her head: "He won't. He doesn't want to be a dad. He says he'll screw up the kid."

"You don't believe that, do you?"

"Of course not. I think he'd be determined not to repeat the mistakes that were inflicted on him. I think he'd be great. He just doesn't see that."

"You should squeeze him for a lot of child support. He makes good money, you know.

She gave me a wan smile: "We'll see. I'm not going through a long court battle unless I really need some financial help. I'll try to do it on my own."

"He said he would give you child support."

"He told you that?"

I nodded. I couldn't see the point of telling her the rest, that he would give her more if she left his name off the birth certificate. If he really meant that, he could tell her that himself.

"Humph." She seemed to ponder that for a moment and then said: "Well, we'll see what happens. See if I even make it to term and we'll go from there."

"If you need anything, just ask. You know that I'll be happy to help out."

"I do need something from you, Jimmy."

"Anything. What is it?"

"I need you to be his friend."

"What do you mean?"

"You left his office in a huff, right? He knows you're mad at him. You have to put this aside and be his friend. I have Avi, Ricky and the rest of my posse. He only has _you_ and he is going to need someone right now whether he will admit it or not. I know you don't agree with his decision, but I want you to be there for him. You're HIS friend first, you know what I mean."

I nodded in understanding: "When couples break up, you divide the friends. I've been divorced 3 times now; and I always get to keep House."

She pleaded: "We can still be friends. But you're _his_ friend. He needs you. Please be there for him. Please do this for me."

I nodded: "I'll do it for you. He's such an _ass_. He doesn't realize what he has done. You were so good for him."

She shook her head sadly: "It doesn't matter anymore."

"What are you going to do now?"

She shrugged: "Work. Go to my doctor appointments and keep playing at the club until my belly is too big to bounce around the stage. At some point, I guess I'll need to find a bigger apartment, but I was sorta waiting to see if I made it through the pregnancy or not. But it would probably be better if I moved anyway. It's going to be hard to get over Greg if I'm still living right across the hall from him. I guess, I thought if I gave him some space, maybe he would think about it some more and maybe he would change his mind. But if he told you that he would pay me child support, there's no chance that he will change his mind, is there?"

I didn't want her to give up hope, although I was sure that he wouldn't change his mind. "I don't know. You never know what goes through that brain of his. He might wake up next week and decide that he wants you back and having a baby would be OK."

Sadly, she said: "But you don't really think that. You've known him for a long time. He never married Stacy, did he? Did she want kids?"

I shook my head: "No, they never married, although she wanted to. She wanted to tie the knot, but I don't think she wanted kids; she was very career focused at the time that they were together."

Elle sighed: "And she was lucky enough to not get accidentally pregnant. Man, if I hadn't had that blood clot and needed to go off the pill, this would have never happened! I would have never gotten pregnant and we'd still be together."

Her lip trembled. She clamped her hand over her mouth as her eyes overflowed with tears. I pulled her chair closer to me, wrapped my arms around her and let her cry on my shoulder.

**Elle**

_Sat. June 2, 2007_

I had the whole weekend ahead of me with nothing to do. So I decided to call up Adam and Gen and borrow Audra. I knew she would cheer me up. It was hard to be sad around a silly giggly four-year-old. _Shrek 3_ had just been released and it seemed like a good way to spend the afternoon.

Adam and Gen were thrilled to have some time alone and quickly agreed.

I picked Audra up around 11AM and we headed to McDonald's for lunch. We spend 20 minutes on the playground first and then went inside to eat. She had chicken nuggets and I had a quarter-pounder; we shared a large order of fries. Then we caught the 1:15 matinee. I didn't think it wasn't nearly as good as the first _Shrek_, but it was still a decent distraction. Audra loved it, of course. After the movie, we headed over to the big playground near the university. We hit the swings for a while and then I ended up pushing a small group of kids on the little merry-go-round. They shrieked loudly as I spun them faster and faster. That bit of exercise wore me out and I rested on the bench and just watched, as Audra took several turns on the slide.

When she finally tired of the playground, we headed over to the mall to get some ice cream. I got a double scoop of chocolate while Audra had a kid-sized cone of cookies-n-cream. We sat on the bench, kicking our legs back and forth as we ate our cones and watched the crowds shopping in the mall. When we finished our cones and cleaned up, we strolled around the mall ourselves for a while.

It was almost 7:00 when I took her home. She was so pooped that she fell asleep in the car and Adam had to come out and carry her in. Adam and Gen thanked me profusely for baby-sitting her today, but it was no big deal. I had enjoyed the day and Audra had provided me with a good distraction.

As I drove away, I decided to have dinner at Satchel's. I didn't really want to be alone on Saturday night, and I could just sit at the bar and chat with Billy for a while. I was only a few blocks away when my cell phone rang. The caller ID revealed that it was Theresa.

I flipped the phone open: "Hey! You got ESP or something? I'm heading your way. Thought I would drop in for dinner."

"How far away are you?"

She sounded nervous.

"I'm just a couple of blocks away. Why? Is something wrong?"

"I'll tell you when you get here."

She disconnected and I just stared at the silent phone.

I parked and hurried inside. I could see Billy and Theresa arguing in hushed whispers at one end of the bar and I headed towards them. As soon as Theresa saw me, she said one more thing to Billy and came towards me. Billy shot me a very contrite look that just added to my confusion. Theresa grabbed my arm and pulled me into Billy's office.

I was really starting to get nervous. "What's wrong?"

Theresa nervously rubbed her hands together. "Don't be mad at Billy. He didn't mean it. You know how he tends to run on at the mouth."

"What are you talking about?"

"I need a drink before I tell you."

She reached into Billy's desk and pulled out his bottle of Wild Turkey. She took a quick gulp and then turned to face me.

"First off, I'm really sorry. Billy's really sorry too."

I was losing it. Would she ever tell me what was going on? "Just tell me what happened."

She gulped another shot and then said slowly. "Tony came by. He was having a drink at the bar with Billy and you know. He's asking what's new and all that. And Billy told him that you were pregnant."

My heart sank. "Oh my Gawd. How did he take it?"

"He seemed to take it OK. He seemed happy for you. But then he asked about House."

I clamped my hand over my mouth. "Oh, no, you didn't. Billy didn't. Please tell me you didn't tell him."

She nodded. "You know Billy can't lie for shit. He tried. He hemmed and hawed, but, of course, Tony got it out of him. He threw back his scotch and stormed out of here like a bat outta hell. I called you right away."

"Oh, Gawd, did you call House?"

She shook her head: "I thought I should tell you first."

"Oh Gawd, Theresa, Tony is gonna kill him."

I flew out of the bar. I dialed Greg's cell phone first and when it went to voice mail, I called the landline. I could only hope he was there and just not going to pick up as usual. I screamed into the answering machine, begging him to pick up and warning him that Tony was most likely on the way over and to get out of there. The machine cut me off before I could say anymore. I gunned the car down the street and just prayed that I would get there in time. As I drove, I dialed Greg's cell phone one more time. Maybe, just maybe, he was out, somewhere safe where Tony wouldn't find him until I could get to Tony first and talk him out of this.

**_HOUSE_**

The phone rang while I was in the bathroom. As usual, I ignored it. There was no one that I really wanted to talk to. I could hear a hysterical female's voice leaving a message and decided that there was no way that call was for me.

As I limped back into the living room, my cell phone rang. It was lying on the coffee table and I glanced at the caller ID. It was Elle. Could it have been her hysterical voice that I just heard on my machine? Curiosity overwhelmed everything else and I answered the phone.

Bluntly, I said: "House."

"Oh, Greg, I'm so glad I found you. Are you at the apartment?"

She sounded quite upset.

"Yeah, I'm home, why?"

"Get out of there. Go to the hospital or some place where you are surrounded by people. Tony just found out."

She left that statement hanging, but I knew just what she meant. Tony had just found out that I dumped her pregnant ass and was now gunning for me.

Harshly, I asked: "How the hell did he find out? Did you tell him, wanting some sympathy from your old boyfriend?"

She screamed: "NO! I didn't tell him. He got it out of Billy and Theresa called to warn me. She said he took off like a crazed man. You have got to get out of there."

Despite the growing feeling of dread, I just had to snark: "You think I should run from your ex? You think he is going to kill me or something?"

Her voice trembled as she spoke her next words. "Oh, no. He won't kill you. He will just make you wish you were dead. At the very least, he will break both of your kneecaps, but since I'm pregnant, and he has very strong feelings about that, I'm afraid that he will do even more. He'll probably break both of your arms and smash your fingers so badly that you will never play the piano again."

My mouth dropped open. I felt the cold knife of fear pierce my heart. My flight or fight reaction started to kick in and I started searching for my car keys.

"Greg. Please listen to me. Get the hell outta there."

"OK, OK. I'm just looking for my keys."

She pleaded: "Hurry. Please hurry."

Even while I frantically searched, I found that I was touched and surprised at the level of concern in her voice. I had kicked her to the curb and yet she still didn't want her ex to harm me. How could she still care so much for me after all I had done to her?

Finally I found them on the kitchen island. "Got 'em!"

I heard her breathe a sigh of relief: "Great! Get out of there now. I'll try to talk some sense into him and let you know when the coast is clear."

I turned and headed towards the door. "Oh, crap."

"What? What is it?"

I couldn't answer her. Someone was fiddling with my lock and as I stood there staring, the knob turned and the door slowly eased open. I had taken too long to find the keys.

I whispered into the phone: "Too late."

I snapped the phone shut. I didn't want Elle to hear me scream and beg for mercy.

**ELLE**

"_Too late."_

Those were the last words Greg said before the call ended.

I closed the phone and dropped it on the seat next to me. Tears welled in my eyes. I was so afraid for him. I wasn't going to get there fast enough to prevent Tony from harming him.

"Come on, come on," I pleaded to the traffic light. I banged my hand against the steering wheel. Finally the light changed and I stomped on the gas. It took me another 8 minutes to get to our building and park illegally in front of a fire hydrant. Greg's beater was in his usual spot; he hadn't gotten away in time. There was a dark sedan in my usual spot and I knew what organization owned that car.

I hurried up the walk and in the door. I tried Greg's door and it was locked. Tony would have had one of his goons pick the lock so that they could quietly enter and then lock the door behind them to lessen any possible interruptions. I was so glad that I still had Greg's key. I inserted it into the lock and opened the door.

**_HOUSE_**

I set the phone down on the kitchen counter. I quickly dry-swallowed 2 oxy's and set the bottle down beside the phone. I didn't know what Elle was planning to do or if it would be effective or not. I just knew, that whatever came next, it was going to hurt like hell.

I took a couple of steps into the living room. There was no back door and no means of escape. I watched as the door slowly swung open and two large goons, wearing Armani suits and carrying baseball bats entered my living room. They glanced around and flanked the door as Tony entered. He was impeccably dressed also in Armani. What was it with the mob and Armani? Did he give his fellow Italians a special discount for wearing his suits to hits?

I decided to take the bull by the horns. "Tony. How nice of you to drop in. And you brought some friends too. How about a drink? I've got a nice single malt scotch that I think you would like."

Tony snarled: "Cut the crap, House. You know why I'm here, you piece of shit. How dare you give her the boot when she is pregnant with your child? You should be thrilled that she's carrying your baby."

As he spoke, he slowly moved further into the living room. One of the goons closed the door and flipped the dead bolt. I hoped Elle still had her key or I was a goner.

I needed to stall but couldn't think of a thing to say that wouldn't enrage him further. "Tony, I'd make a crappy father. She's better off without me. The kid is better off without me for a father. I'll give her some generous child support and help her out financially."

He stepped closer and closer to me as he spoke: "You're damn right you're going to support her. You're gonna marry her and keep her child from being born a bastard. You're gonna take real good care of her so that she doesn't have to work after the baby's born. You're going to love her and treat her like a queen."

"Look, I'm really not the marrying type. I'm not good with commitment. I can't even keep a dog."

He stopped moving. "A _dog_? Are you comparing Elle to a _dog_?"

_Crap!_ I'm just making this worse. Extending my hands in front of me in a surrender gesture, I said: "No. No, I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying that I can't even keep a dog; how am I going to take care of Elle and a baby?"

"You should have thought of that before you fired your cannon into her. You played; now you gotta pay."

"And I told you that I was going to give her some generous child support."

His eyes were blazing with fury. He was clenching and unclenching his fists. "Are you telling me that you're not going to do the right thing and marry her?"

"I think that in the long run she would regret being married to me."

"She loves you, you sack of shit. Why, I don't fucking know, but she does. So I'm wondering what it will take to get you to change your mind."

He looked around the apartment for a moment and then walked around the back of the piano. He lifted my Gibson Flying V off of the wall and walked back towards me.

He stopped less than 3 feet away from me. It was a little too close for comfort. He hefted the guitar in his hands. "Nice guitar. I bet you paid a pretty penny for it. Ten grand?"

"Twelve."

"Really? Twelve grand for this piece of trash."

Suddenly he spun and slammed the guitar against the piano. I took a step back but couldn't move too far as one of the goons moved right behind me, preventing my escape. I had to witness up close and personal Tony's savage rage against my innocent guitar. He slammed it 4 or 5 times against my piano and when he was finished, the guitar was beyond repair and my piano had multiple gashes in the wood and a big dent on the top.

He dropped the pieces on the floor and brushed his hands together. "Humph. Twelve grand for this piece of garbage. You sure know how to waste money, don't you? You better plan on spending at least twice that to throw Elle the kind of wedding that she deserves."

For once, I hoped that silence might be the better retort.

Tony cupped his hand to his ear: "What's that? I can't hear you, House. How much are you planning on spending on a nice wedding for the mother of your child? And I expect a nice diamond ring on her finger too."

All I had to do was say that I would marry her and he would leave. Maybe he would punch me in the face, but if he knew I was going to marry her, he probably wouldn't do any permanent damage. Why was it so hard to me to get that lie to come out of my mouth?

Tony was rapidly losing what little patience that he had left.

"You know, I would hate for Elle to marry a cripple but my boys do need some batting practice. You think you have a bad limp now. Wilson'll be rolling you up the aisle in your wheelchair when my boys are finished with you."

He snapped his fingers and stepped back. The goon by the door walked around the left side of the couch. There was nowhere for me to go. I was trapped between the 2 behemoths. In unison, they raised their bats and I wondered which body part they would hit first.

The doorknob rattled and every head turned towards the noise. I hear the beautiful sound of a key sliding into the lock. The door opened and Elle walked into the room. Her eyes flitted across the room, taking in the entire scene. She kicked the door shut with her heel and marched right over to Tony.

Quietly and politely, Elle requested: "Send your boys outside, please."

Tony scowled at her: "What the hell for? We have business to take care of here."

I could tell by the way her eye was twitching that her temper was barely in check. Yet, she managed to speak in a calm voice: "And this business concerns me. And I need to talk to you before you conduct your business. And what I have to say, you are not going to want anyone else to hear, so again I ask you to, _please_, send your boys outside and hear me out."

His anger barely contained, he motioned his goons to step outside. They hesitantly moved towards the door, seemingly reluctant to leave their boss alone with a small pregnant woman and a crippled doctor.

He yelled angrily: "Go on. The sooner I hear this, the sooner we can get back to business."

They quickened their pace and stepped outside, closing the door behind them.

As soon as the door latched, Elle lit into Tony. "What the hell do you think you are doing? I told you to never lay a hand on Greg."

Tony exclaimed: "You're pregnant and he's thrown you on the trash heap! I'm just trying to talk some sense into him so he will do the right thing and marry you."

"You can't force him to do something that he doesn't want to do."

"Oh, yes I can. I convinced Charlie to leave town, didn't I?"

"Are you going to throw that in my face for the rest of my life? I was scared to death of him. You did a good thing for me by running him off. However, what you are doing now is NOT a good thing. You think you are saving my honor by getting Greg to marry me. There is no honor to save. Who cares if I'm pregnant and not married? I have no parents, no family. Who gives a shit?"

His face softened. "I do. I don't want you to be alone, especially now."

He glanced down at her belly. "How far along are you?"

"Twelve weeks."

"You've made it further than last time."

She shrugged: "Still doesn't mean that I'm going all the way."

"But you might. And if Asshole here doesn't marry you, how are you going to manage?"

"Lots of women raise babies without a husband. I have my friends. Avi and the gang will help me."

"I can't let him do this to you. He made this baby with you. He needs to step up and take responsibility."

"Tony, I'm not going to have a shotgun wedding. He doesn't want it and I can't force him to do what he doesn't want to do."

His face was a mixture of pain and confusion. His voice was so low that I barely heard him say: "How could he not want you?"

He stared at her for a few minutes and then gently laid his hand on her belly. He said something so softly that I couldn't hear him. Elle shook her head and whispered: "No, don't talk like that. We can't go back. All we can do is go forward."

He shook his head in disgust and his anger returned. "Well, if he's not going to marry you, then it won't matter if he can't walk down the aisle with you. Get out Elle. The boys and I are going to teach him a lesson."

"No, Tony, don't."

"Give me one good reason why not."

"Because I still love him and he is the father of my child. Whether he wants the baby or not, he's still the daddy and I don't want him hurt."

His voice dripping with venom: "How can you still love him after what he's done to you? He's treated you like a common tramp. He needs to be taught a lesson. You need to leave. I don't want you watching this in your delicate state."

He took her arm and tried to steer her towards the door, but she stood her ground.

"Tony, if you hurt Greg, I'll never speak to you again."

He hesitated for a moment and then shook his head. "Yes, you will. In a little while, you'll understand that I did the right thing for you and we'll be on speaking terms again."

"No, we won't cuz you'll hate me."

He gave her a patronizing smile: "Bella Ella, I could never hate you. Why would you even say such a thing?"

"Because if you hurt Greg, if you lay one finger on him, I'm going to go to Nancy and tell her that the reason why Greg and I broke up is because I'm pregnant with YOUR baby."

There was a stunned silence in the room. I was truly impressed with this little parlor trick that Elle had pulled out of her hat.

Tony sputtered: "But why would you do that? _Pffft._ She wouldn't believe you anyway. She knows I'm faithful to her."

Softly, Elle said: "She knows how you look at me. I've seen the hurt expression on her face when you call me Bella in front of her. It wouldn't take much to plant the seed of doubt in her mind. I can be very convincing."

In a faux emotional voice, Elle went on: _"Oh, Nancy, I'm so sorry to tell you this. I had an affair with your husband and now I'm pregnant with his baby. Greg has broken up with me because I'm pregnant with Tony's baby and I just don't know what I'm going to do. Can I move in with you? After all, my baby will be a half-sibling to your kids."_

Back in her normal voice, Elle went on: "What do you think Nancy will say? Will she let me move in?"

Tony looked like he wanted to strangle her. "You wouldn't."

"I will if you hurt Greg."

"How could you do this? How could you threaten to damage my marriage with a lie? For a man who knocked you up and now won't marry you? He is so not worth it."

"He is to me. Promise me that you won't hurt him and we will forget this little conversation took place. Oh, and you can send him a check for 12 grand for the guitar that you destroyed. Throw in a little extra to get the piano repaired."

If looks could kill, Elle would have imploded from Tony's gaze. He snarled: "When hell freezes over!"

He stalked to the door and yanked it open. He looked over his shoulder at Elle one last time: "You're crazy sticking up for him. He is going to just let you down. He won't even be grateful that you did this for him."

"That's not why I did it, Tony."

He shook his head in confusion. Jerking his thumb towards the outer door, he shouted at his goons: "Let's get outta here."

He slammed my apartment door shut and then the outer door banged. It was finally quiet except for the loud beating of my heart.

Now that the adrenalin rush was over, my legs started to wobble. I managed to make it to the couch before collapsing. I buried my face in my hands. I couldn't look at her. She has just defended me at no small cost to herself and I still couldn't bring myself to accept her pregnancy and take her back into my life. How could she still love me so much after I had hurt her so badly?

I felt her hand brush against my hair. I wanted to lean into her touch, her comfort, but if I did, I knew that I would never be able to let her go again.

I heard her soft voice saying: "Are you OK?"

I simply nodded in response.

"I'm sorry about all this, Greg. I should have gone to Tony myself and told him. I just didn't think he would find out so quickly."

"Or react so badly."

"No, I knew he would react badly. I just should have gotten to him first."

I raised my head and looked at her: "This isn't your fault. None of this is your fault."

"Thank you for saying that. I'm sorry about your guitar."

"Better my guitar than my kneecaps."

Her voice trembled as she went on: "He would have really fucked you up."

"He hates me."

"He has problems with anyone who doesn't live up to his code of honor. He still wants to hurt David for dumping me after I got raped."

I flinched. What I had done to her was just as bad as what David had done, if not worse, because there was another life involved. I paused for a moment and then asked: "Why did you do it? You've risked your friendship with your oldest pal. Why did you stick your neck out for me?"

She tried for humor: "Can't let anything happen to my baby daddy."

I cocked my head, raised one eyebrow and gave her a look that said: 'try again'.

Quietly, she said: "You know why."

I continued to stare at her.

She bit her lip. I could see the tears welling in her eyes. "You're going to make me say it, aren't you? I did it because I love you. No matter what happens between us, I don't want anything bad to happen to you."

"How can you possibly still love me after what I did to you?"

She continued to stroke my hair: "Love is a feeling; it doesn't just go away because the other person acts in a way that you don't like. If that were the case, we would have had problems a long time ago cuz there are times when you can be a real ass. But then, the rest of the time, you are sweet and loving and wonderful." Her voice faded away to a tremulous whisper by that last word.

"I would still make a crappy dad."

"I don't think so. I still have faith in you. And I still love you."

Tears were starting to form in my own eyes. I kept my head down so that she couldn't see them.

My voice croaked as I said: "I can't do it, Elle. I just can't."

I almost flinched when I felt her lips kiss the top of my head. She whispered in my ear: "I know you can. You just have to find the faith within yourself. You know where to find me if you want me."

I listened to her footsteps walk away from me and then my door opened and softly closed. She was gone.

Now that I was alone, I allowed a couple of tears to fall. How could she believe in me like this? I had done nothing to earn her love. As painful as it was to admit, even to myself, her pregnancy was mostly my fault. I had been drunk; I hadn't put on a condom. I was sure that I had pulled out in time and as a doctor I should have known how risky that behavior was. I berated her about the dates so much that she didn't check when we returned home because she wanted to believe in me so badly. And I had told her not to worry, that we would face this together. Of all the things that I had done, that one made me feel like the biggest shit of all.

She had stood up to her mobster ex-boyfriend for me while I stood silently by and let her defend my terrible behavior. Because of me, she had probably just lost her oldest friend and an important ally.

I had let her down. I was so unworthy of her love. She deserved so much better and I hoped that she would find someone who would treat her the way she deserved and would get her the love that I was incapable of giving.

My failure at maintaining our relationship ate at my gut until I thought I would just explode. My ruined guitar, still lying on the floor, was a physical representation of our lives, completely in pieces, and it was all my fault.

I needed a distraction. So I did the only thing I could think of to ease my pain. I swallowed 2 more oxy's and headed out to the nearest bar to drown my sorrows.


	49. Chapter 49

Chapter 49

**_HOUSE_**

The brunette with the big brown eyes and nice rack was a distraction too. She sat down next to me when I was on my second scotch. We made bar chitchat and I bought her a Cosmo. Twenty minutes later I bought another round. Next thing I knew, her tongue was licking my ear as she whispered her prices into it. I agreed to an hour's distraction for 200 bucks and we took a cab back to my place.

As soon as we stepped into the foyer, I knew that this was a big mistake. It was past midnight and I would have never thought that we would run into Elle at this time of night. But there she was, returning from the laundry room with a basket full of clothes. Maybe she had been unable to sleep after that whole scene with Tony and decided to catch up on her laundry. She used to clean the apartment whenever she felt anxious, working off some of that nervous energy. Whatever the reason, here we were, face to face, and me with a hooker.

There was no reason for me to feel ashamed. We were finished, kaput; the relationship was over. Yet the pained look on her face cut me to the core. Five hours earlier, she had saved my life and told me that she loved me. And how was I paying her back? By flaunting a hooker in front of her face. Granted, I didn't do it on purpose; after all I never thought she would be awake at this hour, but here we were. I thought if I listened carefully enough that I would hear the breaking of her heart.

Elle had stopped when she saw us and was starring at us with a deer-in-the-headlights kind of look. My companion noticed and commented: "Why is she staring at us? What the hell is her problem?"

I couldn't look at Elle. I turned away and fumbled with my keys: "We used to be involved."

She smirked: "You were involved with her? What, were you desperate? Skinny little ass, no tits and so pathetic that she's spending her Saturday night doing laundry."

I snarled: "Shut the fuck up. Don't talk to her that way. Besides she has beautiful tits."

"Oh, yeah, if that's true, why did you break up?"

Before I could say a word, Elle answered in a harsh tone: "I gave him herpes and he just can't forgive me for it. Be sure and use a condom when you fuck him."

She stormed into her apartment and slammed the door. I had to stifle a smile. Elle had attitude. It was one of the things that I loved about her.

Candi or Brandi or whatever her name was sighed. "Do you really have herpes?"

"Naw, she's lying. She's just pissed cuz I broke up with her. She wanted to get married and I didn't want to be tied down."

"Well, honey, you can tie _me_ up if you want, but it will cost you extra."

I finally got the key in the door. As I opened the door and motioned her in, I said: "I'll have to check my wallet."

**_ELLE_**

I threw the basket of clothes on top of the coffee table and hurried into the bedroom. I closed the door and crawled under the covers. Only when I had my head buried under the pillow, did I allow myself to start crying. I didn't expect him to come waltzing back into my arms after what happened today, but then again, I didn't expect him to fall into someone else's either.

I could smell the alcohol and the cigarette smoke. Most likely he had picked her up in some bar. She looked like a cheap slut or maybe even a hooker. Maybe Greg was reverting back to his old habits.

I cried for a little while and then sat up and blew my nose. It was time that I faced the truth. We were over. I could understand his waffling about the baby and I was certainly willing to give him some space while he pondered if he wanted to be involved or not. But I couldn't handle this. There was no way I could continue to live across the hall from Greg and watch him parade bimbos into his bed. It was obvious that he no longer loved me. He had moved on and it was time for me to do the same.

I got up and went back into the living room to retrieve the laundry basket. As I folded the clothes and put them away, I planned my Sunday. I'd get the Sunday paper and call Avi and Ricky to go out for brunch. It was time to scan the real estate ads for a new apartment and move away from 221 Baker Street.

**_HOUSE_**

Seeing Elle had put a damper on my desire. Candi tried to raise the dead, but it seemed to be a lost cause. She put on a very sensual strip tease, revealing a lovely set of tits, but there was nary a twitch. She stroked me and finally took me into her mouth. I closed my eyes and thought of Elle on Christmas Eve and the way that her Santa hat had waggled as she blew me. That memory got a rise out of me and Candi started sucking in earnest. I kept my eyes shut and after a few more minutes of reminiscing, I blew my wad. She dressed, grabbed the money out of my hand and split.

I tugged my jeans up enough to stagger down the hall. I stripped and fell into my big empty bed. I didn't feel satisfied after that encounter; I just felt empty. I hugged the extra pillow to my chest and eventually fell asleep.

I was making coffee the next morning when the phone rang. As usual, I let the machine pick it up.

"Greg, honey, it's Mom. I haven't heard from you in a few weeks and I hope everything is OK. I just wanted to remind you that Dad and I are leaving for Europe this week and we'll be gone for 3 weeks. We are hoping to stop and see you on the way back. We have a long layover in Newark with our return flights. Say hello to Elle for me and I hope to see you both when we get back. Love you. Bye, now."

I groaned. Boy, was I glad that I hadn't picked up that call. What was I going to say to Mom? _"Hi Mom. No, not much new, except that Elle is pregnant with my child and your grandchild. Oh, and by the way, I've dumped her because I don't think I can be a good dad, cuz I had such a shining example of a fine loving father when I was growing up. But other than that, everything is great, Mom."_

How was I going to explain this to Mom? It would kill her to know that she had a grandchild on the way and not only had I not told her about it, but that I had pushed Elle and that child out of my life. And I didn't even want to think about what Dad would have to say about it. After he berated me for not keeping it in my pants, the lecture would involve duty and responsibility. Wonder if he would mention how he knocked Mom up before they got married and how _he_ did the right thing by putting a ring on her finger?

I blew out a long breath as I poured my first cup of coffee. At least I had 3 weeks to figure out what I was going to say, because right now, I had absolutely no ideas.

**_ELLE_**

Armed with the Sunday paper, I met Avi and Ricky for brunch and told them what had happened. Avi was quite angry, but he finally settled down with a lot of encouragement from Ricky. They agreed to help me find another apartment and move. After talking it over with the boys, I decided to just get another one bedroom apartment for now. A one-bedroom place would be cheaper and the baby really wouldn't need her own room for the first year anyway. And just in case I did miscarry, I wouldn't have that second empty bedroom as a reminder of my failure. I would look for a place with a large bedroom and it would be fine for my bed and a crib. After the first year, I could get a bigger place. We went through the ads and circled the best prospects for me to call later in the week.

My OB appointment was at 4:15 on Monday and I finished with my last patient just in time. I flew down to Wilson's office, dumped the charts on his desk and hurried off to make my appointment. I was glad that Jimmy wasn't in his office when I left the charts; he would probably ask me about my weekend and I was afraid I'd start to cry if I told him what had happened. I resolved to try not to talk about Greg to Jimmy and to keep things on a professional level as much as possible.

But when Kelly asked me how I was feeling, apparently I had no qualms about bursting into tears and telling her the whole sad story. She held my hand while I cried and sympathized with me. The whole hospital thought of Greg as a complete jerk, so I guess she wasn't surprised by what had happened.

Once I got my tears under control, she proceeded to give me my exam.

After examining me, she said: "Everything looks great. You're in your 13th week now and out of the first trimester danger zone. Are you still worried that you're going to miscarry?"

I nodded: "Yes. My Mom lost one in the 6th or 7th month and I'm afraid that will happen to me."

Tears came to my eyes and I looked away from her. "After losing Greg, I don't know if I could handle losing the baby too."

Kelly squeezed my hand and said: "You know it's a little early to do this, but why don't we take your first ultrasound today? That might reassure you that everything is going OK. Would you like to see your baby?"

"Oh, yes! I'd love that."

While Kelly prepared the machine and squirted the gel on my belly, she explained that it was too early to tell the sex, but I could get my first look at my baby. I watched the screen, fascinated as she moved the wand over my belly. There she was and she looked beautiful. I kept thinking of the baby as a girl for some reason. I mentioned that to Kelly and she smiled and reminded me not to be too disappointed in case 'she' grew a penis.

I laughed and said: "As long as the baby is healthy, it will be fine either way."

Kelly pointed out the important features of development that could be seen this early, and printed a picture for me to keep.

As she wiped the gel off my belly, she said: "Everything looks good so far. Try not to worry and just do everything you can to stay healthy. Eat right, take your vitamins and get lots of rest."

I promised to try to reduce my worrying and happily took my new photo home where I stuck it on the refrigerator with a little sunflower magnet. I liked the idea of seeing my baby's picture every time I walked into the kitchen.

**_HOUSE_**

I had a desperate need for coffee when I woke up Monday morning, but I still had not made it to the grocery store to restock. Since it was after 9AM and I figured Elle would be at work, I chanced it again to go over to her place for a cup of coffee. This time, I took my own mug. That way, I could just fill it and leave, sipping it at my leisure in my apartment. On my way out of the door with a hot cup of coffee, I noticed the newspaper on the coffee table. It was open to a page of the classifieds and several ads had been circled with a black pen. I picked up the page to see what she was looking for.

Apartments. All the ads that were circled were for one-bedroom apartments. She really was planning on moving away. My heart sank. I should have been glad, yet a part of me really didn't want her to go. I wondered if seeing me with the hooker had pushed her over the edge into making the decision to move. Judging from the look on her face Saturday night that must have really hurt her.

I scanned the ads for a few minutes and wondered why she wasn't looking for a two-bedroom apartment for her impending addition. Surely she would need more space to accommodate a crib and all the other things you had to buy for a baby. She was probably worried about money. Damn, I suppose I really need to talk to her about child support. It would probably be better if we came to an agreement about it instead of fighting through lawyers and racking up big legal fees. As I set the paper back down on the coffee table, I decided to give her a few days to cool off and then I'd approach her about some financial arrangements.

I took the coffee back to my place and finished the mug before heading off to work.

Wilson and I were just heading out to lunch when a delivery guy showed up with a package for me. I signed for it and took it over to my desk. I frowned as I examined it. There was no return address on it and I wasn't expecting anything.

Wilson nudged me: "Aren't you going to open it?"

I wasn't sure I wanted to, but finally curiosity got the better of me and I slit the box open with my knife.

The smell hit us as soon as I lifted the lid. Inside the box, nestled in some blue tissue paper, was a dead rat.

Wilson held his nose against the stench: "Oh my Gawd, who the hell did you piss off?"

I quickly started to close the flaps on the box but Wilson stopped me. "Wait, there's a card."

Sure enough, there was a card stuck between the box and the tissue paper. Thankfully it was not actually touching the dead rat. I pulled it out and then quickly sealed the box again.

While I was containing the smell, Wilson had opened the envelope and pulled the card out. He read it and then silently handed it to me, his face a mask of concern.

I read the card: _"She said not to lay a finger on you. She didn't say I couldn't send you reminders of what a rat you are for not marrying your pregnant girlfriend." _

Naturally there was no signature, but I didn't need one to know that it was from Tony.

Wilson was staring at me with his hands on his hips. "OK. Wanna tell me what this is all about?"

"Not really, but I don't suppose you will let me get away with that."

"Not a chance. Spill it."

"Let's dump this box and get out of here first."

I stuck the card in my shirt pocket and picked up the box. We headed down to the basement and tossed it in the incinerator. Mercifully, Wilson held his tongue as we walked over to the taco stand, placed our order and then sat down to eat. I managed to wolf down half of my burrito before he said: "OK. What the hell was that all about?"

I swallowed, took a big gulp of my Coke and exhaled: "Tony found out."

His eyes grew wide: "Oh shit."

I nodded: "He came over on Saturday night with 2 goons packing baseball bats to persuade me that marrying Elle was the honorable thing to do. When I didn't immediately agree, he smashed my Flying V into splinters. Fortunately Elle showed up before he could do the same thing to my skull."

"Holy crap, you pissed off a mobster! You're lucky that you are not in the East River wearing cement sneakers right now."

I scowled: "He doesn't want me dead. He wants me to either marry her or suffer his consequences. When he tried to shove Elle out of the room to teach me my lesson, she threatened HIM. Told him that if he laid a hand on me, she would go to HIS wife and tell her that she was knocked up with HIS baby. That really pissed him off. He didn't verbally agree to her terms, but he did leave without inflicting any further damage on me or my stuff. I guess this little present is his way of getting back at me without causing Elle to invoke her threat on his marriage."

He shook his head: "So she protected you from getting your ass kicked? And what happened after Tony left?"

I shook my head and stared off in the distance. I didn't want to tell him the rest.

Wilson narrowed his eyes: "So I guess I can assume that you didn't make up?"

I snorted: "Not hardly. She apologized to ME for Tony's behavior. And she told me that she still loved me and that I knew where to find her if I wanted her back."

"And what did you do?"

"What do you think I did? I went out, got drunk and found a hooker."

His mouth fell open: "Oh, you didn't. Tell me that you didn't bring the hooker back to your place."

I merely looked at him.

He groaned: "Elle saw you, didn't she?"

I nodded. "It's over. It's really over now. She's already looking for a new apartment."

"And how do you know that? She told you?"

"Naw, we haven't spoken. I saw the newspaper at her place this morning when I went over to grab a cup of coffee. She makes more than she drinks these days so there's always some leftover."

He gave me a disgusted look: "So you sneak over after she leaves for work and get yourself a cup? You enter her apartment uninvited and steal her coffee?"

"Hey, it's not like she's gonna drink it. She's just going to pour it down the drain when she washes out the pot."

He stood up quickly, gathering his trash as he spoke. "You are a real piece of work. You two are great together, she loves you and you toss her aside just because you think you can't handle becoming a dad. Most people are nervous about becoming parents. It is perfectly normal to be frightened of the enormous task of raising a child. But you have taken the coward's path, despite her obvious devotion to you, despite her standing up to the mob for you, you're still going to continue on your own miserable road, ALONE, and give up your chance for happiness with her. You're an idiot if you let her go, House."

I couldn't answer him. I pushed the remnants my food aside; my appetite suddenly had vanished.

Wilson leaned over the table, his fists supporting his upper body. "Go to her. Apologize. It was one little indiscretion after having your life threatened by a mobster. She'll forgive you. She'll take you back, but I think you need to act quickly before you lose your window of opportunity. She won't wait forever for you to make up your mind."

Images of Elle poured into my mind. I could see her standing at the stove cooking dinner for me and then I saw her laughing as she sat next to me on the sofa, while we watched TV together. I watched the look of ecstasy of her face as I made her come. I observed her naked body on top of me as we made love. Then her flat belly morphed into the beach ball shape of a pregnant woman. She still looked as beautiful as ever, but I was suddenly cold with fear. Could I do it? Could I step up to the plate and be a decent dad? Should I take the chance and hope that I didn't scar the kid for life with a raised hand or harsh words? What if I lost my temper? Would I lash out or would I be able to keep my cool?

Wilson had been waiting quite a while for my answer. All I could do was stare at him; I couldn't speak.

He slapped me on the shoulder: "Just think about it. Think long and hard about what you're losing and then go to her."

He turned and walked back across the street to the hospital. I watched him for a moment, and then I picked up the rest of my food and threw it in the trash. I had so many conflicting thoughts going through my mind that I decided I needed a distraction from them. I limped into the clinic, picked up a chart and called out the patient's name.

_Tuesday June 5, 2007_

_**ELLE**_

I was just leaving work when my cell phone rang. The caller ID revealed that it was Bill calling from his office. I took a deep breath, readying myself for bad news and flipped open the phone.

"Hi Bill."

"Hey, Elle. Where are you now?"

"I'm just leaving work. Why? What's up?"

"Can you swing by my office? I have some news and I'd like to give it to you in person."

"Do I need to call Avi to come over and be with me?"

He laughed: "You can if you want to, but this isn't bad news. It's not going to upset you. But call anyone you want. I'll be here waiting for you."

I closed the phone and considered his words as I continued towards my car. He has news and it's not going to upset me. It was only 4:30 and I knew Avi would still be at work. I decided to chance it and hear the news alone.

As soon as I arrived, Bill's secretary escorted me into his office. I didn't have to worry about hearing the news alone because Tony was in Bill's office. I was a little taken aback at his presence. We had not spoken since that evening at House's apartment where we parted with bitter words between us. But Tony and Bill were best friends and I knew that whenever Bill had news for me, he automatically called Tony too.

Both men stood up as I walked into the room. As soon as we made eye contact, Bill grinned broadly.

"Elle. Come on in and have a seat. You are about to become one happy woman."

I glanced nervously between the two men: "Hi Bill. Hey, Tony."

Tony walked over to me and kissed me on both cheeks. "Bella, your life is about to get so much better. Come, sit down."

Tony pulled out a chair for me and motioned me to sit down.

He was acting as if there had been no harsh words between us. I was grateful for that. I sat in the designated chair and said: "Thank you, Tony."

The two men sat down and Bill pulled out a file on his desk. "The announcement will be made public tomorrow. PMMC decided that they do not want any more negative publicity about your lawsuit and they decided to settle. The decision is final."

I was a little slow on the uptake: "Settle? They are going to settle my lawsuit?"

He nodded happily. "You won, Elle. Five million bucks, babe. And because you're family, I'm only taking 10 percent. So there will be 4.5 million wired to your account by Friday."

In a hushed voice I said: "I won? We don't have to go to trial?"

Bill shook his head: "Nope. It's a done deal. You just need to sign these papers accepting the offer and it's finito."

I was stunned. It was over. That whole horrible period of my life was over.

Tony took my hand. "Elle, you OK? You're awfully quiet for a woman who just came into a ton of money."

I blew out a big puff of air. "I'm fine, Tony. I'm really fine. I guess I'm just in shock. Wow. They settled. I can't believe it."

Tony squeezed my hand: "Now you don't have to worry about money any more, especially with the baby on the way."

I grinned: "No, I don't. I'll be OK. We'll be OK. Gimme a pen, Bill. Let's get these papers signed."

He passed a huge stack of papers to me and I signed at every line that he indicated.

When the signing was finally finished, Bill stacked the papers neatly. Then he looked at me and said: "Now let me give you a little bit of advice. There will be people coming after you trying to 'invest' your money for you. Don't listen to them. Be conservative with this cash. Buy a house. Set up a trust fund for the baby. I'll help you with that. And you need to designate guardians for the baby in case, god forbid, something happens to you. Since you have no blood relations to care for the baby, you need to put it in writing who will be the guardians."

I nodded slowly: "You're right. I wouldn't want my child to end up in foster care if something happened to me."

Tony shook his head: "That won't happen, Bella. We'll take care of your child, even if the father isn't willing to step up to the plate."

At least he hadn't referred to Greg as 'asshole father' this time. I smiled at him: "Thank you Tony. I appreciate that. But Bill is right. I need to put it down in writing for legal purposes so there is no confusion if something happens. I'll work on that, Bill, and get back to you."

I was walking on air when I left the office. I still couldn't believe that I was getting that much money. I would be in great shape financially now. I wouldn't have to worry about taking time off from work after the baby was born. I could set up a college fund for the baby. I could do just about anything. My mind was awhirl and I needed grounding, so I headed to my car and drove straight to Avi's place.

As expected, the guys were delighted for me. We called the rest of the gang and told all of them the good news too. Gen let out a squeal of delight that I'm sure was heard all the way to Philadelphia.

After all the calls were made, we ordered pizza for dinner. As we tucked in to eat, Ricky suddenly piped up: "Hey Elle. You said you wanted to move. Well, instead of renting another apartment, you could afford to buy a house now."

I nodded: "Yeah, I know. Bill said the same thing. He told me to buy a house and set up a trust fund for the baby. Oh, and I need to designate guardians for the baby in case anything happens to me. So I was wondering."

I let that thought hang in the air for a moment, but they didn't get the hint.

Avi asked: "What were you wondering?"

"Would you guys like that job?"

Avi dropped his slice of pizza: "Us? You would want us to be the guardians?"

I shrugged casually: "Who else? You're my first choice. I mean, I have to pick back-ups too, just in case, but yeah, I'd like you two to raise my child if I couldn't."

They both looked stunned.

Maybe this wasn't something that they wanted. I quickly backpedaled: "But it's a big decision and you should talk about it. Just let me know. I was going to ask Adam and Gen too."

They looked at each other for a moment and Ricky said slowly: "We don't have to think about it, do we?"

Avi shook his head: "No, babe, we don't."

Then they turned to face me and Avi went on: "We are honored that you would pick us and we accept the job if god forbids, anything happens, which it damn well better not."

Ricky went on: "Really, Elle, we're touched that you would want us for the job."

I shrugged: "Hey, you were the ones who said every child needs 2 gay uncles to teach 'em stuff."

I headed for home after we finished eating. I was tired from my long day and wanted to just chill out in front of the TV. I cleaned up my few dishes in the kitchen first and then settled on the futon. The real estate section was still on the coffee table. I picked it up and turned to the 'For Sale-Houses' section. I saw a couple that looked interesting, so I grabbed a red magic marker and started circling those ads. Then I flipped the page and found myself on the 'multi-family homes' listings page. My mouth fell open as I read an ad for a two-family home on Harrison Street for $525,000. Yesterday, that would have seemed like an outrageous sum to me and yet today, with my newfound fortune, it seemed quite reasonable. I could rent the other half and have a source of income. Then a light bulb clicked on in my mind. Instead of renting it out, Avi and Ricky could live in the other half. That would be so great to have them close especially once the baby arrives. We could be a real family and yet still have our private space to retreat to when togetherness got too much. I wondered if they would like the idea or not. Glancing at the clock, I decided that I would ask them tomorrow. I circled the ad with a huge red circle and headed off to bed.

_Wednesday June 6, 2007_

_** HOUSE**_

I was shopping on-line for a new guitar when a grim-faced Wilson strode into my office. Before I could open my mouth to make a snarky remark, he jumped right in: "Have you seen today's paper?"

I shook my head: "No. Why? You seem upset. They find a cure for cancer and now you're out of work?"

He tossed the paper on my desk: "Funny, House."

I glanced at the front-page headline: _"PMMC settles lawsuit."_ It went on to say that PMMC had decided to settle the harassment lawsuit filed by Arielle Kaplan for harassment and unlawful termination.

I continued to read the article. Then my eyebrows went up: "Five million bucks?"

I wasn't aware that I had said that out loud. Wilson nodded: "Not bad, huh? But she deserves it after all the crap they put her through."

He was right. She did deserve it. I was happy for her; it was good for her to get this settlement and I hoped that she would finally be able to put this horrible episode of her life behind her. I just didn't want Wilson to see my true feelings.

I slapped the paper down on the desk. "This is great. She's rolling in the dough. I guess Ms New Millionaire won't be coming after me for child support now that she's flush."

Wilson's face got red: "Is that all you can think about? How this will affect YOU?"

I shrugged and tried to appear nonchalant: "Well, she doesn't need my money now, does she? She has plenty of her own."

"She could still sue you for child support."

I shook my head. Pensively I said: "She won't. She doesn't need any financial help now, and if I don't offer, she won't push the issue."

Wilson's tone softened: "You could still offer."

I stood up and grabbed my cane: "What would be the point? She doesn't need me now."

As I hurried to the door, he called out to me: "She may not need you, but I bet she still wants you."

I doubted that was still true after being seen with Candi/Brandi this weekend.

I smirked: "The girl's a millionaire now. She's not going to settle for an aging, crippled drug addict any more. She'll find some young stud to play daddy for her kid."

I tried to make a quick exit, but he managed to get in one more line before I made my escape: "It's _your_ kid too, you ass."

**_ELLE_**

I called Avi and Ricky when I got home to tell them about the house. They were enthusiastic about the idea, so I e-mailed the agent to make an appointment to see it.

I made a list of all the things I needed to do in the near future, not the least of which was asking a few other people if they wanted to be back-up guardians for my child. Avi and Ricky were at the top of the list, but I also wanted to ask Adam and Gen if they would step in if Avi and Ricky were not able to. I pondered if I should have a third and if so, whom should I ask?

Billy and Theresa were a possibility, but I really wanted the baby to be raised Jewish. I wanted her to know her heritage, so that would leave them out. Tony and Nancy were out for that same reason and also because it would just be too weird for them to raise my child.

Then I thought of another couple who were Jewish. Granted they hadn't been a couple for very long, but they showed signs of going the distance. And if they didn't make it together, perhaps one of them would be willing to do the job alone. I added Lisa Cuddy and Jimmy Wilson to the list with a question mark next to their names.

_Thursday June 7, 2007_

**_HOUSE _**

I still hadn't bought coffee. I really needed to get my act together before my back-up coffee source moved away. But since she was still here, I decided to make another run for more. As I unlocked her door, I wondered how much longer she would be here before she found a new place. She certainly had enough money now to move anywhere she wanted. When I entered her place, I noticed that the newspaper was still on the coffee table; only this time it had a big red circle around one of the ads. I momentarily ignored while I went for my caffeine fix.

As I poured the coffee into my mug, I glanced around the kitchen and noticed something that hadn't been there on Monday. Stuck to the refrigerator with a sunflower magnet, was an ultrasound photo. I set down the coffee pot and limped over to the fridge. The photographed image looked bigger in the picture, but I knew it was just a tiny little peanut weighing only about an ounce. I took the photo off the fridge for a closer look. I'd seen thousands of ultrasound photos, but somehow this was different. This was Elle's kid. This was our baby. We made this. I felt a tug. I didn't want that feeling, but it was there. I tried to will it away, but it wouldn't leave.

I tried to rationalize my feelings. This was just a normal biological response to seeing a photo of your progeny. It still didn't mean that I could be a decent dad. I found myself staring intently at it, wishing I had my reading glasses. Everything looked good as far as I could tell, although I would have preferred to see the larger image on the ultrasound screen.

I mentally slapped myself. What was I thinking? Why did I want to see it?

The voice inside my head said: _"Cuz it's your kid, you ass."_

I answered that voice back: "Yeah, so what? It was an accident; I didn't want it to happen."

But it had, and I was staring at proof positive of what we had created.

This was ridiculous. I was turning into a pathetic pile of goo staring at a grainy black and white photo of a peanut sized human parasite. I grabbed my coffee and stalked into the living room. Spying the newspaper again, I picked it up to see what was so important that she had circled it in red.

It was an ad for a two-family home. Why was she looking at that type of ad? Who was going to live in the other side?

I scanned the room looking for more clues. There was a pile of papers on the dining room table so I went over there next.

There were a bunch of legal papers and then I spotted a to-do list and quickly scanned it. Among the items listed were: buy a house, set up a trust fund and decide on guardians for the baby. Next to the item about guardians there was an arrow pointing to a list of names. Avi and Ricky headed the list which didn't surprise me, neither did Adam and Gen's names underneath theirs. But I felt an ache at the next 2 names. Cuddy and Wilson? She couldn't be serious. Elle would ask _them_ to be the guardians for her child. She would ask Wilson to raise _my_ kid? OK, there was a question mark next to their names, maybe she hadn't asked them yet. Maybe there was still time. There was no way Wilson was going to raise my kid.

I paused; why was I getting riled about this? Elle is just making a contingency plan in case something happens to her. She obviously doesn't want her kid to end up in foster care like she had. Wilson is not going to get the job unless something happens to Elle and everyone else on that list.

So why did I feel a pang in my heart that my name wasn't on the list. She hadn't thought to ask me to be a backup.

The voice in my head spoke up again: _"Of course not, you ass. You've made it quite clear how you feel about the kid; oh pardon me, _the parasite_. Why the hell would she ask you? You two are finished, kaput, the relationship is over."_

Why would she, indeed? There was no reason for her to do so. I set the paper back down on the table and turned away.

This was my own damn fault. She had left the door open for me to come back, and then I show up drunk, with a hooker. It was only reasonable for her to assume that I didn't want her anymore. So she closed the door and decided to move on. Who could blame her?

Finally I admitted the truth to myself: I had royally fucked up. I missed her horribly and wanted her back. Despite the fact that there was an ankle-biter growing in her uterus, I loved her and wanted her back. I still thought I would be a crappy father but she said she had faith in me. Maybe I wouldn't be so bad after all. Maybe Wilson was right; maybe everyone is scared when they are about to become parents for the first time.

I tapped my cane against the floor and pondered if I still had a chance with Elle. Suddenly a question rose in my mind and I hurried into the bedroom to see the answer.

The photo and the card were still in the same place on her night table. I breathed a sigh of relief; she hadn't thrown them away. Perhaps I had a chance after all. If Elle really considered us finished, she would have packed those items away or tossed them in the trash and not left them out in plain sight, next to her bed. I picked up the card and read my words again. Elle was my home and I wanted to be home once more. I was afraid, afraid that she wouldn't take me back, and afraid that I would screw it up again if she did. But I had to take the chance.

I took out my phone and sent Elle a text message: "Need to talk. TTT?"

I wondered if she would remember that little code from the last time I screwed up. I had to hope that she did and that she would respond favorably.

Elle had faith in me and told me that I just needed to find the faith within myself. If she was willing to give me another chance, I was willing to try. I carefully tucked the ultrasound photo inside my shirt pocket and hurried off to the hospital.

**_ELLE_**

My phone signaled a new text message. I was surprised to see that it was from Greg. I couldn't imagine why he would be texting me. I hesitated for a moment, and then my curiosity got the better of me and I checked the message.

"_Need to talk. TTT?"_

_TTT?_ The last time he used those initials was when he wanted to apologize over Thai takeout. What was he doing? Was he going to apologize for his actions the other night? Why would he do that, unless he?

No, I dared not think like that. I couldn't get my hopes up that maybe he had changed his mind. There must be some other reason why he wants to talk to me over dinner.

He probably just wants to congratulate me on winning the lawsuit. Maybe Jimmy would know. I decided to wait until lunchtime and call Jimmy first before returning Greg's text message.

**_HOUSE_**

Two hours had passed and I still hadn't heard from Elle. I wondered if she was ignoring me or if she had simply turned her phone off while working. Either way, my mind was in overdrive wondering if she would agree to talk and if so, exactly what I would say. I needed to convince her that I was sincere when I said I wanted her back and that I would do my best with the kid. I also had to apologize for the hooker incident and hope that she would forgive me for that indiscretion. I decided that if I didn't hear back from her during work that I would just go over to her place tonight and ask her to hear me out. Surely she wouldn't slam the door in my face or at least I hoped not.

I still couldn't believe that she had listed Wilson as a potential guardian. That got under my skin like a bad itch. I wondered if she had asked him yet. What would his answer have been? _Idiot!_ Of course he would say 'yes'. Wilson was second only to Cameron in believing in puppies and sunshine; how could he say 'no' to Elle's request?

I needed some answers now, and since Elle wasn't texting me back, I headed to the office next door.

Wilson was charting at his desk when I popped through the door. He didn't look up when I entered the office or when I slammed the door, but he did jump rather high when I slammed my cane down on his desk.

I got right to the point: "Did she ask you?"

He blinked a couple of times and shook his head as if realigning his brain cells: "Did who ask me what?"

"You know who."

He held his hands up in defeat. "OK. Is this charades, cuz I suck at this game?"

"Did Elle ask you?"

"Ah! Elle is the 'she'. OK. Getting somewhere. I haven't spoken to Elle today. What was she supposed to ask me?"

He seemed completely surprised by my question, but he has faked me out before. I figured I might as well get it out on the table. I dropped onto his couch and said: "What if, theoretically, of course, Elle would ask you and Cuddy to be guardians for her kid, just in case something happened to her? How would you answer her?"

He frowned: "Is she going to ask us? Did she tell you this? How did you find this out?"

I waved my hand in front of my face: "That's not important at the moment. What is important is how you would answer the question."

He seemed lost in thought for a moment and then slowly replied: "Well, I can't answer for Lisa, of course, but if Elle asked me, I would say yes."

I knew he would answer in the affirmative, but to actually hear the words come out of his mouth disturbed me more than I wanted to admit. "You would? You would take _my_ kid and raise it as your own?"

"IF something happened to Elle, and someone needed to step up, YEAH, I would. After all, you don't want it. You've made that rather obvious."

My thigh was aching, but I didn't want to pop any oxy in front of him because I knew he would comment that I was taking it for my 'emotional pain'. Instead I tapped my cane furiously against the floor: "You couldn't handle my kid. He'd be too smart for you."

"Oh, yeah? Says the man who doesn't want it at all. Oh, hey, wait just a minute! You said a personal pronoun. You called the baby a 'he'!"

_Oh, crap!_ "I did not."

He sounded almost gleeful: "Yes, you did. You personified the fetus."

"Screw you."

I struggled to my feet and attempted to make a getaway, but he beat me to the door.

"Hold on, buster! You suddenly seem to care about the welfare of your baby. What exactly does this mean?"

I tried to push him away from the door: "Get out of my way."

He grabbed me by the shoulders with a tight grip. "House! What the hell does this mean?"

I broke his hold on me and spun around, heading to the balcony door. I yanked the door open, but before I could make my getaway, I heard his voice behind me.

"You've changed your mind. You want her back. You're willing to put your fear aside and give it a shot."

I paused for a moment, trying to come up with a snarky retort, but nothing came to mind, because he was speaking the truth. I rewarded his cleverness with a quick nod and hurried out onto the balcony, slamming the door behind me before he could say anything else.

**_WILSON_**

I'm sure I was grinning like an idiot when House slammed the balcony door, but I didn't care. House had changed his mind. He was going to try to salvage his relationship with Elle. This was great news. Now the big question was: how would Elle take it? Would she forgive his indiscretion and welcome him back? I certainly hoped so. It would completely devastate him if she didn't.

I returned to my desk to try to finish my charting before my afternoon appointments showed up. Just before 1:00, my cell phone rang and the caller ID revealed it was Elle.

I flipped the phone open: "Hey, Elle."

"Hey, Jimmy. How're you doing?"

"I'm good. What about you?"

"I'm feeling pretty good. I had my first ultrasound this week and everything looks great. I hung the photo on my fridge so I can see it all the time."

A light bulb went off. I bet House saw the photo. Wonder if that's what gave him the push towards reconciliation. There was nothing like a piece of physical evidence to make an abstract concept come alive for a man like House.

"That's great. Hey, congratulations on winning your lawsuit."

"Oh, thanks. Yeah, that's really a load off of my mind. It's great not to have that hanging over my head anymore."

"And I bet the money is nice."

"Well, I haven't seen it yet, but yeah, it is a relief to not have to worry about money anymore. Um, I needed to ask you something."

"Sure, what is it?"

Elle continued on: "Greg sent me a text. He wants me to meet him for dinner tonight to talk. Have you spoken to him? Do you know what he wants to talk about?"

I wasn't sure if I should tell her my theory; after all, what if I was wrong?

She giggled nervously as she went on: "I thought maybe since I won the lawsuit, he was going to squirm out of his offer of paying child support."

I hedged: "He's had a lot on his mind lately. I think you should go talk to him and hear him out."

"You think I should?"

"Yeah, just hear him out."

She paused for a moment and then said: "OK. I'll text him and tell him that I'll meet him. Can you do me one other favor?"

"Sure, if I can."

"Can you come up and get the files after my last appointment? I don't want to run into Greg until I meet him for dinner."

"No problem. I'll pop up to your office at 4:30."

"Great. I'll see you then."

**_ELLE_**

After talking to Jimmy, I sent Greg a short text: "TTT, OK. 7?"

His reply came quickly: "7, my place. TY."

I was stunned. He thanked me for agreeing to meet him? He must have something really important on his mind.

I did my best to put this aside and concentrate on my patients but I was really happy when the last one walked out the door. Jimmy showed up a few minutes later. We went over all the patients and then I asked: "It's driving me crazy. I don't know if I can wait until 7:00. Do you have any idea what Greg wants to talk to me about?"

Slowly, he said: "I'm not sure, and I don't want to get your hopes up. But he might be having second thoughts."

"Second thoughts? You mean, about us, the baby?"

He nodded: "He hasn't said anything to me. But I was just getting that vibe from him today. Go to this dinner with an open mind. Let him talk and see what he says."

I nodded slowly: "OK."

"Elle, if he is having second thoughts, how do you feel about it? After all the harsh words and the whole hooker thing, is this something that you want?"

I chuckled: "So he told you about the hooker, huh?"

"Reluctantly, but yes. I don't think he planned it to happen. He went out to get drunk to get his mind off of what had just happened with Tony and she probably picked up his drunken ass. It doesn't excuse his behavior, but, if he wants to make up, can you deal with it?"

"I think so, but he has a lot of explaining to do. I need to understand why he suddenly has changed his mind, if that's what this talk is really about. Damn, this is going to drive me nuts until I see him. Seven o'clock can't get here fast enough for me."

He smiled at me: "I'm sure and I can't wait to hear all about it either. I hope I'm right for both your sakes. I saw House gathering his stuff when I was on my way up here. I think he was cutting out early. Come on, let's drop these charts off in my office and I'll walk you out. If you both get home early, maybe you can get an faster start on this conversation."

**_HOUSE_**

I saw Wilson head towards the elevator at 4:30 and I knew he was going up to Elle's office. I briefly wondered what he would say to her, but I couldn't dwell on that. Ultimately it was up to me to show Elle that I was sincere with my intentions.

Since I had no patient at the moment, I decided to leave early. I wanted to straighten up my place, put clean sheets on the bed just in case and take a shower before dinner. I had just tossed all my stuff into my backpack and turned off my computer monitor when I heard a familiar voice call out: "Surprise!"

My heart sank as I turned towards the sound. This was a complication that I definitely did not need.

**A/N:** Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing. Hope you are continuing to enjoy this!!!


	50. Chapter 50

A/N: the parts of the conversation that are typed in italics are denoting House and Elle speaking in French.

**_Chapter 50_**

_Still Thursday, June 7, 2007_

**_HOUSE_**

I composed a neutral expression on my face as I turned around.

"Mom. Dad. What are you doing here? I thought you were on your way to Europe?"

"Our flight got delayed and since we were so nearby and it's so close to your birthday, we thought we'd run over and see you. Come here and give me a hug, Greg."

I walked over and gave her the obligatory hug as I gently chided her: "Mom. You should have called to let me know you were coming."

Dad grumbled: "Why, so you could find an excuse not to see us like last time? You got a dying patient or do you need to invent one?"

Naturally the first words out of his mouth would be critical. Did I think this visit would be any different than any of the others?

I straightened up to my full height. "No. I don't have a patient; but if I'd known, I could have made dinner plans or something."

Dad snorted: "Yeah, cuz that worked out so well last time."

Mom squeezed my arm and said: "Oh, Greg. You don't have to do anything special for us. Besides it's practically your birthday, so we thought we would take you out to eat. Our flight doesn't leave until 11, so we have plenty of time. Where's Elle, dear? Is she still at work?"

Elle. Oh, fuck. Here I was hoping for a quiet evening with her to try to work things out, and my parents show up and expect all of us to have a nice dinner together. This is just perfect. What the fuck was I going to do now? How was I going to explain this? Maybe if I had a quick minute with her, I could get her to go along with the ruse that we were still together until they left and then we would get a chance to talk. This problem was way too long to explain in a text message and how was I going to get rid of them to talk to her?

I glanced at the clock: "Uh, she's probably still with her last patient. She should be finished shortly."

Dad interjected: "Patient? I thought she was a pharmacist, a pill-pusher? What the hell is she seeing patients for?"

I tried to keep my anger in check as I explained: "A pharmacist is more than a pill-pusher, Dad. They help patients manage their entire drug therapy. Elle's a pain management specialist. She assists the doctors with adjusting dosages, adding adjunct meds or changing the patient's medication regimen completely."

He grumbled: "Huh. Never heard of such a thing in my life. In my day, pharmacists just bottled up the pills and gave them to ya."

I stifled a sigh: "Elle isn't that type of pharmacist. She has a specialty in her profession, just like I do."

"Seems like prescribing is the job of the doctors, not of the pharmacists."

"The doctors do the prescribing, but Elle makes recommendations after reviewing the patient's chart and talking with them. She is a valuable asset to the pain management program."

Mom interjected before this argument could escalate: "What time do you think she'll be finished, dear?"

I glanced at the clock again. Was it possible that they had only been here for 5 minutes? It seemed much longer.

"It should be soon, Mom."

I tried to keep them talking while I thought of a plan: "So where are you going on this trip?"

Mom went into a long recitation of cities and people that they were going to visit while I nodded and kept one eye on the hallway. Finally I saw what I had been waiting for. Through the window, I saw Wilson and Elle approaching.

**_ELLE_**

"Jimmy, I thought you said that Greg had left. He's still here and there's two people in his office with him."

He frowned: "He was packing up to leave when I went up to your office, so I thought he would be gone by now. He doesn't look happy. Well, he never looks _happy_, but you know what I mean. Whoever is in his office is definitely irritating him."

The strange man in Greg's office turned his head for a moment and Jimmy blurted out: "OH my Gawd, Elle! No wonder House looks like he wants to crawl in a hole. It's his parents!"

I hadn't recognized Blythe from the back and of course, I had never seen his dad at all. "Oh, no. What are they are doing here?"

He shook his head: "They must have just shown up. They've done this before when they are in between flights at Newark. House would not have made dinner plans with you if he knew they were coming."

"Crap. Now what?"

"Elle, do you think House told them?"

"Told them what?"

"Well, 'A', that you're pregnant, and 'B', that you've broken up."

"NO! You know Greg. I'm sure he hasn't. Oh my Gawd, no wonder he looks like that. His Mom is probably asking about me."

"How do you want to play this?"

"What do you mean?"

"You could play along like everything is OK, you guys are still together and fool his parents for tonight. Then you two can get a chance to talk. Or you could tell the truth."

He let that thought hang in the air. His Mom would be so disappointed to know we had broken up and there's no telling what his Dad would say. It would certainly make for a miserable evening and Greg looked so sad already. I felt a surge of emotion for the big lug despite all the hurt he had caused me.

Suddenly our eyes locked. Those blue orbs pleaded to me and I wanted to go to him, take him in my arms and make it all better. I knew what I had to do.

"Play along, Jimmy. I'm gonna need your support."

"What are you going to do?"

"Everybody lies, you know that."

I marched towards the door and Jimmy followed right on my heels.

I squealed: "Oh my Gawd! Blythe! What are you doing here?"

I set the files down on Greg's desk and gave her a big hug. She squeezed me back and said: "I know it's a surprise, dear. But our flights got screwed up and we ended up with a long layover so we figured that we would have time to drop over and see you two."

"Oh, if I had only known you were coming, I would have cooked. We were just planning on having some Thai takeout with Jimmy tonight."

I hoped that Greg would get my subtle hint; that whatever happened, I wanted Jimmy along for the ride.

"Oh, dear, I don't want you to cook. We thought we would take you out to celebrate Greg's birthday a little early. And James is always welcome. I hope you'll join us dear."

Blythe broke our hug to walk over and give Jimmy one.

Jimmy shot Greg a quick glance: "It's great to see you again. And, if I'm not intruding, I'd love to join you."

A gruff voice spoke up: "Aw, you're part of the family, Wilson. Course you're invited. So when is someone going to introduce me to this little filly? Or has someone forgotten his manners?"

I saw the tense look between Greg and his dad; this was going to be a long night.

In a formal tone, Greg made the introductions: "Dad, this is Elle Kaplan. Elle, this is my father, Colonel John House."

I stuck out my hand: "Colonel, it's nice to meet you." I thought it would be better to start out respectful and go from there. I wouldn't call him John until he told me to do so.

He gave me a firm handshake while sizing me up. "Well, I can see what my son sees in you, although I don't know what you see in him. I noticed that you didn't introduce her as your _girlfriend_, Greg. Trouble in paradise already? It wouldn't surprise me knowing how you are. I never did figure out how Stacy put up with you for 5 years."

I could actually see the tension in Greg's jaw from across the room.

Blythe sighed a warning: "John,,,"

I quickly interjected: "Actually we find the terms boyfriend/girlfriend just so juvenile and high school-ish. Someone needs to invent a term to describe adult relationships better than that."

The colonel snarked: "Yeah, it's called 'husband and wife', not that it will ever happen with this one." He waved a hand in Greg's direction.

I shrugged and tried to appear casual, but his dad was already getting under my skin. "Those terms are fine, but I don't feel two people have to get married to prove their love for each other. There are many other ways to show it."

There was an undertone of emotion in Greg's voice, so subtle that I was sure no one picked up on it except me. "That's true, sweetheart."

I flashed him a loving smile and was rewarded with a small upturn on the left side of his mouth.

Next to me, his dad let out a big sigh: "Oh, Geez. I can see you two are cut out of the same cloth. Getting the milk without buying the cow again, aren't ya, Greg? Just like with Stacy?"

I quickly shot Jimmy a 'help' look and he piped up with: "So, you mentioned dinner? What do you feel like eating? How much time do you have before your flight?"

I quickly agreed: "Yeah, I'm starving. I could eat a horse."

The Colonel put forth his request: "I could go for a steak. And we have plenty of time. Flight's not until 11."

I turned back to Blythe and saw that she was giving me a good once-over. She smiled and said: "You look like you've put on a little weight since the last time I was here, dear. It looks good on you. And Greg, don't start on me for mentioning her weight."

He held up his hands in defeat: "I wasn't going to say anything, Mom. It does look good on her."

Blythe went on: "How much did you gain, dear?"

I hated talking about my weight and especially now since Blythe didn't know the reason behind my weight gain. "Just 7 or 8 pounds. I found I really enjoy cooking and baking again now that I have someone to eat with every night."

Blythe smiled: "It is so much better than eating alone. Greg, you look about the same as when I saw you on my last visit. I'm surprised that you haven't gained any more weight too."

He patted his stomach: "I've been pacing myself. Don't want to grow out of my wardrobe and have to shop."

Blythe laughed at his comment and then, to my surprise, she came over and placed a hand on each of my shoulders. She gave me another look-over and said: "The extra weight really does look good on you, Elle. Your face is fuller; your breasts are bigger."

Greg interjected: "Yeah, I'm really enjoying that part."

The colonel burst out: "Oh for Gawd's sake, Greg! Like we need to hear that."

Blythe merely smiled at Greg's lewd comment, ignored her husband's outburst and continued on: "You even have a little tummy now. If I didn't know better, I might think you were just a little bit pregnant."

I felt the color rising in my face until I was sure that I was tomato-red. My eyes flew from Jimmy's stunned expression to Greg's terrified one before settling on Blythe's calm face.

In the background, I could hear the Colonel. He sounded exasperated as he said: "Blythe, what the hell are you talking about? You can't be a little bit pregnant. You either are or you aren't."

She looked right at me and said: "And you are, aren't you, dear?"

I now knew what Greg meant when he said he couldn't lie to his Mom; I simply couldn't look her in the eye and deny it. In a soft voice, I said: "Yes, I'm pregnant."

**_HOUSE_**

I never loved Elle more as I watched her hold her own with my Dad. I was incredibly proud of her for sticking up for us, even though I didn't deserve it. She was pretending like everything was OK between us, like our relationship had never bitten the dust. Obviously, it was an act for my parents, but what made her decide to do this for me?

My mind was whirling with possibilities and I was trying to stay on top of the conversation too. Mom veered onto the subject of Elle's weight. That topic seemed innocent enough at first, but before I knew it, we swerved right into the danger zone. Mom dropped the big bombshell question. How had she figured it out? Do all Moms' have a sixth sense when someone is pregnant or is it just mine?

Elle had been doing really good up until Mom asked her point blank if she were pregnant. When she glanced at me, I could see the terrified look in her eye and I was sure the same feeling was mirrored in my own. But I knew how hard it was to lie to Mom and I wasn't surprised that Elle couldn't do it either.

I braced myself for the fallout.

Mom actually squealed: "You are? You really are?"

Elle just nodded. She was facing Mom and I wished that I could see the expression on her face.

Mom wrapped Elle up in a big hug. "Oh, this is so wonderful. I'm so happy. I can't believe it. I had really given up hope that we would ever be grandparents. Isn't this wonderful, John? You're going to be a Grandpa."

Dad didn't look quite as thrilled as Mom did. And his retort was about what I had expected.

"Couldn't keep it in your pants huh?

I smirked: "You see what she looks like? What man could?"

He shot me an even more annoyed look: "I would think, that as a doctor, you would know a little bit about birth control."

"I know a lot about birth control methods and the funny thing is none of them are 100 percent effective either."

"It's 100 percent effective if you keep it in your pants."

"I'd rather keep it in her pants. It's much nicer there."

Dad's eye started to twitch. I'd gone a little too far with that last remark.

Mom was over the moon with happiness; she didn't care if it were an accident or planned event. She turned and sniped at us: "Oh stop it, you two, this is wonderful news."

Dad's mouth hung open in shock at Mom's forceful tone.

Mom turned back to Elle: "So when did you find out? How far along are you?"

"I'm in my 13th week."

Mom's face fell slightly. "Oh. My. You're further along than I thought. How long have you known?"

Elle started twisting her hands nervously: "A few weeks."

Mom's facial expression changed to hurt and disappointment: "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

Elle started inching away from Mom. She clearly didn't know how to answer this question and frankly neither did I, without revealing the painful truth.

Mom went on: "I mean, I know Greg can be rather closed-mouthed about his personal life, but don't you _want_ us to be involved? After all, we are the only grandparents your baby is going to have."

At those words, Elle burst into tears. I quickly stepped forward and pulled her into my arms.

I held her tightly as she sobbed into my chest, her right hand tightly fisting my tee shirt.

Dad, as usual, was just full of sympathy. "Now, look what you did, Blythe."

Mom immediately regretted her words: "Oh, dear. I'm sorry, Elle. I didn't mean to remind you about your parents. I just don't understand why you didn't tell us earlier."

I tried to come up with a plausible excuse, but before I could open my mouth, Elle choked out: "Please don't be mad."

Mom walked over to us and rubbed Elle on the shoulder. "I'm not mad, dear. I guess I'm just a little disappointed. I would have thought you would have called and told us right away. You must know we would be excited."

Dad snorted: "Oh, yeah. We're excited. Our unmarried son has knocked up his girlfriend. That's something to brag about around the lodge. I just can't wait to tell all my friends."

Mom turned to Dad with venom in her voice: "Sarcasm is not helpful right now, John."

I buried my face in Elle's hair to hide what had to be a shocked look on my face. I wondered: who was this new Mom that was standing up to Dad? And where had she been all my life?

Elle's sobbing had subsided. She was merely sniffling now. Head still buried in my chest, her small voice said: "Blythe. I didn't call you because, well, I didn't want to disappoint you."

"Sweetie. You're pregnant with my grandchild. How could you disappoint me? Did you think I would be upset because you're not married?"

She shook her head.

"Then why did you think you would disappoint me?"

Elle wiped her face with her hand. She turned slightly to face Mom, but kept one arm securely around my waist. "Remember when I told you about my family history? Well I was afraid that I would tell you and you'd be all happy and excited and then I'd miscarry and let you down. So I wanted to wait until after I got out of the first trimester at least before we told you. So please don't be mad."

Mom embraced us both at the same time. "I'm not mad. Really. None of this matters anymore. We know now. And we want to be involved, don't we, John? If there's anything you need, you just let us know."

Dad groaned: "I need a beer."

Wilson chimed in: "I could use one too. Why don't we head out to dinner and we can talk more there?"

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Dad knew the way to Ruth's Chris Steak House and he agreed to go on ahead and get us a table while Wilson and Elle finished up with their patient files. We promised that we would only be 10 minutes behind them at the most.

The patient charts were just a ruse as all Wilson needed to do was toss them on his desk. But it did give us some time alone without my parents. Once they were securely on the elevator, Wilson turned to us and said: "I'm sure you need a minute. I'll be in my office 'finishing up' these charts. Come get me when you're ready to go."

He grabbed the files and headed to his office.

Elle and I glanced at each other and then quickly looked away. After a moment, I looked back at her. She was biting her lip and staring off into space.

Softly, she said: "I don't think this is exactly what you planned for tonight, is it?"

"Definitely not. I knew they were going to Europe this week, but I had no idea when they were leaving or that they would stop to see us."

Elle turned to face me: "You wanted to talk, but I guess we don't really have time right now."

I shook my head. All I could do was look at her beautiful face and wonder how I could have done those things to her.

Tentatively, I said: "Elle, you were amazing just now. I don't know how you did it. Or even why you did it."

She stared down at her feet as if the answer was written on the floor. "When I saw them in here with you, I don't know. You looked so anxious, like a little kid whose about to get punished for something. And I didn't know how you would explain my absence to your mom. And I know you don't get along with your dad. So I thought we could just fool them for the night. Of course, I didn't think they would find out about the baby. I'm sorry about that, but I just couldn't lie to your mom."

"It's OK. I can't either, especially not face-to-face. She must have some kinda preggo radar to look at you and figure it out. I mean, you barely have a belly. On the other hand, your breasts are definitely bigger than the last time she saw you. Maybe that's what tipped it."

She looked in my eyes for just a moment and then turned away as she said: "They're still pretty small compared to most women. I know you've had bigger and."

Oh Gawd, she was remembering what that hooker had said. She can't possibly think that the only thing I care about is her bra size.

In my most sincere voice, I told her: "You have the most beautiful breasts that I've ever had the privilege of touching."

She whispered softly: "I doubt that very much."

"Have I ever lied to you?"

Her head whipped around and she stared at me. I thought I could see the wheels turning in her head, and then I remembered. Oh crap, I had.

I scrambled to recover: "Elle, we really need to talk."

Her voice took on a higher pitch, indicating that her stress level had increased. "We don't have time right now. We need to get Jimmy and meet your parents for dinner."

I tried to speak as soothingly as I could: "You're right. We don't have time now. We'll talk after dinner, OK? Look, if you don't want to keep this up, I can just tell them that you felt sick and needed to go home. They'll understand."

I desperately wanted her to come, but I wanted to give her the out not to keep up the ruse if she didn't want to. I didn't want to stress her out any more than she already was.

She shook her head: "No. It would look strange and give your dad even more ammunition than he already has. We'll get through this. Let's get Jimmy and get this over with."

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We located them at a quiet table in the back of the restaurant. Dad already had a beer in front of him and Mom was working on a glass of red wine. Wilson gallantly took the seat next to Dad, while I sat next to Mom and put Elle between Wilson and myself. I felt she was safer there.

As soon as the waiter came, I ordered a glass of scotch, which earned me a frown from dear old dad. Wilson ordered wine and Elle ordered ginger ale, but she stared longingly at my scotch once it had arrived. I felt badly that she couldn't have a drink. I know I would not have made it through dinner without alcohol.

I noticed that Elle's hand was shaking a little as she set her glass down. I placed my hand over hers and gave it a little squeeze. I spoke softly to her in French: _"Don't be nervous. He has a loud bark, but he won't bite, at least not in a public place."_

She looked at me in wonderment: _"Your parents don't speak French?"_

I shook my head. _"No, just me."_

"_So we can talk privately?"_

"_Yes, although if we do it too much, it will piss the old man off."_

She smiled and squeezed my hand: _"A lot of things seem to do that."_

A loud clearing of throat from that side of the table confirmed what I had just said. "Have you two lovebirds decided what you're having? I'd like to order. We do have a plane to catch."

I asked Elle: "Do you know what you want, sweetheart? I should warn you, the steaks are all really huge here. I think they're bigger than at Ben Benson's."

She placed her hand on her belly and said: "You know, I don't think I could eat a lot of beef right now. This grilled portobello mushroom entrée sounds really good and maybe I could just have a bite or two of your steak."

"Of course, sweetheart. Do you want a salad or a starter?"

"Hmm, the steak house salad would be fine."

The waiter came for our order. It was steaks all around the table except for Elle's veggie entrée. Once that was accomplished, and the waiter had walked away, Mom dove right into her new favorite topic of conversation.

"So how are you feeling?"

"I feel pretty good. I had some nausea in the beginning but it's mostly gone now."

Dad groaned: "Are we going to talk baby talk all through dinner?"

Mom narrowed her eyes at him: "We just might. I want all my questions answered before we go away for 3 weeks."

Dad groaned again and picked up his beer for a long swallow.

Elle squeezed my hand again. I knew she was uncomfortable about this line of questioning, but it seemed unavoidable. If Dad couldn't derail the topic of conversation, I didn't stand a chance.

Mom went on: "So when exactly is your due date?"

Elle said promptly: "December 9th."

"Oh, that's nice. Not too close to Christmas. So what are your plans?"

Elle shook her head in confusion: "Plans?"

"Well, there's so much to do. You two live in different apartments; are you going to get a bigger place together?"

The waiter interrupted the flow of conversation for a moment by delivering the salads. While he was serving everyone, Elle whispered to me: _"Just go with me on this, OK?"_

I nodded.

Once everyone had started in on their salads, Elle went on: "You see, Blythe, I have been so concerned about miscarrying that I really didn't want to plan anything. I was afraid to get my hopes up and have everything fall apart. So, really it's only been this week that we have been starting to talk about the future. We did actually look at the real estate section on Sunday and debated whether we want to buy a house or rent a bigger place."

"Don't you think it would be nice for the child to have a house with a yard?"

"Oh, yeah, of course, but we don't have to do that right away. She's still the size of a peanut right now." Elle laughed and rubbed her belly.

Mom picked up on Elle's personal pronoun use right away. "She? Is it a girl?"

Elle laughed again: "Oh, it's too early to tell. I just can't stand to say 'it', so I refer to the baby as 'she'."

Dad muttered: "I doubt Greg's man enough to pump out a boy."

Elle's mouth fell open and her fork clattered to her plate. Before she could say anything about my dad's rude remark, I interjected: "A girl would be nice, a beautiful little mini-Elle that I could spoil. But the gender doesn't really matter. I just want Elle to have an easy pregnancy and a healthy baby."

I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer so I could kiss her temple. She closed her eyes at the contact and a small sigh escaped her lips. Then she turned and looked at me with questions in her eyes, questions that I hoped I could answer soon.

Mom went on: "Of course, a healthy baby is what's important. Have you thought about names yet?"

I thought Elle was going to choke on her salad. Mom was really going overboard. Elle finished chewing her current mouthful and then pushed the mostly untouched salad plate away.

I was concerned: _"Sweetheart, are you feeling OK?"_

She rubbed her belly again: _"Just a little indigestion. I think maybe the bleu cheese dressing was too rich for me."_

"_Want me to get you another salad?"_

She shook her head: _"No, I'll just wait for my entrée. I'm OK."_

Dad let out an exasperated sigh: "Do you two have to do that? You are not impressing anyone here with the fact you learned French in high school."

Elle's temper rose. "I didn't learn French in high school. I grew up speaking it. I was brought up bilingual; my mother only spoke to me in French and my dad spoke English. That's how we will raise our baby too."

Dad groaned: "Oh, what the hell for? It will just confuse the kid and it's going to have a hard enough time with _him_ for a dad as it is."

Elle gesticulated with her knife as she spoke. I secretly hoped she would throw it at him. "Greg is going to make a great dad. I don't understand why you say so many mean things about your own son."

"You haven't known him very long, Missy. You'll see what he's like. He may be all devoted now, but wait until something else comes along and he'll ignore you and the kid. Ask Stacy if you don't believe me. He'd get a new fascinating case and ignore her for a week while he solved it."

Elle snarled back: "Of course, Greg gets involved with his patients. He doesn't get easy run-of-the-mill cases. He gets the cases that no other doctor can figure out. They are very complicated and time-consuming. You know, I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself. I'm not going to bother Greg when he is on a big case with some little trivial thing like the sink's clogged up. I can take care of that. But if I'm sick or the baby needs something, I know he will be there for us."

My heart swelled with pride at Elle's defense of my character. After the way I had treated her these last few weeks, I certainly didn't deserve it. But it gave me hope that she would find it in her heart to forgive me and give me another chance.

The waiter came right as Elle finished that little speech and removed our salad plates. I was grateful for these little interruptions and hoped that someone would change the subject.

Mom cleared her throat: "We got sidetracked before. Have you thought about any names?"

Elle bit her lip: "Well, our custom is to name a baby after a deceased relative. If the baby is a girl, I'd like to name her after my Mom."

She stopped there; her eyes were a million miles away. I could only imagine what was going through her mind. I was quite sure that Elle felt incredible sadness that instead of her mom being here to enjoy her grandchild, the child was being named after her, following Ashkenazi Jewish tradition.

Mom seemed not to notice Elle's malaise and prompted: "And if it's a boy?"

Elle broke out of her fog enough to answer: "I hadn't thought about it. Since I have a girl's name picked out, I thought that Greg could pick out the name for our son."

I was moved; Elle really did think of this child as _our_ baby. She seemed to still want me involved; either that or she was faking really well in front of my parents.

I kissed her temple again and whispered: "Thank you. I promise not to name him Homer Simpson."

That made her giggle. She smiled up at me sweetly and I hoped that she could see the love in my eyes.

"Thank _you_. I mean, _Homer House_ just sounds awful."

"It does, doesn't it? You want to use just House? You don't want to hyphenate and use Kaplan-House?"

Dad groaned: "You have to ask that? Oh for Gawd's sake! You can't even decide which last name to use? Why don't you just get married and everyone will have the same last name?"

I shrugged: "Even if we get married, Dad, it doesn't mean Elle will change her name. Lots of women keep their name for professional reasons. Elle is well known and has published under Kaplan; it would only make sense for her to keep her name. Whatever she wants to do is fine by me."

Mom asked tentatively: "But you are getting married, aren't you?"

Fortunately the wait staff arrived just then with our entrees. I know I welcomed the intrusion.

Dinner was served; steaks were cut into and proclaimed to be the desired doneness and then the wait staff moved away so we could continue with Round 2.

Wilson gamely tried to change the subject: "So where are you going in Europe? Back to Germany or somewhere different this time?"

Both my parents completely ignored Wilson's question. Mom timidly repeated her question: "You are going to get married, aren't you, son?"

Elle sliced into her portobello mushroom as she gamely answered: "We haven't talked about it yet."

I thought Dad was going to choke on his steak. "You haven't talked about it yet? Well, it seems like now would be a good time."

Elle shrugged: "There's no rush."

"NO rush? You wanna walk down the aisle looking like you got a basketball under your dress? And forget about wearing white for your wedding."

Elle calmly continued to carve her mushroom. "If I want to wear white, I'll wear white. If we decide to do the deed when I'm 9 months pregnant, we will. Like I said, we haven't talked about it yet."

Mom still seemed confused: "But why wouldn't you get married, dear? Why do you even have to talk about it? You're having a baby; don't you want to be a family?"

"We are a family. We love each other and that's enough. We don't need a piece of paper to prove it. I'm very skeptical about the need to have a document that binds your love together. The words we say to each other and the things we do for each other should suffice."

Dad exploded: "I bet if your mother was alive you'd been singing a different tune. She'd expect you to get married."

Elle hissed: "Don't you dare to presume what my mother would do. You didn't know my mother. As long as I am happy, she would be happy for me. She would be thrilled that I was pregnant, married or not."

Dad shook his head uncomprehendingly: "But the minister won't baptize the baby unless you're married."

At that comment, Elle tossed down her fork and started laughing. She laughed so hard that tears leaked out of her eyes. I noticed that Wilson was hiding a grin behind his hand and I looked down to hide my own smirk.

Dad was infuriated: "What the hell is so funny?"

Elle tried to compose herself. She wiped her eyes with her napkin and stammered: "Oh, that's rich. That's so rich. Baptize the baby!"

She went off into another fit of laughter again. After a few more minutes of giggles, she finally calmed down enough to speak.

"I'm not worried about that Colonel, because we won't be baptizing the baby. Greg's an atheist and I'm a Jew; so why on earth would we do that?"

Dad's face got red and his eye started to twitch. We had crossed the line. The shit was going to hit the fan now.

He turned his attention to me: "A Jew? You've been fooling around with a Jew? You always were an arrogant jerk, so full of yourself, thinking you're better than everyone else. Now look at you. You've managed to knock up a little Jewish slut who doesn't even want to marry you. How the mighty have fallen."

Elle let out a cry of outrage and even Wilson threw his napkin on the table as he opened his mouth to speak. I beat them all to the punch. I stood up, grabbed my cane and leaned over the table. I planted the cane tip right on top of his black heart and pressed him up against the back of his chair.

"I don't care if you talk trash about me. You always have and you always will. But you will _not_ talk that way about the woman I love! You will only speak to her with the greatest courtesy or you will not talk to her at all. You need to rein in your tongue or you will never see your grandchild. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

Mom was horrified: "Greg, put your cane down. Sit down. You're making a scene."

I pressed my cane just a little harder against his chest: "I can't hear you, old man. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

His eyes were hard as steel as he answered: "Crystal."

I removed my cane and sat back down. The wait staff hovered nervously, but I waved them away. They retreated but not too far, keeping a watchful eye over us.

My immediate concern was Elle. She looked pale, and had one hand on her stomach and one hand over her mouth.

I put my arm around her shoulders: "Sweetheart, are you OK?"

She simply shook her head.

I pressed my forehead against her head, whispering in her ear: _"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. He's an ass. I'm an ass. The apple didn't fall far from the tree, did it?"_

In a strangled whisper, Elle said: _"You're nothing like him."_

Suddenly she stiffened: "I'm going to be sick."

Elle looked around with panic in her eyes. "Which way's the bathrooms?"

Wilson stood up: "I know. C'mon, I'll take you."

He jerked his chin at me: "You stay, and deal with this."

I'd rather hold Elle's head while she puked than deal with my old man, but they were my parents, not his. I was grateful that he was here to help Elle. I watched him escort Elle towards the restroom and then I turned to face them.

**_WILSON_**

Fortunately there was one of those large 'family' style restrooms and it was empty. I rushed Elle inside and locked the door. I held her hair back as she gagged over the toilet. She hadn't eaten much, so there wasn't much to lose. I figured this was mostly nerves and stress anyway. I wet a paper towel and she used it to wipe her mouth. Then I helped her get up and escorted her over to the sink where she washed her hands and wiped her mouth again.

As she was drying her hands, Elle said sadly: "Oh, Jimmy, he's horrible. I can't believe that Greg had to grow up with that man. He's worse than I ever imagined."

I could only agree: "He is pretty bad."

"It's no wonder that Greg didn't want to have a baby. Now I can see what he's afraid of; he's afraid he'll turn out like him."

"Greg is not his dad."

"I know that. But Greg is afraid that he'll turn into him. He's afraid he'll be cruel to our child, like his dad was to him. If I had only known how bad it was. I shouldn't have forced this on him. It's not fair to Greg."

"Elle, it's all going to work out."

She shook her head: "I don't know. It's a bigger mess now than it was before. Now his parents are involved, and I know his mom is not just going to walk away from her grandchild. So if Greg doesn't want to be involved, he is kinda stuck, isn't he?"

"Elle, you gotta let him talk to you. Look how he was acting tonight. He was so protective of you and affectionate. You know how he is about PDA's; he is really adamant about that in front of his dad, cuz he knows what his dad will say. He didn't care tonight. He had his arm around you and he kissed you. He held your hand."

She waved her hand at me. "It was just part of the act. We have to make them believe that we are still together."

"Elle, I really think he is having second thoughts. Just hear him out when he talks to you later."

"I will, Jimmy. But if he wants off the hook, I am giving him that. I'll move away and he won't have to be involved at all if he doesn't want to. He can lie to his mom and tell her I left him and he doesn't know where I am or something. Hopefully, it's easier to lie to her over the phone than in person."

Emphatically, I said: "I really don't think that's going to be necessary. I think he's had second thoughts. Change is hard on House; it takes him a while to wrap his mind around something new, but I think he's there now."

She shrugged: "Well, I guess I'll find out later. We better get back out there before they kill each other."

**_HOUSE_**

Dad and I just stared at each other. There was no way that I was backing down this time. He needed to understand that he was not going to treat Elle and our baby to the same shit that he had subjected me to all these years.

Finally Mom couldn't take the tension anymore. "This has to stop right now. I can't take it anymore."

She turned to face Dad and pointed her index finger at him: "There is a grandchild on the way and you are not going to take this joy away from me. I want to be involved in this baby's life. If you don't want to, that's your business, but you are not going to keep me from visiting."

"Blythe, I'm your husband. Are you going to take his side now?"

"Yes, I am. Because Greg is right. You have spoken unkindly to him his whole life. Oh, I know your reasoning behind it. You wanted to toughen him up and make him a man. You went beyond that; you went over the edge into cruelty and child abuse. And I was just as bad because I allowed it to happen. Well, it stops now. You'll keep a civil tongue in your head when you speak to Greg and to Elle. No more comments about Greg not being a man or about Elle's religion. No more nasty remarks whatsoever. Or you'll find that we will not make it to our 50th wedding anniversary together."

He started to sputter, but Mom raised a hand to silence him. Then she turned to me. "Greg. Things are going to change now. But you will have to do your part too. If Dad speaks respectfully to you, I expect you to answer him in kind. No more nasty remarks about the military either. That was your father's chosen profession and you should respect it as much as he should respect yours. If you both give a little, we all will receive in abundance. Are you both clear on this?"

I refused to answer first and it looked like Dad wasn't going to either.

Mom turned to him with an exasperated sigh: "This isn't a pissing contest. Set the proper example, John. Your son is not one of your troops to order about. Show him the man that I know you are."

Dad sat up straighter: "Fine."

"You're in agreement with what I've said?"

Resignedly, he said: "Yes, dear."

Mom turned to me: "Greg, you too?"

I wanted to scream _'where was this woman the whole time I was growing_ _up?'_ But I decided that there was no point. It was the past and there's no changing the past. If he'll be civil, I'll try to be, for Elle's sake and for the baby's.

I nodded: "Yes, Mom."

She nodded firmly: "Good. I'm glad we got that little chat out of the way. And just in time. Elle and James are returning."

I stood up as they approached the table. Wilson shot me a look as he sat back down. I helped Elle into her seat and then sat back down myself, wrapping my arm around her shoulder.

"_Are you alright? You were gone a long time."_

Elle put her hand over her mouth. _"I threw up."_

I grabbed her ginger ale and handed it to her. _"This will help with the icky taste. Sip slowly."_

She nodded and took a few sips. I couldn't stop myself; I kissed her cheek with as much affection as I could express, right in front of everyone. _"This stress isn't good for you or the baby. I'm taking you home."_

"_I'm OK, cowboy. I'll just work on my ginger ale and take my food home for later. Let's let everyone finish eating and then we'll go."_

"_Alright, but if you start feeling worse, we're outta here."_

"_Deal."_

Everyone went back to eating. This time when Wilson asked about their upcoming trip, Dad answered him and spoke of their plans. The rest of dinner was cordial with just a hint of the underlying tension. When the plates had been cleared and Elle's entrée boxed up to bring home, we all decided to skip dessert and head out.

We said our good-byes in the parking lot. Mom gave all of us a big hug and said we would see them again in 3 weeks on their return. She promised to call or e-mail and let us know their flight schedule so we could plan dinner.

I watched carefully as Dad approached Elle. He stuck out his hand and she tentatively extended hers. Instead of shaking it, Dad surprised both of us by lifting her hand and planting a kiss on the back of it. "Take good care of my grandchild, little lady."

Elle nodded: "I will, Colonel."

He gave her hand a little squeeze and then walked over to Wilson. After shaking his hand, Dad approached me last. He looked up at me for a moment and then stuck out his hand. I could see Mom's pleased expression out of the corner of my eye, so I took his hand. After a firm, manly handshake, he clapped me on the shoulder. "Son."

He seemed at a loss for words; like he should say something else but he didn't know what.

I extended the olive branch: "Have a good trip, Dad."

He nodded: "I'll see you in 3 weeks."

We watched them drive away before piling into Wilson's Volvo for our ride home.


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51**

**_HOUSE_**

For once, I was happy that Wilson was driving. After that stressful evening, my leg ached worse than usual. I stretched it out in the front seat as best I could. Elle was in the back seat directly behind me, the white Styrofoam box containing the remnants of her dinner on the seat next to her.

As we pulled out of the parking lot, Elle piped up: "Jimmy, I need to go back to the hospital to get my car."

I shook my head at him and he understood what I meant. "It's been a long night. How about if I just take you home and then I'll drive you to work in the morning?"

She sounded so weary: "You don't mind?"

"Not at all."

"That would be great. I am really tired."

She didn't say anything more and I thought she had fallen asleep until Wilson nudged my leg. I glanced at him; he was looking in the rear view mirror. Then he caught my eye, jerked his head towards the back seat and traced his finger down his cheek. I glanced back; Elle was silently weeping.

I turned around and reached my hand towards her. "Elle. Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

Softly she said: "I'm sorry, Greg. I'm so sorry. I had no idea that your father was _that_ mean. I understand now why you didn't want to have a child. It was wrong of me to put you in this position."

She started crying and I squeezed her knee: "Elle. Sweetheart. Please don't cry. It's OK. Everything's going to be OK."

"Look. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. I don't want you to feel pressured by your parents or by me. You don't have to be involved at all. I won't even put your name on the birth certificate if you don't want me to. I'll move away. It will be all me. Really. I swear. I won't come after you for child support or anything."

"Elle, no. That's not what I want. Sweetheart, give me a chance to explain."

She went on as if she hadn't heard me. "I'm not going to force you into a shotgun wedding or anything. If you want to visit once in a while, that would be cool, but if you want no contact, I'll understand."

Suddenly she doubled over and clutched her stomach: "OH! I think I'm going to be sick again."

Wilson looked worried: "You want me to pull over?"

After a moment, Elle relaxed slightly and leaned back in the seat. "No, it's eased off. I think I'm OK."

But she kept both hands pressed to her abdomen.

I was worried. She hadn't eaten anything else since the first attack. "Elle, can you describe the pain? Does it feel like you're going to throw up?"

"No, not like that. It just feels like cramps."

Wilson chimed in with his medical opinion: "It's probably stress from the lovely dinner tonight. She didn't actually throw up very much when she was sick before."

"Yeah, but she hasn't eaten much either."

Elle whined: "I'll be OK, doctors! I just need to go home and go to bed."

Wilson replied calmly: "We're almost there. Two more blocks."

"Good." was Elle's reply.

We pulled up in front of the building just a few minutes later. As soon as Wilson stopped the car, Elle unbuckled her seat belt, opened the door and got out. She called out "Good night" right before she closed the door.

I slumped in my seat: "Shit. What a fucked up night."

"Are you going to try to talk to her?"

"She doesn't really seem to be in the mood now."

"Give her a few minutes to step inside and kick her shoes off, then go over."

"She's never going to believe me."

"Give her some time. She wants to believe, but she's afraid you were just putting on an act for your parents. It might take a little more to convince her."

"If she'll let me in the door."

He glanced in the rear-view mirror: "Hey, she left her dinner. You can take it to her. This way, you have an excuse to come over."

"Cheesy, but it just might work."

He flipped on the interior light and reached into the back seat for the box. He paused before picking it up, and frowned.

"What?"

"I don't know. There's a dark stain on the seat where Elle was sitting."

"What?"

I turned around to see the spot. It was small, but rather noticeable against the tan upholstery. I stretched my arm, dabbed my finger on the spot and sniffed it.

My heart sank: "It's blood."

Wilson grabbed my hand and stuck my finger under the dim interior light. It was a dark reddish-brown color.

He exclaimed: "Shit!"

I turned to get out of the car and that's when I saw her. She had not made it inside the front door. Elle was sitting, hunched over, on the front steps.

Wilson and I hurried to her. She was moaning in pain and cried out when she saw me.

"Oh Greg, it's hurts so much. It hurts really bad. I can't get up."

"Shh, it's OK. We got you. We're going to take you to the hospital now. Jimmy's going to carry you back to the car, OK?"

She nodded: "OK."

The fact that she acquiesced to going to the hospital without a fight worried me greatly. She must feel even worse than she was letting on. Wilson gently picked her up and carried her to the car, sliding her carefully into the back seat. I went around and got in on the other side while Wilson got back in the driver's seat and took off for PPTH.

I had Elle lay with her head in my lap and her feet up against the car door.

Gently, I said: "Elle, I think we need to call your OB."

She sniffled and said: "I know. I can feel it."

She pulled out her cell phone and handed it to me. "Could you talk to her for me, please?"

"Of course."

I dialed and when Alderman answered, I said: "This is House. Elle's cramping and bleeding. We're on our way. ETA 5 minutes."

"I'm already here. I just finished a C-section. I'll meet you at the L & D Entrance."

I closed the phone and slipped in back into her bag. I tried to think of some reassuring words, but nothing came to mind. I was almost 100 percent sure that her prediction was finally coming true and that she was indeed miscarrying. I couldn't lie to her and tell her that everything would be OK when it most likely wasn't going to be. So I did the only thing that I could; I stroked her hair and wiped away the tears as they slipped down her cheeks.

No one spoke for the five long minutes that it took to reach the hospital. Wilson went around to the side and pulled up to the maternity entrance. Alderman and a nurse were waiting with a wheelchair. As soon as Wilson had stopped the car, the nurse yanked the car door open and started helping Elle out of the back seat. I hurried out of my door and managed to get to Elle's side just as they started pushing her into the hospital. Wilson yelled to me that he would park the car and then join us inside, but I failed to acknowledge his words. I could only think about Elle.

Alderman and the nurse were quite efficient. Elle was in a room and up on a table in a matter of minutes. As the nurse slapped the blood pressure cuff on Elle's arm, Alderman took her other wrist to check her pulse.

"Elle, tell me what happened. When did this start?"

"Just a little while ago. I felt queasy over dinner, but I just thought it was stress. Greg's parents came to town unexpectedly and took us out to eat. We were arguing at dinner and I had to go throw up. I didn't have much to eat so I didn't throw up much. But my stomach was upset after that so I just had some ginger ale. Then in the car on the way home, I got a cramp again. And as I walked towards my front door, the cramping got really bad and I sat on the steps and couldn't get up. They had to carry me back to the car."

I added my observations: "After Elle got out of the car, we noticed blood on the seat where she had been sitting."

Alderman nodded slowly: "OK. Elle, I need to take an ultrasound and see what's going on. Unzip your pants and pull up your blouse, please."

As she started preparing the machine, Wilson burst into the room. Alderman looked annoyed at the intrusion. "I appreciate your concern for Elle, but maybe you guys should wait outside."

I protested: "Hey, I'm the baby daddy."

She sneered: "Thought you weren't interested in that. Anyway, you have no legal right to be here and Elle is entitled to some privacy, so I think you both need to leave."

Elle piped up: "They can stay."

Alderman looked at Elle closely: "Are you sure you want them to stay?"

Elle looked resigned: "Yes. I need someone here when you give me the bad news."

Alderman nodded: "As you wish."

She squirted the gel on Elle's belly and moved the wand around. The screen was facing away from us, but I could tell by the serious look on her face that the image wasn't going to be anything like the photo burning a hole in my pocket.

"Kelly, what's going on? Let me see."

Gently, she said: "Elle. There's nothing to see."

"What are you talking about? Let me see the screen."

Alderman slowly turned the machine around to face us. I focused on Elle's face as the comprehension slowly dawned.

She whispered: "Where's my baby? She was right there on Monday. We took a picture, remember?"

"I remember, Elle."

Elle tapped the screen: "She was right there. What's happened to her?"

"I don't know. Sometimes these things happen and we never find out why. I'm going to need to do a full exam. We need to get your pants off. You guys need to clear out now."

I stared at the ultrasound screen. Something looked weird to me and it wasn't just the missing fetus.

I tapped the lower left hand side of the screen: "What's that?"

Alderman glanced down: "That's the remainder of the placenta."

"I know that. What's _this_?"

I tapped right on top of a small dark spot and she leaned down to take a closer look.

Frowning, she said: "It looks like a blood clot."

"Exactly and what's a blood clot doing in her placenta?"

Alderman shook her head: "I don't know."

Elle propped herself up on one elbow so that she could take a closer look at the screen. "A blood clot? Is that what killed my baby?"

She peered at the screen and then flopped back down on the table. Tears streamed out of her eyes. "Why? First I get a blood clot in my leg, and now in the placenta. Why is this happening?"

I wanted to know the reason for that also, but my mind wasn't thinking properly. I was too emotionally involved in this to start thinking of medical reasons why Elle would have thrown 2 clots in less than a year.

Elle started sobbing and Wilson took her hand. He shot me a look that clearly said _'you should be doing this'_ but I was frozen to the spot. I had only just decided this morning that I wanted this rug rat and now it was gone. It was grossly unfair and I was unprepared to deal with my emotions, much less Elle's.

Alderman grabbed Elle's other hand: "Elle, I'm going to have to do a D & C. We have to get everything out or you could get an infection."

I added: "The placenta needs to go to pathology. I want it examined."

She looked at me harshly: "It's not your call, Dr House."

"What? You're just going to toss it in the garbage heap when we might figure out the reason why she clotted."

"It's just a clot. It's not going to tell us _why_ she clotted."

"I want a look at it. Save the specimen for me and I'll examine it."

She glanced at Elle who was sobbing on Wilson's shoulder now. I guess she decided it wasn't worth the argument in front of Elle given her emotional state, so Alderman answered shortly: "Fine. Now get out of here so I can take care of my patient."

Wilson tried to soothe Elle: "We gotta step out, but we'll be right outside, OK?"

She cried out: "NO! Don't leave me. I don't wanna be alone. Avi. I want Avi. Call him for me."

Wilson nodded: "I'll get your phone out of your purse and call him for you. Anyone else you want me to call?"

She shook her head sadly. "He'll call Gen. Just tell him to get here quick."

He nodded, picked up Elle's purse and stepped out into the hall.

Meanwhile, the nurse was draping a blanket across Elle's midsection. "We need to get your pants off, dear."

Elle nodded and reached under the blanket and assisted the nurse in removing her pants and panties. As the nurse pulled them off and dropped them into the belongings bag, I noticed that there was quite a bit of blood. I doubted that Elle was going to want to try to clean those clothes. I took up Wilson's former position by Elle's head and picked up her limp hand. She just lay there stoically as Alderman reached under the drape and performed a quick internal exam.

She snapped off the bloody gloves and tossed them into the biological hazardous waste can. "OK. I need you to sign some consent forms first. Then we'll take you to the O.R. and do the procedure. It won't take long, but you will be put under general anesthesia for it. You won't feel a thing."

Elle mumbled: "I don't know how my mother did it so many times, but I'm not that strong. I can't go through this again. Tie my tubes while I'm under. I don't want to take the chance of ever getting pregnant again."

I was dumbfounded that she would attempt to make that type of permanent decision in her emotional state. Out of Elle's eyesight, I vehemently shook my head at Alderman. Surely she wouldn't accept her consent for this procedure when Elle was in such a fragile state.

She frowned at me but went on to gently explain to Elle: "Sweetie, I can't do that tonight. You've lost a lot of blood; I really can't take the chance of doing a surgical procedure like that right now. Let's just do the D & C tonight and when you come back for your 2 week follow-up, we'll set it up then, OK?"

Elle nodded resignedly: "Whatever. Let's just get this over with."

I felt a strange sense of relief that Alderman was able to so quickly talk her out of the tubal ligation, for tonight anyway. I wondered why I considered it so important that Elle not get her tubes tied off. While my mind tried to process that, the sound of Elle's quiet crying brought me back to the present situation. I squeezed Elle's hand in the hopes of imparting some small measure of comfort.

She glanced up at me through her tears: "I guess you're happy now. This works out pretty well for you. No screaming baby to bother you, no teenager hunting you down 15 years from now. You just have to tell your mom that she's not becoming a grandma after all."

The tears came again and I stroked her hair and tried to comfort her. "Elle, we didn't get a chance to talk. That's not what I wanted."

She spat out: "Well, whatever _you_ wanted, it's too late now. The show's over. The janitor's about to mop the floor and turn off the lights. The reviews were so crappy that there will not be a repeat performance. It's just over."

Her sobs intensified and Alderman gave me a stern look. I was just trying to figure out what to say next, when the door burst open and Avi, Ricky, and Gen rushed into the room, with Wilson trailing slowly behind them. Avi scooped Elle up into a hug. She threw her arms around his neck and sobbed: "Avi, I lost the baby."

He rocked her gently: "I know, sweetie, I know. It's awful. I'm so sorry."

Even as he murmured words of comfort to Elle, his eyes were shooting daggers at me over her shoulder. Ricky and Gen looked none too friendly to me either. I realized that I was not wanted here so I left Elle to the care of her friends. I was too late. I should have found a way to tell her before the dinner with my parents. I shouldn't have waited. Then, at least, she would have known how I felt. Now, I guess it didn't really matter anymore.

Ignoring Wilson, I headed to the elevator and went up to my office. In the bottom drawer of my desk, there was a bottle of scotch that was calling my name.

_Friday June 8, 2007_

A fly was tickling my ear and no matter how many times I tried to brush it away, it kept coming back. Finally I opened my eyes and realized that I was face down on my desk in a puddle of drool. I scanned around my field of vision and noticed a male's midsection next to me. I tilted my head just a bit and was able to look upward enough to see that the torso belonged to Wilson. It wasn't a fly tickling my ear, but his finger in an attempt to wake me up.

Sarcastically he said: "Oh, good you're back amongst the living. I was wondering if I was going to have to call the code team or not."

"Very funny."

I sat up slowly. The room spun for just a minute, but then realigned itself. It was semi-dark; all the blinds were drawn. Had I done that last night?

I wiped the rest of the drool off of my chin and heaved a big sigh. "It really happened, didn't it? It wasn't just a scotch induced nightmare."

He perched on the edge of my desk and offered me a bottle of water. "Naw, it was real. Sorry."

I took the proffered bottle and took a couple of deep swallows. "How did you know I was here?"

"When you didn't show up for work by noon, Foreman decided to poke his head in here. Once you were discovered, they were too afraid to wake you, so I was summoned."

I closed my eyes and leaned back in my chair. "Jimmy the Brave-hearted."

There was a sudden intake of breath: "House, what's this?"

Eyes still closed, I muttered: "What's what?"

Insistently, he asked: "What's THIS?"

I reluctantly opened my eyes, which immediately widened in surprise at what Wilson was holding in his hand. I snarled: "What do you think it is?"

"Well, it looks like an ultrasound picture and since it has the name Kaplan on it, I will assume that this is Elle's ultrasound picture that was hanging on her fridge. What are you doing with it?"

I groaned: "I have a hangover. Do we have to talk about this now?"

"You don't feel half as bad as Elle does."

That woke me up. No longer caring to hide my feelings from Wilson, since he seemed to know about them anyway, I asked: "Did you seen her this morning?"

"Briefly, when she was on her way out the door. They discharged her at 10:00."

"They don't keep you very long for just a D & C, do they?"

"No, but I'm sure she was ready to go. I can't imagine it was tolerable being on the maternity floor and hearing crying babies, knowing that none of those were yours, and were never going to be."

I grabbed the ultrasound photo from him and shoved it in my top drawer. "How do you know it's never going to be for her?"

"She told me that she was planning on getting a tubal after she recovered from this. She said she couldn't bear to go through another miscarriage."

I sighed: "She's given up. She doesn't even want to try again."

He frowned at me: "Would you?"

"I think if I really wanted a baby, I wouldn't give up so quickly. If her mom had done that, Elle wouldn't be here."

I needed to talk to her and let her know how I felt. It was going to be even harder now. She is going to think that I wanted her back because the baby is no longer an issue between us. Nothing could be further from the truth. I wasn't sure how I was going to convince her that I wanted her back before all this happened. And why was I even thinking about wanting Elle not to have a tubal? Did I actually want to impregnate her again, on purpose this time? Did I want to have a kid with her?

I needed to put my emotions aside for now and concentrate on the medical. Maybe if I could figure out why she miscarried, there was a chance for a future successful pregnancy. I turned my computer on and while I waited for it to power up, I said: "I guess it's too soon for the pathology report to be back."

"I think they need 24 hours for that type of report."

I scrubbed my hands over my face. "Why would a clot have developed in her placenta? Seven months ago, she had a clot in her leg. It was a reasonable assumption that the DVT was caused by the birth control pills, but what if it wasn't? What if there is some other reason why her blood is clotting?"

I got up and opened the blinds between my office and the conference room. The ducklings were in their seats, staring, wide-eyed, at sudden opening of the partition. I grabbed my cane and limped to the whiteboard. "Differential diagnosis, people. Thirty-six-year-old female, 13 weeks pregnant, suddenly miscarries. It is discovered that there is a clot in the placenta. Female is otherwise healthy aside from having a DVT in her calf 7 months ago, that was successfully, treated with Lovenox. Family history includes a mother who had 6 pregnancies and only one live birth. Not sure how early the other miscarriages were, but the last time she was in at least her 6th month when she lost the baby. Her mother's sister went through a few miscarriages also, exact number unknown. Oh, yeah, our patient also had a 10-week miscarriage when she was in her early 20's. She was on birth control pills from her early 20's until 7 months ago when the DVT reared its ugly head. Ideas?"

Chase piped up: "Where's the file? Who is this patient?"

I waved my hand through the air: "Don't have the file yet. Waiting for the pathology to come back on the clot. Come on, people, any ideas?"

Cameron spoke up: "Are you bored? Why are you presenting such a simple case to us?"

I clenched my teeth to hide my exasperation: "Simple? Oh, you have a diagnosis, already? Well, speak up, my little chickadee."

She smirked: "Well, we can run blood tests to confirm it, but from the symptoms, I'd say the patient has APS. Does she have any heart valve abnormalities, chronic headaches, depression, or a rash on her wrists or knees?"

"Other than being depressed that she just had a miscarriage, she's not really depressed. She gets a few headaches, but I don't think it's a chronic problem. I don't know about the rash and the heart valve abnormalities."

Cameron stood up: "Well, we'll run some tests. We need blood to check her anticardiolipin IgG and IgM levels, and we'll look for a rash and run an echo to check her heart."

I thumped my cane against the floor: "That might be a bit of a problem."

"Why's that?"

I winced: "It seems that she is no longer a resident of our fine institution. She must have heard that 11:00 is check-out time or she would get charged for another night's stay at our glorious resort."

Wilson spoke up from the doorway: "They must have drawn blood last night. Maybe there is still some left, enough to run the ACL tests."

Cameron said: "We really need more than one level to confirm APS."

"Well, one is all we have for now, if the blood is still in the lab. Go check it out and run the test if it is still there."

They sat there staring at me.

"What are you waiting for? Go!"

Foreman spoke up: "We need the patient's name, House."

I sighed inwardly and looked down at the floor. "Kaplan. Arielle Kaplan."

I looked up at their faces. Foreman was surprised, but trying to hide it. Cameron's eyes were wide and her mouth had dropped open. And Chase looked angry. "Elle? Elle just miscarried? And you're here, stinking of booze, and not with her?"

Foreman smirked: "And that surprises you, Chase?"

Apparently it did. Chase stared at me for another minute and then stormed out the door, knocking his chair over in the process. Foreman shrugged and followed him. Cameron slowly stood up. "You didn't even tell us that you were going to."

I interrupted her before she could go any further: "Didn't want to talk about it. Still don't. Go run the blood if it's there."

I turned and limped past Wilson back into my office.

APS or Antiphospholipid Syndrome is an autoimmune disease, so naturally Cameron, my resident immunologist, would pick up on the symptoms. In APS, the body mistakenly makes antibodies that attack phospholipids, a type of fat, which is found in all living cells, including blood cells and the lining of blood vessels. When these antibodies attack the phospholipids, they damage these cells. This causes unwanted blood clots to form in the body's arteries and veins. This problem can be exacerbated by estrogen products so the pill was a contributing factor but not the sole cause of Elle's DVT.

APS also runs in families, and theorizing from the number of miscarriages that Elle's Mom and aunt had, it seemed quite possible that they had it also. One in 3 persons with APS have a family member who also has the syndrome. Ten to twenty-five percent of women with recurrent miscarriages have APS. I don't know why I didn't think of APS when I noticed the blood clot on the ultrasound. I can only guess that I was too emotionally involved with my patient to think objectively.

While the kids were off to the lab, I pondered what to do next. I felt fairly certain that Cameron's diagnosis was correct as the symptoms definitely pointed that way. Elle needed to be back on anticoagulant therapy immediately to prevent future clots. I needed to talk to her, about her probable diagnosis and about us. The medical part would definitely be the easier part of the conversation.

I called her apartment but there was no answer. I left a message asking her to call me. Her cell phone immediately went to voice mail, indicating that she had it turned off. I left a message, asking her to please call me. Wilson saw her checking out at 10AM; it was just 12:30 now. Where was she?

**_ELLE_**

I couldn't wait to get out of the hospital. Why, oh why, do they put women who have lost babies on the same floor as the new mothers? I thought cruel and unusual punishment was banned by our constitution, but apparently that didn't apply on maternity wards.

Avi had spent the night with me, sleeping on the reclining chair that he dragged next to the bed. It was reassuring for me to be able to reach out in my sleepless night and touch his hand. After swinging by my apartment to pick up some clothes for me, Ricky and Gen returned at 9:00 to check me out. Avi hounded the nurses until Kelly showed up to discharge me. She gave me a prescription for 5 days worth of Keflex to prevent infection and instructions to take ibuprofen if the cramps were bad. After being instructed on any major bad signs to watch out for, they finally let me leave. The nurse pushed my wheelchair down to the front door where Ricky was waiting with Avi's car. Gen took my keys and agreed to drive my car home for me.

On the way out, we ran into Jimmy. He gave me a hug and made the appropriate sympathetic noises, but I didn't really hear him. I just wanted out of PPTH and away from everything and everyone that reminded me of my baby. Jimmy made me think of Greg and I just couldn't think about Greg right now.

We followed Gen to my place and she parked my car in its usual spot. Then she ran in and grabbed me a few changes of clothes and my laptop, piling it all in the front seat with her when she returned. Avi insisted that I stay with them for a few days while I recovered and I was too drained to protest.

Gen got me settled on the couch with a pillow, blanket and a mug of tea, and then she had to take off for work. Ricky also had to leave for work, but Avi had taken the day off to stay with me. I protested; telling him I would be fine by myself, but he wouldn't listen. He sat at the end of the couch and put my feet in his lap, his arm stretched across the back of it.

His cell phone rang and he glanced at the caller ID. Smirking, he tossed it on the coffee table without answering it.

My curiosity got the better of me: "Who is it, Avi?"

He frowned: "You don't want to know."

"It's Greg, isn't it?"

He merely nodded.

I sighed deeply. "He wanted to talk to me last night. We were supposed to have dinner together, but then his parents dropped in. We had dinner with them, and then."

I gulped.

He squeezed my feet: "I know. You don't have to say it. You never found out what he wanted?"

I shook my head. "We didn't have time. Jimmy kept dropping hints to me that Greg had changed his mind. Right before you came in last night, I said to him that I guess he's happy now with what happened and he said it wasn't what he wanted. He did look upset." My voice trailed off as I tried to remember the whole conversation, but I was so upset at the time I wasn't sure what either of us had said.

"Elle, maybe he was upset. Maybe he did change his mind. But the important thing to ask is how do you feel about him now? He dumped you when you were pregnant; can you honestly say that you still love him? Do you want him back?"

I bit my lip: "I don't know, Avi. I'm so confused. So much has happened."

Avi urged: "You can't think about House right now and what _he_ wants. You need to concentrate on you and what _you_ want. And you just acquired 5 million bucks. You could do anything."

Sadly, I said: "Except the one thing that I really want."

He put his arm around me and pulled me close. "You really want a baby, don't you?"

I nodded: "I tried so hard to stuff those feelings down, but I really wanted this baby."

"Well, you could try again. Maybe the third time's a charm. It worked for your Mom. You were her third, right?"

I nodded: "Yeah. That's true. But I'm not sure if Greg is really interested in trying again, or if I want to do it with him either."

"Well, if he won't step up to the plate, I'll do it."

I gasped: "What?"

"Well, come on. I'm gay. I'm never going to have a kid unless I find a woman willing to share the child. We could get out the turkey baster and impregnate you, get that two-family house and raise our child together."

I was dumfounded: "You're serious?"

He nodded.

"What would Ricky say?"

"We've talked about kids and he'd like to have one too. I haven't discussed this exact scenario with him but I bet he would go for it. But, Elle, what's important is what YOU want. You could try to get pregnant again. But you also have money now; you could afford to adopt if you don't want to take the risk of having another miscarriage."

"That's true. I could do that. Give some unwanted child a home like I needed."

Avi shrugged: "Another option for you to think about."

There was too much to think about: Greg, trying to have another baby, adoption, a home of my own, and all that money. My head was starting to spin. I needed some time alone to figure how what I wanted to do. I needed a quiet, peaceful place where I could relax and think. Suddenly I realized where I wanted to go.

I asked Avi: "Would you hand me my laptop?"

He walked over to the kitchen table and snagged it for me. "What are you going to do?"

I explained to Avi that what I needed was to get away so I could think. I was going to go to my special vacation spot. My parents had taken me there on vacation when I was 7 or 8. It was a place that Tony had been with me, back in our college days, but all my other trips down there had been by myself. I had recovered from my breakup with Tony down there. I had healed from the damage that Charlie inflicted on me down there. I would have gone after the rape and David's rejection, but I was utterly broke and couldn't afford it. It was a quiet place where I could rest and regroup and I could certainly afford it this time.

Avi wasn't keen on me going so far away so soon afterwards, but I convinced him that aside from a little cramping, I felt physically fine. This was going to be a relaxing vacation, and I would heal and think about my future. He reluctantly agreed when I said I would take my laptop along and e-mail him every day.

I powered up my laptop and logged into one of the travel websites. I found a flight on Saturday morning at 9AM from Newark to Miami. It was expensive getting a last minute ticket, but I figured that I could afford to splurge now. Then I went to the Enterprise Rent-a-Car website and splurged again on renting a convertible. I thought how wonderful it would feel to have the ocean breezes whipping through my hair. After I confirmed that reservation, I called the hotel directly. They had one of the oceanfront suites available and I snatched that up.

Once I had all of that confirmed; I got Avi to drive me back to my place so I could pack. I wanted to get that done and get out of my apartment before Greg came home from work. I wasn't ready to talk to him yet.

I dug my suitcase out of the closet and threw it onto the bed. I threw jeans, shorts, bathing suits, tee shirts and flip-flops into my bag. I added a few toiletries, but figured on just buying sunscreen and the other necessary items when I got there. I knew there was a drug store and a grocery store within walking distance of the motel. And if I remembered correctly, there was a liquor store too. I could relax with a glass of scotch again now that I was no longer pregnant. Once I had everything in the bag, I looked around to see if I was forgetting anything. My eyes fell on Pookie, my stuffed purple dog that Greg had won for me that first time we went to the beach. I glanced back at my bag; there was room. I decided to take him along for company. As I reached across the bed to snag him, my eyes fell on the photo. I loved that picture of the two of us. We were so happy last Christmas. I grabbed Pookie and shoved him into the bag. I started to close it, and then I stopped. I walked around the side of the bed and picked up the photo and the card. I needed to decide how I really felt about Greg, and I wasn't sure if seeing his face and reading his words would help or hinder, but I decided to take the items with me. It was ridiculously sentimental of me, but I didn't care. I shoved the photo between a pile of shirts so that the frame wouldn't break, and I closed the bag.

I noticed that my answering machine was blinking with a new message. I scrolled through the numbers and saw that the call had come from Greg's office. I didn't want to listen to his message right now. Maybe I would call and check my messages in a few days when I felt better able to handle hearing his voice again.

It was almost 4PM when we left my apartment and I breathed a sigh of relief that Greg's car was not in his usual spot. I was managing to make a clean get-away.

_**HOUSE**_

The kids walked in about 3 hours later. Cameron spit out the report: "We had enough blood to run a few tests. Her anticardiolipin IgG was 20.6, definitely high, and her IgM was 3.9, which is slightly elevated. Her platelets were a little low, 148, and her VDRL was positive." She blushed slightly at that last remark.

I shrugged: "A false positive VDRL is common for patients with APS. Did you run the FTA-ABS test for confirmation?"

She shook her head: "We ran out of blood."

"Well, she doesn't have syphilis. It's just a false positive which helps to confirm her diagnosis as APS."

Foreman said quietly: "Are you sure about that?"

Angrily I said: "MY girlfriend does NOT have syphilis. Obviously we've had unprotected intercourse. Wanna test my blood to see if I'm positive?"

He continued: "She could be in the late latent stage where the chances of her passing it on to you are very low."

I shook my head: "Elle has been tested for STD's; she's clean. And I will not say that again. When we can get more blood, we will run the FTA-ABS for confirmation, just to put your mind at ease. Did you manage to run an ANA to check for lupus?"

Cameron took the floor again: "The ANA was negative. It's not lupus."

It's never lupus in my book, but a high percentage of patients with APS have it, so it was not impossible. However, I breathed a sigh of relief as it seemed like Elle had primary APS and it was not secondary to lupus or any other disease state. Now I just had to find her and give her the bad news that she needed to be on anticoagulant meds for the rest of her life. The good news is that she just might be able to sustain a pregnancy to term. Using anticoagulants during pregnancy will increase the fetus' chance of survival from around 40% up to 80%. I wasn't sure how she would take this news considering her statement last night about wanting a tubal, but I was going to make sure she understood the facts before she did anything permanent that she might later regret.

I dismissed the kids and turned to my computer. I checked up on the latest treatments for APS and decided which would be best for Elle if she wanted to get pregnant again. Then I hobbled over to my neighboring oncologist's office to confer with him.

Wilson was just turning off his monitor when I burst through the door. I flopped on his couch and exclaimed: "Elle has APS."

He froze with his finger on the monitor button: "Well, that would explain the blood clots and the miscarriages. And the family history makes sense too. So, aspirin and heparin, or aspirin and Lovenox?"

I nodded: "Yeah, I figured I would put her back on Lovenox again and add the aspirin."

He added thoughtfully: "If she is adequately anticoagulated, she has a decent chance of sustaining a pregnancy. I'm not sure if that's what you guys want, but the odds would dramatically improve."

I thumped my cane against the floor: "I don't know what she wants. I haven't spoken to her yet. She's not answering either of her phones."

"She may just be sleeping. Check on her when you go home. Take her some sesame noodles and Mike's chocolate ice cream. That will get you in the door."

"Yeah, it will go great with the Lovenox and aspirin main course."

I went back to my office and e-mailed all of this information to her OB. If Elle were to get pregnant again, she would need to be monitored very closely. Even on anticoagulant therapy, she could still clot and lose the baby, or worse. Her chances of having another DVT or even a stroke were disturbingly high. The meds would greatly reduce the risk, but it would still be there.

Once I finished the e-mail, I wrote Elle a prescription for a 10-day supply of Lovenox to start her off. I waited at the pharmacy for it to be filled and also grabbed a bottle of baby aspirin. Even if she really didn't want to talk to me tonight, at least she could get started on her meds and I would breathe easier knowing that she had started the treatment. I picked up Chinese food and some ice cream on the way home, as per Wilson's suggestion. The sight of her car parked in its usual spot filled me with both gladness and apprehension. I took everything into my apartment first. I put my junk away and stuck the ice cream in the freezer for later. Leaving the meds behind, I walked across the hall with the bag of Chinese take-out and knocked on her door.

A/N: Thanks everyone for all your reviews! I'm so glad that you are enjoying my fic.


	52. Chapter 52

Chapter 52

**_HOUSE_**

There was no answer when I knocked on Elle's door. I took out my cell and rang her apartment phone. I could hear it ringing through the door, but there were no footsteps or any other sounds. When the machine kicked on, I just hung up. I tried her cell next and it went straight to voice mail again. I closed my phone and slipped it back into my pocket. Figuring that she wasn't home, I pulled out my keys and opened her door. As I wandered around her empty apartment, I noticed that her laptop was not in its usual spot on the table. I pulled open the closet and saw that her suitcase was also missing. When I walked into her bedroom, I immediately noticed that our picture and the stuffed dog were gone. Two dresser drawers were only partially closed and I could see that some items were missing. She had packed some clothes and other personal things, but to go where? I couldn't imagine that she would take the dog and the photo if she were just going to stay with Avi for a few days. Where would she go? I sat heavily on the bed and set the bag on Chinese food down on the floor beside me. I rang Avi and Adam, leaving messages on both phones, stressing that it was medically urgent that I speak to Elle and to please have her call me. I couldn't believe that I had actually said 'please', but my worry was increasing with every minute. Where the hell could she be?

I picked up the food and limped back into my apartment. After I set the food down on the kitchen island, I flopped down on the couch. I was at a total loss as to what to do next.

**_ELLE_**

I had a couple more things to do before I left. I waited until after 4:30, when I was sure the boss would be gone for the day, and then I called his office to leave a message on his machine. I basically said that I had had an emergency medical procedure that necessitated taking 2 weeks off to recover and that my doctor would e-mail him the particulars. Then I fired off an e-mail to Kelly and asked her to e-mail Kirby to validate my being out sick for the next 2 weeks.

Kirby was not going to be happy about this. Ever since the incident with Rivera, I was on his 'naughty' list. No matter how hard I worked, he constantly seemed miffed with me. Since I knew this would piss him off, I needed to take one more step to make sure that I still had a job when I came back from Florida.

I rang Lisa Cuddy's office. Surprisingly at 5 minutes to 5 on a Friday, her assistant still answered the phone.

"Hi, this is Elle Kaplan. I really need to speak to Dr. Cuddy. Would you please see if she is available to take my call?"

Her assistant put me on hold for just a minute, and then Lisa herself picked up.

"Elle! James told me what happened. I'm so sorry."

"Thanks."

Softly, she said: "I've had one too. I know this is rough for you, especially with all the crap with House, but if there is anything I can do, just let me know."

"Actually, there is."

I explained to her how I wanted to go out of town to recuperate and the steps that I had already taken. She thought my need for a break was completely justified and agreed to intervene with Kirby if he became unreasonable.

"Elle, what about House?"

"I don't know, Lisa. He's one of the things I need to think about while I'm gone."

"James says he found him sleeping in his office this morning. There was an empty bottle of scotch in the trashcan. James said that House seemed upset by what happened and he was getting his team to do a DDX on why you miscarried."

Was he really upset or was I just his latest medical mystery? I was too tired to try to figure out his motives. "I don't know what to think, Lisa. That's why I need to put some distance between us and try to get some perspective on all of this."

"I understand. Take your time and get some rest. Don't hesitate to call if there is something I can do. And Elle, think about House. I really think he loves you."

I sighed: "I just need to figure out how I feel, and right now all I feel is numb. I need some time. If he asks about me, just tell him that. Thanks for everything and I'll call you when I get back. Say 'bye' to Jimmy for me."

I closed the phone without waiting for her reply.

**_WILSON_**

After talking to House, I turned off my computer, gathered my things and headed down to Lisa's office. It was almost 6:00 and her assistant had gone for the day, so I knocked once and then walked right in. She was stacking some files on her desk, but looked up and gave me a small smile.

I asked: "Ready to go? Want to go out to eat or do you want to get some take-out?"

"I'm not sure we will be eating together tonight. Sit down for a minute."

I was confused, but did as she requested.

She came over and sat on the couch next to me. "Elle called me about an hour ago. She's going to take 2 weeks off to recuperate."

"Oh, well, that's good, right? She needs some time to recover from that."

Lisa frowned: "She's going out of town to do it. She wants some space to think and she doesn't want to talk to House until she gets back."

"Oh, crap! That's bad."

"House is going to freak, isn't he?"

"It's not just that. He's figured out what's wrong with her. She has APS. She needs to get back on anticoagulants right away."

Lisa's hands flew to cover her mouth. "Oh, no!"

"Did she say when she was leaving or where she was going?"

"No, she just said she was going out of town."

I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. It went right to voice mail and I left an urgent message pleading with her to either call House or myself as soon as possible.

"She must have her phone turned off. It went straight to voice mail. All we can do is hope she checks her messages."

I buried my face in my hands and groaned. "House was going to pick up Chinese food and go over to talk to her."

Lisa sighed: "And she's not going to be home."

"He's going to freak. He's figured out what's wrong with her and he won't be able to find her. Oh crap, this is bad."

"You better go see him."

I nodded: "You're right. I don't think you should expect me for dinner."

"I'll pick up some Chinese. It will be in the fridge when you come home, no matter how late you get there."

I cupped her beautiful face in my hands and smiled at her. She had called her place 'home' as if I lived there too. I stayed there on the weekends, but during the week, I mostly stayed at my place. She had given me a drawer and part of the closet for my things so it wasn't liked I lived out of a suitcase when I was there.

Things between us were good. We rarely argued. And somehow I think a big part of it was that she 'got' House. She understood my crazy friendship with him because she was his friend too. He was not a dividing factor in our relationship the way House had been with my wives.

She brushed her lips on mine and then smiled at me: "Go take care of him. Keep him from going postal. Maybe one of Elle's friends can tell you where she is."

I nodded: "We'll make some calls. Hopefully we'll find her. I'll be home as soon as I can."

She kissed me again: "I'll be waiting for you."

I pulled her tightly against me and gave her a proper kiss before I left to try to keep my best friend from losing it.

**_HOUSE_**

The knock pulled me out of my malaise. I hurried to the door, only to be disappointed.

I growled at Wilson: "What do you want?"

"I have news but you're not going to like it."

I flopped back down on the couch. "Fuck. Spit it out already."

He sat down next to me. "Elle called Lisa around 5. She said she wanted to take 2 weeks off from work to recuperate and wanted Lisa to cover things with Kirby."

I nodded: "OK. She does need to rest, so where's the part I'm not going to like?"

"She said she was going out of town and she didn't tell Lisa where she was going."

I buried my face in my hands. "Oh, crap! Her car is here; that means she's flying somewhere. And that puts her at a higher risk for another DVT if she is on a long plane flight. Fuck! Where the hell would she be going?"

I got up and started pacing. It felt like needles were stabbing into my thigh and I needed a distraction.

"You don't have any idea where she would go?"

I shook my head. "She likes the beach and she likes New York City. She could be at any beach or up in Manhattan. She could be anywhere."

Wilson looked thoughtful: "She told Lisa she needed some time to think. I doubt she would go to New York if she wanted some quiet time to think. And she didn't take her car, so it's not a local beach."

He snapped his fingers: "Florida! Would she go to Florida?"

I shrugged: "I don't know. She might. And there's only about a million beaches down there so I wouldn't know where to start looking for her."

I continued to pace while Wilson sat on the couch, thinking with his chin propped up on his hand.

Suddenly he said: "Does Elle have a passport?"

"Yeah."

"Well, if you know where she keeps it, we could check and see if it is there. If it's gone, she went out of the country. If it's there, she's still in the states. I know it's not much, but at least it narrows it down a little bit."

I nodded: "True. And she has plenty of money now since she got her 5 mil, so she could go anywhere. Hawaii, Bermuda, Aruba, who the hell knows?"

Wilson stood up and slapped me on the shoulder: "Come on. Let's go check for the passport."

Grumpily I said: "Fine."

We went over to her place. I noticed immediately that the light was flashing on her answering machine, which means she had not picked up her messages. I went into the bedroom and headed straight to the closet. I pulled down the photo albums and took them over to the bed. I found the manila envelope tucked inside the second one and dumped the contents out on the bed. Her passport was there. I felt somewhat relieved that she hadn't gone too far away. Then I realized that she could go as far as Hawaii or California without a passport and my slight feeling of relief slipped away like smoke.

Meanwhile, Wilson was flipping through the photo album. "Her family must have really liked the beach. There are a lot of beach shots here."

I nodded: "Elle said that they usually went to Daytona Beach. It's not too far from Gainesville."

"So maybe that's where she went."

I shook my head: "Doubt it. Her parents were on the way there when they were killed. She told me that she never went back to Daytona again after that."

"Well, that's one beach down. Only a thousand more in Florida to try. One of her friends has got to know where she went. We need to get it out of them."

"I've called Avi several times. He never picks up. I tried Adam and it went straight to voice mail. I left messages with both of them and neither one has called me back."

I started tossing her papers back into the manila envelope while I thought. There must be some other way to find out where she was going. She has to use her real name to get an airline ticket. I needed someone who could convince the airlines to release that information or someone who could hack into their system. I needed a cop or a computer geek. I didn't know any cops, nor did I want to, but I did know a geek and I'd bet money that he would do a few illegal acts to help Elle. I pulled out my cell phone and scrolled until I found Bus Stop Guy.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

"You want me to do what?"

Bus Stop Guy screeched so loudly into the phone that I had to hold it away from my ear.

I repeated my request to hack into the airlines computer systems and find which flight Elle was taking.

He whined: "OK. First off, what you are asking me to do is highly illegal. Second, you don't know for sure that she is going to Florida, or which airport she is departing from or even what day she is flying. You don't even know which airline which means I'd have to hack more than one. The task is impossible. Even if I wanted to help, it would take days to find her."

I already knew that, but I tried to sound calm as I said: "Alright, let's narrow it down a little. She was still in town as of 5PM today, so I think it's safe to assume that she didn't leave today and will probably leave tomorrow. I checked on one of the travel websites and only American and Continental have non-stop flights from Newark to Miami, so let's try them first."

Wilson muttered: "She could be flying out of Philly too."

I hissed: "Shut up! Don't make this any more complicated than it already is."

Bus Stop Guy whined: "And just why should I do this for you? You take my money every week and you can't even remember my name."

I rolled my eyes and continued as calmly as I could: "Stan, you're not doing this for me. You're doing this for Elle. She's sick and doesn't even know it. She needs medication and I've got to get it to her. We had a fight and she won't call me back. I have to figure out where she's going so I can catch up with her."

There was silence for a moment. I wondered what shocked him the most: Elle being sick or me calling him by his name. I waited him out.

Finally he said: "OK. I'll do it for Elle. I don't want anything to happen to her. I'll call you back when I find something."

He hung up and I closed my phone.

Wilson was watching me carefully. "He's going to do it?"

I nodded. "But it could take hours."

"So what do we do now?"

I shrugged: "May as well eat the Chinese food."

I ate my Kung Pao Beef straight out of the container with chopsticks. Wilson dumped the Hunan Chicken onto a plate and warmed it up in the microwave. He grabbed us each a beer and we plopped on the couch to eat and watch "Die Hard 2." It wasn't a great distraction, but it would have to do.

At the end of the movie, he called Cuddy and brought her up to speed. While he was speaking to her, my cell phone rang. It was Stan.

I flipped open the phone: "House."

"Continental flight 368, leaving Newark at 9:05AM tomorrow. She has a return flight booked for June 20th and that flight number is 832, departing Miami at 2:35PM."

I hurriedly jotted the information down on a napkin. "Thanks, Stan. That's a big help."

"Tell Elle I hope she feels better."

"Will do." And I quickly closed the phone.

I looked at Wilson. "We got the flight."

"Great. Now what?"

"I intercept her before she gets on the plane."

Her flight's at 9:05. She needs to be there 90 minutes before the flight, so she needs to check it by 7:30. What time shall I pick you up in the morning?"

"Who says you're coming along?"

He smirked: "She can run faster than you, but she can't run faster than me."

He had me there. "Fine. Pick me up at 6:30. I don't want to miss this flight."

_Saturday June 9, 2007_

I set my alarm for 6:00. When it went off, it felt like a sonic boom went through the room, but I immediately got up and limped to the bathroom. After a quick shower, I dressed and was waiting for Wilson when he knocked at 6:30.

I growled: "What took you so long?"

"Hey, I'm on time."

"Whatever. Let's get going."

The ride to Newark was quiet. Finally Wilson put the radio on a classic rock station just to break up the silence. We pulled into short-term parking just after 7AM. I hooked my handicapped placard on the rear-view mirror and Wilson parked in the closest spot he could find. It still took 10 minutes for me to hobble into the terminal. Continental took up basically all of terminal C and there was one long line for check-in. Wilson took one side and I took the other. We paced up and down, scanning the crowds, but couldn't find her. Finally I pulled out my cell phone and called her. I hoped it would ring and give me a direction. Again it went right to voice mail. I cursed as I slipped the phone back in my pocket and a blue-haired old lady gave me a dirty look. I made a face and kept walking. Wilson and I finally met in the middle after scanning the entire check-in line.

He shook his head: "She's not here. Do you think Stan had the wrong information?"

I checked my watch: "It's just 7:30 now. Maybe she hasn't arrived yet. She still has plenty of time before her flight."

"You know, if she uses curbside check-in, we might miss her. She'll go straight to security and bypass this line altogether."

"Good point. You go out to curbside and I'll wait by security. If you see her, call me or hang onto her or something."

I turned and had taken just 2 steps towards security when I spotted her. Damn! She must have done the curbside check-in after all.

"Wilson! There she is! She's in line for security now."

He followed my extended arm until he saw her, and then he took off on a run. I followed behind as quickly as I could.

**_ELLE_**

I woke up way too early. There was no reason for me to be awake at 5AM but here I was, wide-eyed and unable to fall back asleep. I sighed and decided to get up. I showered, washed my hair and got dressed and it was still only 5:45AM. I finished my last minute packing and sat twiddling my thumbs for 10 minutes until I couldn't stand it anymore. I peeked in on Avi and Ricky; they were sound asleep. I tiptoed in and shut off their alarm clock. There was no need for them to get up just to take me to the airport. I called a cab and wrote them a note, explaining what had happened, promising to call or e-mail them when I arrived in Florida. When the cabbie honked his horn, I grabbed my bags and quietly left the apartment.

The cab dropped me off right in front of curbside check-in, so I took advantage of that and checked my suitcase there. It was 7:25 so I had plenty of time before my flight. I decided to go through security now and get that long line out of the way. Then I'd hit the food court for a fast food breakfast and the book kiosk for my trashy airplane magazines.

The line at security was rather long and just as I resigned myself to a long wait; they opened up another line and waved me over. I hurried over, kicked off my shoes and opened up my laptop for inspection. After my belongings and I went through the X-ray machines, I was cleared for take-off. I sat down, slipped my sneakers back on, and then grabbed my stuff to go for breakfast.

**_HOUSE_**

"Crap! We were so close!"

I cursed under my breath as Wilson and I watched Elle walk away. Wilson had run towards security, but before he could get there, another line opened up and Elle got through the checkpoint before we could catch up to her. There was no way that we could go through security without boarding passes.

Wilson asked: "Now what?"

Glumly, I answered: "I don't know."

We stood there, staring at her retreating figure until she was out of sight. I felt numb with worry; what if another clot was developing and the plane flight exacerbated it to fruition? I desperately needed to tell her about her medical condition above all else.

Wilson snapped his fingers: "I know! Let's have her paged."

It was a brilliant idea. We hurried over to one of the phones and dialed the operator. We explained what we needed and she agreed to page Elle.

Three minutes later, we heard Elle's name paged. They paged her 6 times within 20 minutes and yet she never called. Finally the operator called us back and explained that they could not continue to page her. Wilson thanked her for trying and hung up.

I was stunned: "How could she not hear the page? Why didn't she answer?"

He shook his head sadly: "I don't know, House. I just don't know. What should we do now?"

I shrugged; I was at a total loss as what to do next.

**_ELLE_**

I hate all the loud noise and commotion in airports. After I placed my order at McDonald's, I slipped on my ear buds and listened to my I-Pod while I ate my Egg McMuffin and sipped my coffee. Then I wandered over to the kiosk and bought several magazines and some gum. After I made my purchases, I headed down to my gate and found a seat to await boarding.

I had read through about half of People magazine when I noticed the people starting to mill around the gate. I can't hear any outside noise when I have my ear buds in, so I turned off my I-Pod and stuffed it into my purse. I gathered my things and when my row was called, I boarded the plane.

The flight was uneventful, and even arrived 5 minutes early. I caught the shuttle bus over to Enterprise and picked up my rental car, which turned out to be a red Mitsubishi Eclipse. I threw my stuff in the trunk, put the top down, and pulled my hair back into a braid. Once I was familiar with the car's cool accessories, I put it in drive and headed westbound on SR-836 towards the Turnpike.

The traffic was light heading south. People tend to drive down to the Keys on Friday nights after work, so I missed the heavy traffic. Once I got off the Turnpike and onto U.S.1, it was smooth sailing. I turned on some Jimmy Buffet tunes to get me in that island mood. When I reached the drawbridge over Jewfish Creek, I was officially in the Keys. I took a big whiff of the salty air and felt the stress start to melt away. The biggest thing that I missed about living up north was not being able to go to the beach 365 days of the year. I was going to make up for lost time these next 10 days.

From Jewfish Creek, it was only 7 miles to the motel. I had reserved suite #9, which was the bottom floor of a 2-story bungalow. It contained a queen and a twin bed plus a futon in the living room. It had a full kitchen and a dining table that would seat four. It was much bigger than what I needed, but it was the only one available so I had grabbed it. Plus it had the advantage of being oceanfront. From the window, I could see the Gulf of Mexico and the sea birds hopping around on the dock, hoping for a handout.

Once I was all checked in, I took my bags inside and quickly changed into shorts and a tee shirt. Sliding my feet into my flip-flops, I grabbed my wallet and walked across the street to the liquor store where I purchased a bottle of 12-year-old Glenlivet. Returning to my room, I found a glass in the kitchen cupboard, added 2 ice cubes and poured 3 fingers of scotch. I headed out to one of the lounge chairs and sipped my scotch as I watched the sun go down over the Gulf.

When it was completely dark, I decided to phone for a pizza. Since the rooms don't have phones, I fished my cell phone out of my purse and turned it on. It was a bit alarming to see 10 messages from Greg, 3 messages from Jimmy and 1 message from Avi. Oh, crap! I forgot to call him when I arrived. I grabbed the phone book, found the number for Papa John's Pizza and called for my pie first. While I waited for its arrival, I sat out on the porch and called Avi. I knew they were playing at Satchel's tonight, and he wouldn't get the message until their break, but at least when he checked his phone he would know that I arrived safely.

When the voicemail came on, I said: "Hey Avi, I'm so sorry that I forgot to call earlier. I hope you didn't worry too much. You know me; I was immediately distracted by the ocean. I'm all settled in and I'll e-mail you everyday, I promise. Love to Ricky and the gang. Bye."

I closed my phone, ignoring all the messages. I'd deal with them in a few days, after I had had some time to think about everything. Right now, all I wanted was a couple of slices of pepperoni pizza and a good night's sleep.

**_HOUSE_**

We didn't know what else to do, so Jimmy drove me home. As soon as I walked in the door, I headed directly for the bottle of scotch.

Wilson sounded quite alarmed as he exclaimed: "House! It's only 9AM!"

As I poured two fingers, I muttered: "It's 5:00 somewhere."

I slugged it back and started to pour another when he grabbed the bottle from me. I narrowed my eyes at him: "Give that back."

"If you get drunk, you won't be able to think of a way to find her."

"I can't find her. It's impossible now. She's on her way to Miami; what are we going to do? Call every hotel on Miami Beach? There are probably a hundred of them. She could be staying anywhere."

"Just sit for a minute and let me think."

I flopped on the couch and took out my pills. It was time for my morning dose of Oxycontin and I swallowed 2 regular oxycodones for good measure. Wilson frowned but didn't say anything.

He pulled out his cell, dialed a number and when the person picked up, he placed it on speakerphone. It was Cuddy on the other end.

"James, did you find her?" She sounded rather concerned.

"She got through security before we could catch up to her. We had her paged but she didn't answer."

I wasn't in the mood for this chitchat. "I don't need to hear the two of you rehashing this. Go to her place if you want to gossip about my failures. Don't do it in front of me and give me back my scotch or I'll go out and buy another bottle."

Wilson sounded exasperated as he said: "House. I'm not giving you back the bottle and I'm not gossiping. I'm getting Lisa up to speed so we can get a female perspective. Lisa, put yourself in Elle's shoes. If you had a very upsetting event and wanted to get away from everything for a few days, where would you go?"

"I don't know. I think I would want to go somewhere familiar, to a place that I had been before and felt comfortable at."

Wilson turned to me: "Think, House. Has Elle ever mentioned any particular place that she likes to go? Anywhere that she had been more than once?"

I thought for a few minutes and then I remembered a brief snippet of conversation that we had had months ago. "A funky little place in the Keys?"

Wilson and Cuddy both said "What?" at the same time.

As my memories slowly returned, I said slowly: "That weekend that we went down to Cape May. We ate at a restaurant that had island food and Elle was so thrilled. She said she hadn't had food like that since her last trip to the Keys. She mentioned that there was a funky little place that she liked to stay."

Cuddy squealed through the speaker: "I bet that's where she went. She would fly to Miami, rent a car and drive down from there."

Wilson asked: "So how many funky hotels do you think there are in the Keys?"

"Define funky."

Cuddy said: "Well I take that to mean, not a chain motel like Holiday Inn or a big fancy resort. It's probably some little mom-and-pop place that looks a little bit run-down, but to Elle, has character, or at least, good memories."

Wilson slapped my arm: "Let's go snoop in her place. Maybe she has some photos or a brochure of the motel."

I nodded; it seemed hopeless, but it was something to do anyway.

Lisa piped up: "I'm going over to help."

I yelled to the phone: "Grab some bagels and coffee on your way over."

The photo albums were still on the bed where I had dumped them yesterday.

Wilson and I each took one and started looking through them. Cuddy showed up about 30 minutes later, bearing bagels and coffee so we took everything out to the dining room table and ate while we flipped through the albums.

It was Cuddy who put it all together. She has a good eye for detail. Methodically she went through all the beach photos from Elle's childhood. Then she looked for similar photos in the other albums. Most of the beach pictures with her family showed them playing on a wide sandy beach where cars parked and drove right on the sand only a few feet from the water. Comparing those photos to pictures of Daytona Beach on my computer, we concluded that these were shots from that beach. There was one group of photos that were obviously from a different location. The beach was very small and there was a low dock extending 20 feet or so out into the water. There were 3 or 4 little thatched roofed huts lining the sand and long-legged water birds strolling amongst the people in the photos. There was a shot of Elle standing with her mother and aunt in front of a small bungalow. The strangest photo of all was one of Elle with a large macaw on her shoulder, standing next to a dinosaur statute.

Cuddy tapped her finger on the photo: "This is the place. This is the 'funky little place in the Keys' that she likes. I would bet money on it. And she has been back. Look over here."

In the second album were more recent photos. There were pictures of Elle with the gang, Elle with some guy who I assumed was probably David and then there were some beach scenery shots. I saw the similarities: the thatched roof huts and the dock. There was a photo of a long-legged wading bird walking down a row of bungalows and one shot of a large bird perched on the head of that same dinosaur statue.

I noticed something: "There's no pictures of her in this set."

Cuddy shook her head: "No, and no one else either. I take that to mean that she went down by herself. That's why I bet she went there again. She feels comfortable there, and relaxed enough to go there by herself. But one time at least, she did go with someone."

She tapped her finger on the last album.

In the third album, there were photos of Elle and Tony at college. I had quickly glanced at them that one day months ago, but had never returned to take a closer look. In addition to the graduation pictures, there were a small group of photos that I had missed. Here was a shot of Elle in front of a similar bungalow. There was Tony on a small beach standing next to one of the thatched roof huts. Elle was photographed on the dock, looking quite sexy in a tiny bikini, attempting to feed one of the birds.

Cuddy tapped her finger on the album: "She's been there with Tony. He will know the place. You need to ask him."

I shook my head. "He won't tell me. There's got to be another way to find out where this place is."

Wilson put in his two cents: "Maybe Avi or one of the other guys knows about it. Or you could ask Theresa. Maybe his cousin knows where he went on vacation with Elle."

I thought for a moment: "They're playing tonight at Satchel's. If I can't get Avi or Adam to answer the phone, I'll go over there tonight and talk to them."

"Can you wait that long?"

"If they don't answer the phone, I'll have to. In the meantime, I'll make copies of these photos and book a flight to Miami for tomorrow. If nothing else, I'll take the photos with me and drive to the Keys and look for a place like this. Someone down there will recognize these photos. How many places could have a dinosaur statute on their motel grounds?"

Cuddy and Wilson took off after deciding that they would meet me at Satchel's tonight. I guess they figured that I could use some moral support. What I needed was someone to hold me back from punching Avi or Tony if they refused to tell me where Elle was. I slipped all the pertinent pictures out of Elle's albums and took them off to the photo shop for express duplication. After that was accomplished, I returned home and booked a flight to Miami on Continental tomorrow morning. I made my return flight the same as Elle's. If things worked out OK, we could have a little vacation together. If they didn't, well, I would just change my flight. I reserved a car, packed my bag for tomorrow and then took a nap. I woke at 7:00, feeling somewhat refreshed. I tried calling Elle again for the 4th or 5th time today and still the phone went immediately to voice mail. I showered, dressed and headed over to Satchel's. I wanted to catch the guys before their first act.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Only Billy was at the bar when I strolled in. He glanced up at me and then went back to wiping down the bar.

I leaned on the bar, ordered a Grolsch and asked: "Are the guys here yet?"

He nodded: "They're in the back, but I wouldn't advise going back there. I believe you are _persona non grata_ with that crowd right now."

"I'm sure, but I have to speak to them. I need to find out where Elle went."

He shook his head: "I have no idea, but then I'd be the last to know. No one tells me anything cuz they know I'm incapable of keeping a secret."

I smirked: "Too bad they didn't tell you. It would make my mission here a lot easier tonight."

He handed me my Grolsch: "Good luck."

I gave him a nod and headed towards the back door.

There was a chorus of groans when I walked through the door. Adam called out: "What the hell are you doing here, asshole? You're not welcome. Get the hell out before we call the bouncers."

I held up my hand in a stop motion. "I know you're not thrilled to see me, but I have to find Elle. You need to tell me where she went."

Avi piped up: "And why the hell should we do that? If she wanted to see you, she would have told you where she was going."

Even Lenny got in on the act: "I think you should just leave. It's obvious that Elle doesn't want to see you. Just leave her alone, man."

I took a swallow of beer and then continued: "She probably doesn't want to see me right now, but I need to see her. I know why she miscarried. She has a medical condition that puts her at risk for more blood clots. She needs to get back on medication right away to prevent that from happening."

Avi continued angrily: "Oh yeah? Well, if that's true, why didn't you tell her that before she got discharged?"

"I didn't figure it out until late in the afternoon and by then, she had already checked out. She hasn't been home and she is not answering any of my calls. She's not taking Wilson's calls either. I can't find her and I need your help. It was dangerous for her to fly and I want to get her back on the meds before she flies home."

Avi looked worried now. He pulled out his cell phone and glanced at it. "She hasn't called me either. She was supposed to call me when she got there, but she hasn't. I left her a message about an hour ago, but I haven't heard anything."

I tapped my cane on the floor and tried to keep a leash on my patience. "Where was she going?"

Avi shook his head: "I don't know exactly. It's some little motel in the Keys. She's always gone there by herself. It's her little private vacation spot."

Well, at least I knew that Cuddy's theory was correct. We were on the right trail.

I asked: "And none of you have been there with her, or know the name of the place?"

Negative head shakes all around the room.

My next question was: "Where's Theresa?"

Ricky shrugged: "Getting us some drinks, why? She doesn't know any more than we do."

"There was one time that Elle didn't go there alone. Back in college, Elle went there with Tony." I went on to explain our theory about the photos.

Gen said slowly: "It does sound like it was the same place. You think maybe Tony told Theresa about the place?"

Adam interjected: "But that was years ago. I doubt she would remember anything about it. I mean she wasn't the one who went there."

"She may not know, but I bet Tony remembers."

Avi nodded sagely: "Ah, better for Theresa to ask him than you. He'd never tell you."

Just then the door opened. Theresa walked in, followed by Wilson and Cuddy. She glanced at me and then started handing out the drinks. "I should have known you were here once these two walked in. What's going on? You guys look way too serious."

Avi quickly summed up the situation. Theresa thought for a moment and then said: "I vaguely remember that. They went to the Keys for a few days at the beginning of Christmas break and then they flew up here for the rest of the vacation. I remember seeing their airline tickets and asking Tony why they flew in and out of Miami, instead of using Jacksonville, which is what he usually did. Tony had said Elle wanted to go to the Keys for a few days and that she had to go to this particular motel, which he thought, was a dump. No phones in the rooms, no pool and no room service. Definitely not his kind of place."

Hurriedly I asked: "Do you remember the name of the place?"

She shook her head: "I doubt he ever told me. He didn't care for the place so it's not like he would recommend it to me or anything."

Cuddy asked in a quiet voice: "Do you think he would remember the name of the place?"

Theresa shrugged: "It's been a lotta years since then."

She glanced at me: "You want me to ask him, don't you? You figure he wouldn't tell you even if he did know."

I nodded: "It's really important. I don't want her to fly again without getting back on the anti-clotting meds. She literally could throw another clot at any time."

She finished passing out all the drinks and stood with the tray pressed up against her chest, tapping her fingernails against the back of the tray. "I have to think of the best way to approach him. I can't just ask him the name of the motel. That won't work. Oh, crap. I'll just call him and tell him to get his ass over here because I'm having some 'business' issues. He'll show up for that. Then I'll get him in my office and we'll all gang up on him. We'll tell him how much trouble Elle is in and make him spill. If it were just for you, House, he wouldn't do it. But he cares too much about Elle to let anything happen to her. I'll go call him. And it's almost 9:00, you guys need to get on stage."

And with that, she turned and left the room.

The band went up on stage and we joined Ricky and Gen at the usual table. Fifteen minutes later, Theresa swung by the table and announced that Tony would be here around 11. Once he got here, she would steer him into their office and Billy would come and get us. We sat through the band's first set, but for me, it just wasn't the same without Elle there. Adam had made an announcement at the beginning of the set about Elle being sick tonight to explain her absence. I spent the 45-minute long set pondering exactly how I would approach Tony to give up the name of the motel.

The band finished their last song of the set and started to walk off stage. Avi called something to them and they all turned to listen to him. It was off-mike so we couldn't hear what he was saying. When Avi finished speaking, they all trooped off the stage, except for Avi. He walked to the edge, caught my eye and held up his cell phone. Then he jerked his head towards the back and exited the stage.

He must have gotten a call while they were playing. I motioned to Wilson and Cuddy and we all headed to the back room.

They were waiting for us when we walked in. Avi explained: "I had my cell on vibrate while we were playing. I felt it go off, but of course, we were in the middle of a song, so I couldn't get to it. It's Elle. I'll play the message on speaker so we can all hear it."

Suddenly Elle's voice filled the room and I was immediately overwhelmed with emotion.

"_Hey Avi, I'm so sorry that I forgot to call earlier. I hope you didn't worry too much. You know me; I was immediately distracted by the ocean. I'm all settled in and I'll e-mail you everyday, I promise. Love to Ricky and the gang. Bye."_

She didn't mention me, but that was OK. At least she was all right, but my desire to find her just increased exponentially.

Avi shut the phone and said: "Well at least she arrived safely and sounds OK so far."

Wilson said: "Theresa got Tony on the phone and said he'll be here around 11."

Adam nodded: "One more set to get through before the main act arrives."

I deliberately stuck to beer, although I really wanted a scotch or two. I needed to keep my wits about me so I could deal with Tony properly. Getting sloshed was not going to help the situation.

The guys played a longer set than usual. They were obviously trying to time their break for Tony's arrival. I could tell the moment he walked in without even turning around. Adam saw him first and then he turned and signaled to Avi and then to the other 2 guys. That song concluded the set and they exited the stage. As they headed towards our table, Billy approached and pointed towards the office. "Theresa's already in there with him. Good luck."

The three of us stood up just as the band walked up to the table. I nodded to Avi: "Let's roll."

To say that Tony was surprised when the 7 of us walked into the room would be an understatement. But his shock quickly changed to anger, which he first directed at Theresa.

"What the hell is this? You set me up. I don't want to see this asshole unless he's lying face down in a gutter somewhere."

He stood up and reached into his pocket. My initial thought was that he was going to pull a gun on us, but Theresa interrupted him before he could pull whatever it was out.

"Just shut up, Tony. Elle's in trouble. You need to listen to what House has to say and help him if you can."

Tony sneered: "Why should I help you? You're a piece of shit. You tossed your pregnant girlfriend away like a sack of garbage."

Quietly, I said: "She's not pregnant anymore."

His eyes grew wide: "What? She lost this baby too? When did this happen? Why didn't you tell me?" That last question was aimed at Theresa.

Theresa replied: "It just happened on Thursday night. And I knew you would go nuts so I thought it would be better to tell you in person and not in front of Nancy."

He closed his eyes and acknowledged that statement with a small nod. He collapsed back down in the desk chair and buried his face in his hands.

"Fuck. Fuck. FUCK!"

He slammed his hand down on the desk and Cuddy jumped a foot in the air at his sudden outburst.

He scanned the room and said: "So why are you all here to tell me this sad bit of news? Why did you say Elle is in trouble and you need MY help?"

I tried to remain calm as I spoke: "I figured out why Elle miscarried, but she checked out of the hospital before I could tell her. Now I can't find her. She is not taking any calls and seems to have her phone turned off."

He huffed: "She'll take my call." He pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. We waited patiently until we saw his angry look intensify when the call undoubtedly went straight to voice mail. He hung up without leaving a message.

He snarled: "So you figured out why she miscarried? Big deal. You're probably happy that she did since you didn't want the kid to begin with. So what is the big deal with this diagnosis and why are you so hopped up to find her now? You want her back because she's no longer pregnant or is the 5 million bucks a bigger draw for you?"

Several people in the room gasped at his statement. I clenched my teeth and my hands involuntarily fisted. I knew he was just baiting me, but I wanted to punch him so badly.

Wilson jumped in: "She has a condition called APS. It's an autoimmune disease that causes patients to throw clots. That's why Elle had the DVT and that is definitely the cause of this miscarriage and was most likely the cause of her other one."

Tony's face took on a pained look when Wilson said that.

I gripped my cane tightly and plowed on: "She needs to be on anticoagulants for the rest of her life to prevent her from throwing any more clots. The next time her body throws one, it could be in her brain and give her a stroke. She needs to start the treatment immediately, but she left town. We know she flew to Miami, but we don't know where she went once she arrived there. And she's not answering the phone. I need to go find her and get her started on the drugs."

He nodded slowly: "I can see that. But why do you think I can help?"

"We think you know where she's gone."

He snorted: "Why would you think that? I didn't even know about the miscarriage or that she left town. I haven't spoken to her since Tuesday when we gave her the good news about her lawsuit."

Theresa spoke up: "Tony, we think she went to the Keys, to a motel that she has gone to before, that one that you went to with her."

He snorted: "That little crap-bag dive?"

Theresa nodded.

He chuckled and shook his head: "Yeah, actually that makes sense. She's been there several times. I could never see the appeal in that place, but I guess she's sentimental about it. Her parents took her there once when she was a kid and she seems to like to go there when she's stressed out. I know she went there after all the crap with Charlie. I told her I'd give her some cash and she could stay at a nicer place but she just laughed and said that she liked it there just fine. She said the place was like a healing balm to her soul."

I asked: "So you know the place?"

He nodded: "I remember it."

I pulled out a few of the photos and tossed them on the desk: "Is this the place?"

He glanced through the photos and nodded: "Yeah. This is the crap-bag dive that she likes. I remember that stupid dinosaur statute. I mean, what the fuck is that for?"

I stuffed the photos back into my pocket and asked: "What's the name of the place? The Keys are 100 miles long. Where exactly is it?"

He shook his head: "It was a long time ago and to me it wasn't worth remembering. It was in the Upper Keys though, it wasn't that long a drive from Miami."

OK. That was a start. "Can you remember anything else?"

He scratched the back of his neck. "I remember it was on the Gulf side. We would sit out by the water and watch the sunset." He snapped his fingers.

"That's it. It's 'Sunset, something. Sunset Beach or Sunset Lagoon or something like that."

I felt my excitement rising; this was enough information to start a search. "Theresa, can you bring up Google on your computer for me?"

"Sure, House."

Tony vacated the seat and I did a Google search for motels in the Upper Keys. There were only 2 with the word 'sunset' in the name. I pulled up the website of the first one and when the photos appeared, Tony exclaimed: "That's it! You found it! Sunset Cove Beach Resort. Ha! Trust me, it's not a real resort. It doesn't even have a pool."

I took a quick spin around the website and closely examined all the pictures. It seemed to be a match.

Tony tapped the screen: "Yeah, see these zebras and dinosaurs? She loved those stupid statutes. I didn't get it at all."

Cuddy was looking at the screen over my left shoulder. "She went to this place when she was a little kid. That's the kind of thing a kid would love. This place has happy memories for her, back when her parents were still alive. This is where she went, House. I'm sure of it."

Avi piped up: "It makes complete sense. She went there when all the crap with Charlie was over. She went there after you two broke up. It seems logical that she would go there again after yet another sad event in her life."

Tony looked stunned: "She went there after we broke up?"

Avi nodded.

Tony slowly shook his head: "I didn't know that."

He swung around and stared at the computer screen again. He took control of the mouse and clicked around the pictures a few times. "See that big thatched roof hut thing? They call that a chickee. The Seminole Indians make them. Underneath the biggest one on the water, is a large swinging cushioned chair. Elle loved that spot. She could lie there for hours, swinging and watching the ocean."

He tapped the screen again. "This is where she is, House. I'm positive of it."

I was too, but I wondered why he was suddenly so sure. So I asked him.

Tony looked sad. "We went here after our miscarriage. We were supposed to go straight to New Jersey for winter break, but she cried and said that she had to go here first. I couldn't say no. I changed the tickets to Miami and we drove down to the Keys. We spend four days there before heading up to New Jersey for Christmas. She spent a lot of time lying in that chair and crying. She'd feed the birds and go swimming with those big ol' manatees. We'd take the paddleboat out and watch the sunset. After 4 days, she had a smile on her face and said that she felt well enough to travel on to New Jersey for the rest of winter break. I guess the place really did heal her."

He tapped the screen again: "She's there. Go find her."

I stood up and headed towards the door. "I'm leaving tomorrow. Wilson, pick me up at 6. I don't want to miss my flight."


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53**

_**HOUSE**_

_Sunday June 10, 2007_

Wilson got me to the airport in plenty of time. Security hassled me a bit about my cane, but finally declared it a non-lethal weapon and let me go on with it. I grabbed a coffee and an Egg McMuffin at McD's and a couple of magazines at the kiosk and limped towards my gate.

I like to fly first class as much as possible because the seats are wider and there is more room for me to stretch my leg out. I was pleased that there was no one sitting next to me and I could utilize that space too. The flight was uneventful and once I claimed my bag, I picked up the shuttle bus to get my car. The car rental agency gave me a map and directions to the Turnpike. Once it ended, it seemed that I would be right on U.S. 1 and I would just follow that down into the Keys. The motel was listed, as being just south of Mile Marker 100, so I hoped it would be easy to find.

It was a pleasant drive, not much traffic going south, but lots heading north. I realized that the weekend was over and people were heading back home from their little weekend getaways. I crossed over a drawbridge and caught a glimpse of the view. The water looked great. I noticed a small sign that said MM 107. That meant the motel should be only 7 miles ahead. My heart rate picked up as I thought about seeing Elle in just a few minutes.

I found the place with no trouble. There was a large sign saying 'Sunset Cove Motel' and I turned right into the driveway. Then I saw a sign pointing to guest parking so I steered my rental car over there and parked. I got out of the car and looked around. There were a lot of little bungalows just like the photos and next to the guest parking lot was a large thatched roof hut with the zebra statutes in front of it. What was the word Tony had for it? Oh, yeah, a chickee. There weren't very many cars around and I figured that the weekend people had already checked out. I headed towards the office to find her room, but there was a sign on the door saying that they would return in 30 minutes. I decided not to wait for them, and just wander around on my own.

I headed towards the water and I peered in the cabins as I went by. Some of them were obviously occupied, but I didn't recognize any of the belongings so I moved on. As I got closer to the water, I saw the chickees that Tony had described. Remembering his comment about how Elle loved to lie under the biggest one, I headed over there.

I saw some purple flip-flops on the ground next to the swing and I thought my heart would stop. I crept up to the swing as quietly as I could. Elle was sound asleep in the swing, curled up on her right side with a couple of magazines lying next to her on the cushion. I had found her. Such a feeling of relief flooded my body.

I stepped away and pulled out my cell phone. I hit speed-dial #2 and waited for him to pick up.

As soon as he said 'hello', I said: "She's here."

"Fantastic! How is she?"

"She's asleep in one of the swings. I didn't want to wake her. I just wanted to let you know I found her. Tell the others. I'll call you when I know more."

I closed the phone before he could say anything else. I limped back over to the swing and stared at her for a moment. Then I picked up the magazines and set them down on a nearby chair. I carefully climbed into the swing with her and lay on my left side so I could look at her. Elle looked beautiful and so relaxed in her sleep. How would she feel when she woke up and saw me? I gently brushed her hair back from her face and whispered, hoping it would enter her sleeping subconscious: "I love you, Elle. I'm sorry that I hurt you. If you'll take me back, I'll never let you go again."

I took her small hand in mine, relishing the feel of her warmth and settled in to wait for her to wake up.

**_ELLE_**

I woke up around 9AM with no immediate plans for the day except to find coffee. I threw on enough clothes to be decent and then wandered over to the office where they had a small continental breakfast spread. I merely grabbed a cup of coffee and continued walking until I hit U.S. 1. The Burger King was only a short walk away and I was in the mood for a nice croissant breakfast sandwich. I had leftover pizza in the refrigerator for lunch and that would take care of me until dinnertime. I bought 2 bacon, egg and cheese croissants and a big cup of coffee and headed back to the motel. I ate my breakfast, sitting tailor-style on the dock, throwing a few crumbs of bread to the pelicans. Once breakfast was eaten, I headed back into my room and put on my bathing suit. I soaked up some rays for a while and when I was good and hot, dove into the Gulf and had a nice swim. When the sun was directly overhead and I was steamy hot, I decided to take a break and have some lunch. I warmed up 2 slices of pizza in the microwave and ate it on the porch, staring at the sea. I felt more relaxed than I had been in weeks. I knew that I needed to think about Greg and everything else, but I had 10 whole days down here to do that, so I could take today off from thinking. After lunch, I grabbed a couple of magazines and headed to my favorite swing. The biggest chickee by the water had a large papa-san chair swing under it. It had a nice cushion and was quite comfortable. I read my magazines for a while, until I started to feel sleepy and then I closed my eyes for a nap.

I dreamed that I was with Greg and we were back at the Ritz-Carlton in Manhattan. But the room looked different; the window was much bigger and the view of the park was huge. It was like I could just reach out and touch the trees. We were lying in bed and staring at the view. His arms were wrapped around me and I was cuddled up tightly to his chest. My fingers were playing with his chest hair and I inhaled deeply to smell his manly scent. I felt happy; I was right where I wanted to be.

Then the bed rocked violently and I thought I would fall off the bed, but he held on to me until the room settled again. He kept telling me over and over: "I've got you. I won't let you fall. I'll never let go of you."

I yawned and started to drift in consciousness, but the dream still held me in it clutches. It felt so real. I swore that I could still feel and smell Greg. I felt his hand on my face and his voice saying: "I love you, Elle. I'm sorry that I hurt you. If you'll take me back, I'll never let you go again."

I slowly opened my eyes. Unless I was still dreaming or imaging things, Greg was right here in the swing with me. I stared groggily at him for a minute, then I touched his face and whispered: "Am I still dreaming?"

"Depends on whether you think seeing me again is a nightmare or not."

I stroked his cheek and ran my thumb over his lips. "You're really here?"

"Yes."

I blinked a few times, trying to completely wake up. "Hi."

He smiled: "Hi."

I licked my lips. No one knew exactly where I had gone, but yet Greg had managed to find me. How did he do that? And more importantly: why was he here?

I tackled the easier question first: "How did you find me?"

"It wasn't easy. Bus Stop Guy hacked into the airlines database and found your flight number, so I knew you had a ticket to Miami. Wilson and I tried to intercept you at the airport, but you slipped through security before we could get to you. We had you paged, but you never answered the page."

I shook my head: "I never heard a page, but I was listening to my I-Pod right up until I got on the plane."

He nodded: "That explains it. We tried to figure out where you would go and I was sure you would head to a beach. We looked over your photo albums and found several sets of pictures of this place, so it seemed like a promising location. Avi and the rest of the gang knew that you came down to the Keys, but they had no idea exactly where. So we cornered Tony."

I had to laugh: "Tony? You got it out of Tony? I'm surprised that he remembered this place. It was definitely not his kind of resort. He hated it and only put up with it because I was in such a fragile emotional state."

Gently, he asked: "Like now?"

I looked away, bit my lips and just nodded.

Greg went on: "Tony remembered enough details that I was able to Google some places and we matched up the photos. When he saw the website for this place, he immediately recognized it. So I flew down."

"And here you are."

He nodded: "And here I am."

I stared into his big blue eyes. They seemed sad and anxious, yet his presence immediately made me feel warm and safe again. I wanted to remove his shirt so I could burrow into his chest, like old times. I wanted him to wrap his arms around me and comfort me over the loss of our baby, but I wasn't sure he could give me that.

It was time for the bigger question: "Why did you come?"

He smiled slightly: "You wouldn't take my calls, so the doctor had no choice but to make a house call."

I gave him a small smile: "Well, what was so important that it couldn't wait until I got back from my little trip?"

He frowned: "There are so many things that I need to tell you. And I don't know where to begin. But I definitely couldn't let you take another flight without telling you this first."

He took my hand and pressed it to his lips and then placed it on his heart. "You were right. You do have the same condition that your Mom had, or at least I'm pretty sure that your Mom had it too, cuz it does runs in families."

"What are you talking about?"

"I know why you miscarried. I know why you got the blood clots and they will continue to happen unless you get back on anticoagulants. You need to be on them for the rest of your life. But the good news is there is an eighty percent chance of having a successful pregnancy on the meds."

I sat up: "What the hell are you talking about? I need to be on anticoagulants again? For the rest of my life? And what's this about having another baby? You didn't want the last one and now you're telling me that my chances are better on the meds. Why do you care? You sound like you want me to get pregnant again."

I couldn't believe it when he nodded: "I do. When you get stabilized on the meds, I'd like to try again. That is, if you still want to be with me and if you want to try again."

My chest constricted: "NOW you want to have a baby? Why now? Why are you telling me this now? After I lost our baby? Are you just trying to be cruel?"

"No! No, Elle. Really. That's what I wanted to tell you Thursday night but my parents interrupted."

I said disbelievingly: "You changed your mind? You were going to tell me that you changed your mind?"

He nodded: "Yes. I was going to tell you over dinner and see if you would take me back."

_TTT._ He really _was_ going to apologize.

Sadly I said: "You wanted to come back?"

"Yes. I still do."

My lip started to tremble and I knew I was on the verge of a meltdown but I had to get the facts straight: "So let me see if I got this. You had a sudden epiphany and decided that you wanted me back and you wanted the baby. But before you could tell me, your parents showed up and then I miscarried. Now you have figured out what's wrong with me, some kind of chronic disease, and I have to take medication for the rest of my life. With treatment, I have a good chance of a successful pregnancy and you actually WANT to knock me up. Did I get that right?"

He nodded: "Yes. I love you and I want you back in my life. If you want to try to have another baby, that would be a delightful added bonus. If you don't want to try again, I understand. But I want _us_ back again, if you'll have me."

This was just way too much to process at one time and I did the only thing I could do at the moment. I burst into tears. Greg wrapped his arms around me and I burrowed into his chest, sobbing my eyes out.

**_HOUSE_**

I think I gave her too much information to process at one time. Elle burst into tears but at least she let me hold her and stroke her hair as she cried.

When her sobs subsided, I kissed her forehead and murmured: "Too much information?"

She nodded.

"OK. Let me start over. Remember when you asked why you got a blood clot in your placenta so soon after having one in your leg?"

"Yes. Lisa told me that you were running a DDX on me with your team. Was that true?"

"Yes. Cameron figured it out right away, but we ran some blood tests to confirm. I'm 98% sure that you have APS. It's an autoimmune disease and it runs in families. I'm pretty sure that your Mom and your aunt had it too. It explains all the miscarriages and your DVT."

"But I thought the DVT was caused by being on the pill."

"The pill wasn't the true cause. You could have had the DVT anyway because of the APS, but the estrogen from the pill aggravated your condition. You need to avoid anything, like estrogen products, that has the potential to cause blood clots. You will need to be careful on long plane flights and car rides. And you need to take anticoagulants again. I brought them with me. You need to take one baby aspirin daily and resume the Lovenox shots again. That's one of the reasons that I was so desperate to find you. I wanted to get your started on the meds before you flew back."

Sadly, she said: "I'm going to be a human pin cushion."

"I'll be as gentle as I can when I give you the shots."

"You always were. So you were worried about me throwing another clot and that's why you were in such a hurry to find me?"

"Well, that's not the only reason I wanted to see you, but I thought it would be the easiest one to process at the moment."

"Hmmm. I have an autoimmune disease and have to be on medication for the rest of my life. And that's the easy part?"

In a soft voice, I said: "It's the easiest for me to explain."

"Of course. It's easier to explain the medical, because it is scientific facts, than it is to try to explain the emotional because it is not logical, is it Mr. Spock?"

I was surprised by the harshness of her words. Before I could formulate a reply, she jumped out of the swing. "Come on. Let's go for a swim. I can't think about all this now. Did you bring some swim trunks?"

I nodded: "They are in my bag, in the car."

"Let's go get your bag."

She extended her hand and I let her help pull me out of the swing. I could have done it without her help but I wanted to touch her again, even for the briefest moment. Elle slipped on her flip-flops and walked with me to my car. I popped the trunk and took out my bag while Elle grabbed my backpack.

"That's a big bag, cowboy. Were you planning on staying for a while?"

_Fuck me; she called me cowboy_. Maybe there was hope after all. "I wasn't sure, sweetheart. I thought I would be prepared, just in case."

She shrugged and shouldered my backpack. She turned and headed back towards the beach and I followed in her wake. Her bungalow turned out to be the closest one to the dock and there was a sporty little convertible parked next to the building.

I pointed at it: "You rented that?"

She smiled: "Yeah, it's fun. I can't wait to drive all the way to Key West with the top down. Going over the Seven-Mile Bridge should be a blast."

Even though I had no idea what the Seven-Mile Bridge was, I answered: "That sounds cool, sweetheart."

We walked inside the little bungalow. I could see why Tony with his high standards would think that the place was beneath him. The place looked liked it had been furnished with thrift store rejects and had a rather campy style. There was a large painted mural on the living room wall; it looked liked an African scene of lions on the veldt. It was a poor rendition, liked a cheesy paint-by-number set. There was no carpeting at all, the floor was all tile; and the air conditioning was a small unit set into the wall instead of a central air system. There was a cheap looking dining room table with 4 chairs and a TV that was too small for the size of the room, but there was also a full kitchen with a large refrigerator, stove, microwave oven and a coffee pot. The living room's futon and chair faced the big window that gave us a nice view of the ocean.

Elle dropped my backpack on the futon and I took my bag into the bedroom so I could change into my swim trunks. I wasn't sure what was going on, if she was inviting me to stay with her or not. I decided to let her call all the shots and I could sleep on the futon in the living room or find my own room if necessary. The bedroom was a strange arrangement. It was a small room with a queen sized bed and a small twin bed set perpendicularly at the foot of the queen bed. On one side of the queen bed was a wicker chest with a small TV sitting on top of it. On the wall behind the TV was another mural; this time it was of colorful parrots and most likely done by the same artist as the living room mural. On the other side of the queen bed was a small nightstand with a lamp. I wasn't completely surprised to see the purple dog planted right in the middle of the bigger bed, but I was stunned to see our photo propped up on the nightstand. Still, it gave me another small measure of hope in salvaging our relationship.

I quickly changed into tee shirt, swim shorts and some sandals. She had a couple of towels ready for us and we headed out to the dock. She dropped the towels and stripped down to her bathing suit. "It's really shallow for a long way's out, so it's easier to just jump in from here." I followed her example, stripped down to my shorts and jumped in behind her. With everything going on in my life lately, I hadn't made it to the gym in about 3 weeks. It felt good to be swimming again. I swam out for a distance and then turned around and came back to where Elle was floating on her back near the dock. I imitated her and flopped over on my back. Our hands bumped and she grabbed on. We lay on our backs for a while, staring at the sky and holding hands.

After a while, she piped up: "Hungry? The beach always gives me an appetite."

"Yeah, I could eat. I haven't had anything since McDonald's at the airport this morning."

"Wanna go shower and eat?"

"Sounds good." She swam over to the ladder and I followed. She climbed up the ladder and I managed to ascend using my arms and a kind of hopping motion. My right leg didn't enjoy putting all of my weight on it, but I made it. Elle tossed me one of the towels and I dried off a bit before grabbing the rest of my stuff and following her into the bungalow. I let her shower first while I dug out some clean clothes and her meds. I heard the water turn off and in a few minutes Elle wandered out into the living room wrapped up in a towel, combing out her long hair.

"You can go on in. I'll dry off and get dressed while you're in there. What's all this?" She pointed to the aspirin bottle and the box of Lovenox that I had placed on the dining room table.

"I brought your medications with me. You need to take one baby aspirin a day and Lovenox 50 mg twice a day, like you were doing before."

She nodded: "So I should start tonight?"

"Yes. The sooner, the better. Have you had experienced any unusual symptoms? Any difficulty breathing or calf pain?"

"No, not at all. I feel pretty good. I had a little cramping yesterday so I took some ibuprofen for that, but I didn't have any cramps today. And I'm taking Keflex to prevent infection."

"That's good."

I cupped her cheek and kissed her forehead. Then I bent lower and brushed her lips with mine. As I pulled back, I could see the confusion in her eyes. I was moving too fast; I needed to let her set the pace.

"I'll just go get cleaned up."

She nodded, staring down at the floor.

Cursing my impatience, I headed into the shower. I washed up quickly and got out. I dried off in the small bathroom and with towel wrapped around my waist, walked out into the bedroom. The room was empty, so I put on my clothes and joined her in the living room.

Elle was casually dressed in a red tank top and short denim skirt, which really showed off her legs. Her hair was neatly braided in one long braid down her back.

"Ready? I'm going to take you to one of my favorite places."

"Sounds good."

We took Elle's convertible and I could see that she was having fun driving it. It was a pleasant evening, not too hot for June and with the top down, the breeze kept us nicely comfortable. It was easy to see why she had braided her hair. The wind would have had it tangled in knots in no time.

We were on the road for only about 2 miles when she pulled into a parking lot on the right.

I stared at the sign and said: "The Fish House? We're going to eat fish?"

She giggled: "Well, we are in the Keys. Lots of fish down here, but I'm sure they have some landlubber grub for you."

We walked in the door and were seated right away. I glanced at the menu. It was mostly fish with a few other options. I quickly settled on a fried shrimp and baby back ribs platter.

Elle teased: "See, you like some fish. I gotta introduce you to island cuisine."

When the waitress came over, Elle ordered some appetizers for us to share, and then she ordered baked grouper stuffed with crabmeat for her entrée. We both got a bottle of Heineken to drink. The appetizers quickly arrived. Elle had ordered a smoked fish dip, couch fritters and a small bowl of couch chowder for us to share. After trying everything, I had to admit it was all quite tasty.

Elle smiled: "I thought you would like it once you tried it. You can try some of my grouper too."

I smiled back: "I'll let you have one of my shrimp."

She teased: "One? Only one?"

I grinned back at her and took her hand. She stared at our hands for a moment and then looked away.

_Idiot! Too fast again!_ I gave her hand a little squeeze and then slowly pulled away. Fortunately the waitress arrived just then with our entrees.

After we talked about the food, we quickly ran out of conversation, a first for us. As my brain scrambled for some topic to talk about, Elle suddenly exclaimed: "Crap! I forgot to e-mail Avi today. He's going to kill me." She went on to explain how the motel doesn't have wireless Internet, and that she needed to take her laptop to the local coffee shop to e-mail him.

Hesitantly I said: "Elle, when I arrived, I phoned Wilson to let him know that I'd found you. He was going to call everyone."

"So everyone knows where I am and that you're here?"

"Yeah, is that OK?"

She shrugged: "I just like to think of this as my special place. My little piece of paradise. I know it's pretty simple but I like it."

"Am I intruding on your space? I could leave if you want. I don't want to disturb your vacation. I just wanted to."

I couldn't finish my thought. I badly wanted to stay, but not if Elle was going to pay the price. I had already made her suffer enough.

"You want to stay, don't you? You want to talk about stuff?"

I nodded. "I want to stay, but I'll leave if you want. I'll get a different hotel or I'll go back to Princeton if you want me to completely clear out. You know what to do with the meds and I guess we could talk when you get back."

She looked down at her plate, using her fork to play with her food. Finally she said: "Stay tonight. You can sleep in one bed and I'll sleep in the other. Let me see how I feel in the morning, OK?"

"Yes, that's fine. Thank you."

Elle continued to play with her food. "Did you tell your parents yet?"

I had completely forgotten about telling my parents. I pushed my plate away, the meal half-eaten. "No. I don't want to tell them via e-mail. I'll tell them when they get back."

"That makes sense."

Elle glanced up and saw my plate. "Are you full, already? They have some great key lime pie here. I really think you'd like it."

"I was just taking a break. The pie sounds really good."

I pulled my plate back towards me and ate a couple more ribs. I couldn't help smiling when Elle stole one of my shrimp.

I teased: "Naughty girl." I reached over and speared a big lump of crabmeat stuffing. Her grouper dish wasn't half bad, but I still preferred beef any day.

We needed some conversation. I asked Elle to tell me something about the Keys and she launched into quite a tale. She told me the story of Henry Flagler and his desire to build a railroad connecting Key West to the mainland. The project took 5 years and fifty million dollars and that was in 1906 dollars. Then she spoke about the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 that killed over 500 people. The winds were estimated to be 200 MPH and the tidal surge was 18 feet. The train, the tracks and homes were washed out to sea and the train line was never rebuilt. The Overseas Highway was built using many of the bridges of the former railroad and in 1938; people started driving over the ocean to reach these islands.

When she finished her story, Elle said: "I guess I bored you with all that history."

"Not at all, sweetheart. I always thought of Florida as one big swamp and the original settlers here had to be true pioneers to put up with the mosquitoes and the humidity. I don't think I could have survived."

"You should see the Everglades while you're down here. It is really amazing. And the Seven-Mile Bridge is really an engineering marvel."

I smiled at her: "You really love it down here, don't you?"

She smiled shyly and nodded.

The waitress brought our key lime pie and it was as delicious as promised. When we had finished eating, I paid the check and we drove the short distance back to the motel.

Elle excused herself for a few minutes to go call Avi. She took her phone and said in one of the chairs down by the water. I took advantage of my privacy to phone Wilson.

He answered immediately: "Hey, how's it going?"

"Not sure. We talked about the medical and I think she's still digesting that. Then I blurted out all my feelings at one time and I think I completely overwhelmed her."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because I made her cry."

"Oh." After a pause, he asked: "So what's the plan now?"

"She's letting me stay the night. I'm sleeping in the other bed and she'll decide in the morning if she wants me to stay longer or not."

"Well, at least you get one night. Is the place as seedy as Tony described?"

"It's funky, but not in a bad way. I can see why she likes it even without taking into account the emotional connection."

"Well, good luck and keep me posted."

"You're number one on my call list, Wilson."

He chuckled: "I AM your call list, House." With that parting remark, he hung up.

**_ELLE_**

When we got back to the motel, I excused myself to call Avi. Cell phone in hand, I headed down to the big swing and crawled into it.

He answered on the second ring: "Hey sweetie, how goes it?"

"Avi, I'm sorry I didn't e-mail you. I got sidetracked by someone."

"Someone with a big mouth and a big cane? Yeah, Wilson called and told us that House found you. How are you handling it?"

"I don't know. I guess he told you that I'm sick."

"Yeah, he said you needed to be on medication. That's the only reason why we helped him find you. Otherwise, we would have told him to piss off."

"I can't believe I have an autoimmune disease. And Greg thinks that my Mom had it too and that's why she had all the miscarriages."

"He said it runs in families, so it does make sense."

"Avi, I don't know what to think. I'm so confused. First he tells me about the APS and then he tells me that with the meds I have a good chance of having a baby. And he says he still loves me and wants me back. He says he's changed his mind and he wants a baby now."

I started crying.

Avi said gently: "Elle, sweetie, it doesn't matter what he wants. What do you want? Do you want him back? Do you want a baby? And if so, do you want the baby with him? You have to decide what's best for _you._"

"Avi, it's only been a couple of days. I can't think straight."

"Of course not, sweetie. You just lost a baby that you really wanted. You need to take some time to mourn your loss before you can move on. If House loves you, he'll understand that and give you the space you need to heal."

I sniffed: "He says he loves me and wants me back and if we have a baby, it will be an added bonus. But Avi, what if we both want a baby and I can't give him one. It would be just like Tony all over again."

Firmly, Avi said: "No, it wouldn't. House is not Tony. House isn't hung up on his own gene pool the way Tony is. If you find that you can't have a baby, you could adopt and I think House would be cool with that. But Elle, first and foremost, the man said he loved YOU and wanted you back; the baby is a bonus round for him. He wants you most of all."

"I don't want to fail again, Avi. I don't want to disappoint him like I disappointed Tony."

"Oh, sweetie, you can't think of it that way. You didn't fail. There's a medical reason why you miscarry and maybe, just maybe, you'll be able to overcome it. But House loves you and I think you really do love him. So this is what you have to do. Are you going to listen to your big brother?"

I smirked: "Yes, O Wise One."

He chuckled and then turned serious: "Mourn your loss. Cry and scream and get it out of your system. Then take a good look at House and decide if you still love him and want him in your life. That's really the first step you have to take and then decide about any future offspring later. You just can't decide everything at once. Take it one step at a time, OK? Give yourself some time to heal."

I gulped: "OK. You're a good big brother. Give my love to Ricky, OK?"

"I will. You know we love you. Call anytime."

"Thank you. Love you. Bye."

"Bye, sweetie."

I closed the phone and sat, staring at the water for a while. He was right; it was just too much to decide right now. I needed to mourn first, and then make decisions about Greg and the money and all of that. I wasn't sure if I could mourn with Greg around; I didn't know if he would understand or be supportive of my sorrow. Maybe I should tell him to go home tomorrow. I decided to sleep on that and decide in the morning. I climbed out of the swing and headed back to the bungalow.

When I returned to the room, Greg had changed into, what I guessed passed for pajamas, an old tee and some loose boxers. He had found my bottle of scotch and poured us each a small glass. He was watching an old movie on TV, but switched it off when I walked in.

He peered at me closely: "Are you OK?"

I nodded. "So I guess we should do my shot, huh?"

"Sure, we can. You wanna put on your pajamas first and then I'll give it to you?"

I nodded and went into the bedroom to change. I slipped out of my clothes and put on a cami top and some boxers. When I returned to the living room, he was already preparing my shot.

"Ready?"

I nodded and turned around, pulling my shorts down far enough for him to inject me. He rubbed my hip with an alcohol swab and quickly gave me the shot. I felt a slight prick but it didn't hurt. He really was very good at that.

I turned around and watched as he disposed of the syringe in a small needle bucket that he must have swiped from the hospital.

Softly, he inquired: "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No, you were very gentle."

His eyes were full of emotion and I wondered what he was thinking, but I was having enough trouble with my own feelings and I wasn't sure that I could handle his too.

"Shall I take my aspirin now too?"

He nodded and handed me the bottle. I shook one tablet out and popped it in my mouth. It was a chewable baby aspirin so I didn't need water to swallow it.

Now that the medicine stuff was over with, we stood there awkwardly next to each other. Then we both started speaking at the same time.

"Shall we watch,,"

"Did you want to,,,"

We both smiled shyly at each other and simultaneously said: "You go first."

After we had a small laugh about that, he said: "Ladies first."

"I was just going to ask if you wanted to watch a little TV before bed."

"That's just what I was going to ask you. That's fine."

We sat at opposite ends of the futon and I handed him the remote. He looked at me questioningly as if to say 'are you sure' and I nodded. I didn't really care what we watched; I just wanted a distraction for another hour or so until I felt sleepy.

Greg flipped the channels for a few minutes and then he said: "Hey. _'Men in_ _Black'_, is that OK?"

A nice light comedy was right up my alley. "Yep, that's good."

We both settled into our end of the futon to watch the movie. Greg lifted his legs up onto the coffee table and I stretched mine along the length of the futon, my feet almost touching his leg. He absentmindedly rubbed my feet as we watched the movie and I let him, enjoying his touch.

When the movie ended, we clicked off the TV and turned off the lights in the living room. I let Greg use the bathroom first and then I went in to brush my teeth. When I came out of the bathroom, he was just standing there.

"Um, I wasn't sure where you wanted me to sleep."

I grabbed Pookie and said: "Here. You take the big bed and I'll sleep over here."

Greg protested: "I don't want to kick you out of your bed. You've been sleeping here and I can sleep over there."

"No, this bed is too small for you. I'll be fine here. You can stretch out better in this bed."

I climbed into the twin bed and propped Pookie against the wall at the head of the bed. "See, I'm good here."

He nodded sadly and climbed into the queen bed. When we were both settled, he turned off the lamp.

"Good night Greg."

"Good night sweetheart. Sleep well."

"You too."

Our conversation was stilted and it felt awkward to have him in the same room but not in the same bed. It felt so strange to not be cuddled up in his arms as I drifted off to sleep. Now that it was dark and he couldn't see me, I pulled Pookie away from his spot and hugged him to my chest, but he was a poor substitute for Greg.

I rolled over and faced the closet, feeling sad and lonely in my little bed. Despite Avi's advice to take one step at a time, my thoughts were swirling in my brain, wondering what to do about Greg and the money and if I should try to have another baby. I felt the pressure building up and just knew that a bout of tears was soon to follow. I had cried myself to sleep every night since I had lost the baby. I kinda hoped Greg would fall asleep quickly so that he wouldn't hear me. Suddenly I thought of the ultrasound picture hanging on my refrigerator back home. What should I do with that? Should I ask Avi to throw it away before I came back so I wouldn't have to see it again? Should I slip it into my photo album so I could remember her at a later date when it wasn't quite so painful? Just thinking of the photo made me so sad that my lip quivered and hot tears started to leak out of my eyes. I wiped them away, but they kept falling. Then my nose stuffed up and I started to sniffle. I buried my face in my pillow and tried to muffle the sound, but I guess I was louder than I thought.

Greg's voice drifted across the dark room: "Elle. Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

"Na-nothing."

Gently he said: "Can't be nothing if you're crying. Wanna talk about it?"

He shocked me into silence. Greg House asking about feelings and wanting to talk about it? What alien took over his body?

"I'm just sad."

"I know. I'm sad too. Wanna come over here and we can be sad together?"

I whined: "I don't know. You don't want some weepy woman bothering you when you're trying to sleep."

"You're not bothering me. Elle. Come here; let me hold you."

The thought of being in his arms was so appealing, and he sounded sincere like he really wouldn't mind me crying on his shoulder. Timidly, I asked: "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Please, Elle let me hold you."

He flipped the lamp on and I could see his face. He looked sad, his eyes pleading. He held my gaze for a moment and then flipped the covers back and patted the bed next to him. "I don't want you crying all alone over there. Please come here."

I didn't want to cry all alone either. My lower lip quivered as I crawled out of my bed and into his. I lay down next to him and he pulled the covers over both of us.

"You wanna put your head on my shoulder?"

I nodded and moved closer. He wrapped his arms tightly around me and rested his chin on the top of my head. My hand automatically went to rest on top of his heart and there was a part of me that wanted his shirt off so I could play with his chest hair. I snuggled in closer instead and took a whiff of his familiar scent. Being in his arms reminded me of better days and I wished for a time machine so that we could go back several months before all of this happened. I wanted to erase the hurt of the last few weeks and forget all about it. I thought of the ultrasound picture again and started thinking that maybe it would be a good idea for Avi to get rid of it for me. Then the thought of never seeing the little peanut again made me sadder and I started crying.

I sobbed for a while and as I started to slow down, I could feel Greg kissing the top of my head. I fisted his shirt and burrowed my face deeper into his chest. That was when I felt his breathing hitch. It surprised me and I held my breath, wondering if I had imagined it. But, no, it happened again. I snaked my hand out from between our bodies and reached up to caress his cheek. I was surprised to find that his face was wet and I pulled back a little so I could look into his eyes. I didn't get the chance; as soon as I pulled back, he tucked his face into the crook of my neck and wept. He squeezed me so tightly against his body that I had some difficulty taking a breath. He regained his composure fairly quickly, certainly much faster than I had, and relaxed his tight grip.

As much pain as he had caused me, I hated to see him cry. I planted little kisses all over his face, kissing his tears away. Finally he rubbed his face against the pillow and then started talking softly: "I don't deserve you. I treated you horribly from the time we found out that you were pregnant, which was my own drunken fault. I was a complete ass and I don't blame you if you never want to see me again. But at least let me tell you that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for every nasty thing that I did to you, not the least of which was bringing home a hooker right in front of your face, although you'll be happy to know that I couldn't get it up with her. And I'm sorry that we lost our baby. I know I was late getting on board, but I was _there _on Thursday and that dinner with my parents _wasn't_ an act. I was actually looking forward to a little mini-Elle, sitting on my lap while I taught her to play the piano."

His breath hitched again and he buried his face in my neck once more as if he were ashamed for me to see his tears. His last words reverberated in my mind until I could actually picture Greg on the piano bench with our blue-eyed daughter in his lap. My tears returned and we held each other as we cried for our loss.


	54. Chapter 54

Chapter 54

_Monday June 11, 2007_

**_ELLE_**

I woke up slowly, my face mashed into Greg's chest. I must have fallen asleep crying and wondered if Greg had also. By the evenness of his breathing, I could tell that he was still asleep. I tried to slip out of his embrace, but he clutched me tighter, moaning 'no, don't go' as I tried to move. I paused, realizing that he was still asleep and probably dreaming. I whispered: "I'll be right back. Just going to the bathroom." His grip relaxed enough for me to slip out of bed and I padded down the hall to relieve myself. Once I had taken care of that, I wandered into the kitchen. Despite having a full kitchen, I hadn't bought any groceries yet and my body desperately wanted coffee. I slipped on a tee shirt and shorts and headed over to the office for the free morning coffee.

When I returned, I found a wild-eyed Greg pacing in the living room. His relief at seeing me was palpable.

I held up the cups: "Just went for some coffee."

He nodded and sat down at the table, burying his face in his hands.

"Greg?"

He shook his head, sat back up and grabbed his coffee. He had such a pained expression on his face that I could hardly bear to look at him.

After a couple sips of coffee, he asked: "Do you want me to leave so you can have your space?"

I took a couple of sips of coffee while I thought about it. I glanced at Greg; his head was down, his shoulders hunched and he looked totally defeated. I remembered us crying in each other's arms last night. He seemed truly sad and sorry for everything that had happened. Despite his rejection of the baby, my love for him had never wavered until the appearance of the hooker. We needed to talk further; I needed to get more details about what really happened that night. Greg had actually opened up pretty well last night; could he continue to do so? I wasn't sure, but I was willing to take the chance.

Casually, I said: "No, you can't leave yet. You can't come all the way down here and not drive over the Seven Mile Bridge and see Key West. And the snorkeling is really good here too."

He looked at me, a little glimmer of hope in his eyes. Hesitantly he said: "So, I can stay for a few more days?"

I teased: "Yeah, you're kinda pale. You need some sun and fun with a gorgeous brunette and a convertible."

Slowly he smiled: "Yeah, I think I do."

He reached across the table and took my hand. This time, I didn't pull back; I gave him a little affectionate squeeze.

**_HOUSE_**

I hadn't cried in years. Truth be told, I cried a couple of times after Stacy left. Between my leg pain and her departure, I was rather miserable and would break into tears after a half bottle of scotch or so. My father had drilled it into my head that men don't cry so every time I did cry, it made me feel even weaker than I already did. Finally I gave it up; it was a useless activity and didn't bring any results other than causing my nose to stuff up so much that I had to breathe through my mouth.

I didn't mean to weep last night. I just wanted to comfort Elle, but as I held her I thought of how everything had gotten fucked up and it was mainly my fault. I had tossed away this most precious person and caused her so much pain. I wanted her to forgive me and take me back, but I also felt that I didn't deserve it. As her tears subsided, I ended up weeping on her shoulder. She didn't belittle my tears, she just held me tightly until she cried herself to sleep. I had lay awake for a little while longer, whispering apologies and endearments to her that I hoped would penetrate her subconscious mind. At one point, I know that I dreamed she left me. In my dream, I begged her not to leave. When I woke up a short while later, I was alone in bed. I checked the bathroom and the living room but she was truly gone. I felt anxious, not knowing where she had gone and wondering if she was going to let me stay. I paced the living room trying to decide what to do next when Elle walked in with 2 cups of coffee. My relief at seeing her again was incredible and when she told me that I could stay longer, I felt hopeful. Maybe, just maybe, we could work this out.

Elle told me to wear my swimsuit, that we were going to spend the day at some state park. I was past the point of caring what we did as long as I got to stay, so we dressed and headed out to a little diner for breakfast. Then we drove a few miles north to John Pennekamp State Park.

Once at the park, Elle bought tickets for a snorkeling tour due to leave at noon. We had an hour or so to kill, so we wandered over to the visitor's center and checked out the fish in their huge saltwater aquarium. After watching a nature video on manatees, it was time to head over to the dock.

They outfitted us with fins, masks and snorkels and we cruised out to one of the reefs. Once in the water, Elle was as excited as a little kid at Christmas. She took my hand and together we swam all over the reef while she pointed out colorful fish and interesting coral formations. We saw a few jellyfish, but made sure we didn't get close enough to get stung. Elle was really excited at the big sea turtle that we saw, lazily swimming around.

Once we were back on the boat and heading towards the dock, Elle regretted that we hadn't had an underwater camera to take photos. I wrapped a towel around her shoulders and starting drying her off. Kissing her cheek, I said: "Next time."

She grinned at me; "Yeah, next time." She tossed a towel over my head and dried my hair for me, rubbing briskly and then kissing the tip of my nose when she was finished.

Once back on dry land, we had a hot dog and a soda at the little snack bar, and then we rented a canoe for a couple of hours. Elle had a lot more expertise with canoes, but she insisted that I get in the stern so I would have enough room to stretch my leg out. She still did the majority of the steering from the bow as she pointed out different plant species and birds to me as we paddled along the mangrove trail. After we returned the paddles and retrieved the car keys that were left for a deposit, we headed back to the car. About halfway there, Elle took my hand and asked: "Did you have a good time, today?"

I squeezed her small hand. "Yes, I did. It was really nice being out of the water. It's been a long time since I've done something like this. Thank you."

She grinned but didn't say anything more.

Back in the motel room, we took turns showering and getting dressed. As I walked out of the bedroom, still buttoning my Hawaiian shirt, I found Elle staring at the boat tickets from earlier today.

"Whatcha looking at?"

She held up the ticket stubs: "I was just going to toss these out and then I took a closer look at the date. Today's June 11th. Greg, it's your birthday and I forgot it. I completely forgot your birthday."

She looked so distressed and I quickly pulled her into my arms. "It's no biggie. Anyway, you showed me a good time. We had fun today, didn't we?"

Elle nodded: "Yeah, I just feel bad that I forgot your birthday. So what do you say? How about a nice steak for your birthday dinner?"

"Sounds good to me. But there's one more thing I'd like for my birthday."

Actually there were several things I wanted for my birthday, but I figured it would be good to start off small.

She smiled up at me, her chin propped against my chest: "And what would the birthday boy like?"

"I wanna drive the convertible. Pleeeeeasseeeeee."

Elle giggled and handed me the car keys. "What are you waiting for? Let's go."

Elle directed me to a restaurant called Snook's Bayside. It was way too close to the motel for me to get in a good drive, in fact if I had two good legs we could have just walked over, but I figured I'd get in a longer drive later. We got a nice table on the patio overlooking the water. The place had a nice casual atmosphere and a decent calypso band.

We started with mojitos as we looked over the menu. Elle ordered couch fritters and fried calamari for us to share as appetizers. For the main course, she ordered mahi mahi stuffed tacos and I got a Filet Mignon. We each had another mojito during dinner and by the time the plates were cleared away, I was definitely feeling rather mellow.

After the waitress took our dessert order, I glanced over at Elle who was staring out at the water. I put my arm around her and felt her body stiffen. My heart sank; that was a bad sign. After the little tokens of affection I had received today, I wasn't expecting this reaction.

"You're looking rather pensive. What's going on?"

She sighed: "I had a really good time with you today, but there are some things I need to talk with you about. I just don't want to do it now. It's late and it's your birthday."

She turned to face me directly: "But we do need to talk."

I couldn't help letting some of my anger show: "You sending my ass packing? You want me outta here? You just don't want to do it on my birthday? You're going to wait until tomorrow to drop the bombshell?"

"No, no, nothing like that. I just need to talk about a few things that happened over the last couple of weeks."

The waitress came just then and dropped off our plates of key lime pie. I nodded my thanks and she walked away.

Once she was out of earshot, Elle went on: "I'd just like to talk about some things. We need to clear the air if you want _us_ to have a chance."

OK, I wasn't out on my ass just yet. This didn't sound like a conversation that I wanted to have, but I didn't have much choice if I wanted to keep Elle in my life.

I kept my temper under control as I replied: "Fine. We'll talk tomorrow. Let's have our dessert and then I want to take the car for a longer spin. The motel is only a half mile away; that's not enough for me to get the feel of the car."

She agreed and we tucked into our pie. Elle insisted on paying for dinner since it was my birthday and, not wanting to start a stupid argument, I let her. I figured we had enough arguments coming up in the next few days that I didn't need to start another one.

Back in the car, I drove south for around 15 miles and then turned around and drove us back to the motel. Knowing I was heading for a heavy conversation tomorrow took some of the joy out of the drive for me. Once we got back to our room, we both changed into pajamas and I gave Elle her shot. We watched another old movie, but I wasn't paying much attention. I was too busy wondering what she was going to bring up tomorrow. When the movie was over and Elle indicated that she was ready for bed, I brushed my teeth and then climbed into the queen bed. When Elle walked into the room, I expected her to climb in next to me since we had slept together last night. So I was rather taken aback when she climbed into the twin bed.

"Good night, Greg." She said in a shaky voice.

I replied robotically: "Good night, Elle."

I couldn't understand it. My mind was awhirl. We had slept together last night; we had comforted each other. We had a nice day today and enjoyed each other's company. Why was she sleeping alone now? She was going to dump my ass tomorrow, I was sure of it. In spite of what she had said earlier, I felt positive that she was going to give me the boot. There was just one small niggling flicker of hope in my brain. She said she wanted to talk first. Perhaps all wasn't lost; perhaps I just needed to explain some things to her satisfaction and all would be well again. I was so distracted at playing out different scenarios in my mind that it took me a while to realize that she was crying again.

I called out to her but she didn't respond. She was actually crying pretty hard. I flicked on the lamp and went over to her. She was curled up in a little ball with the dog clutched to her chest. The bed was too small for me to climb in with her, so I picked her up, managed the half step to the big bed with her in my arms and gently settled her down on the bed. I climbed in next to her, pulled the covers over us and let her cry herself to sleep in my arms again. No matter what happened tomorrow, I owed her this and really, so much more.

_Tuesday June 12, 2007_

**_HOUSE_**

I woke up first for a change. Elle was still asleep, clutching the dog with one hand and fisting my tee shirt with the other. My morning wood was full on and she looked so beautiful that I dared to just give her a small kiss on her cheek. It was so soft and tasted so sweet that I had to do it again. Then I planted a small one on the corner of her mouth, rubbing my cock against her thigh at the same time. She started to stir and I pulled back. I didn't want to take advantage of her and yet I wanted her so badly at the same time. Her hand was still fisting my shirt so unless I pried her fingers off, I couldn't get away. I put a few inches of space between our pelvic regions but lay with my forehead against hers, our noses touching. Even that small bit of contact comforted me.

She stirred again, sighed and finally opened her eyes. When she was able to focus, she smiled at me.

"Hi."

"Good morning."

She looked down and let go of my shirt. Smiling sheepishly, she said: "I guess I look pretty silly, sleeping with a stuffed dog. I'm sorry I cried all over you again last night. Sometimes it just hits me like a wave and I can't stop it."

I brushed a strand of hair off of her cheek and said: "It's only been a few days, Elle. You have to give yourself some time to grieve."

She nodded: "What about you? Do you need time?"

"I'm not very good at that kind of thing. I just tend to keep it all bottled up inside."

She laid her hand on my cheek: "You don't have to with me, you know."

"I know, but it's from years of habit."

She nodded in understanding. "The other night."

She bit her lip, but didn't go on.

I gave her some encouragement: "The other night, what, sweetheart?"

"The other night, you let it out a little. I could feel your sadness. You really are upset that I lost the baby, aren't you?"

I didn't think we would get into such serious conversation before coffee. I swallowed hard and admitted: "Yes."

"One of the things I need to know, Greg, is what changed your mind. When I saw you on Saturday, after Tony left, you told me that you still couldn't do it. And yet by Thursday you had changed your mind. What happened?"

I rolled over onto my back and wondered how she would take the story of my evolution on this subject.

Hesitantly I said: "I saw the ultrasound picture."

She inhaled sharply: "You were in my apartment?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I needed coffee. I figured you would have a cup left in your pot so I went to get some of your coffee and then I saw it tacked up on the fridge. I know I shouldn't have gone in your apartment, uninvited, but I did."

I felt too vulnerable lying on my back, so I propped the pillow up against the headboard and leaned back against it. I was concerned that she would be angry with me about this, but I decided it was better to be truthful. I owed her that much.

I took a deep breath and continued: "So I went to get the coffee and I saw the photo. And I thought; that's _our_ baby. We made that. I couldn't stop looking at it. Then I saw the ad you circled for a two-family house and I wondered why you were looking at that, who was going to live next door."

My thigh started to cramp and I started rubbing it. "And then I saw another paper, the list of potential guardians. And my name wasn't on there."

My voice broke just a little: "I understood why, but it got me. It's _my_ kid but _my_ name wasn't on your list. You put _Wilson_ down and not me."

Elle was in tears: "You said you didn't want the baby. I didn't think you would want to become the guardian if something happened to me."

"I _know_ why you thought that, but it just got to me and hit me hard. I kept playing back that conversation in my head where you said you had faith in me and told me to find the faith within myself. I figured if you had faith in me, I, I could try and you would help me when I stumbled. Because I would, I would screw up, but if you were there with me, maybe it would work out OK. You wouldn't let me screw up too badly."

I looked her right in the eyes: "I took the picture off of the refrig and stuck in it my pocket. And I texted you to meet me for dinner, so I could ask you to give me another chance."

Elle gasped: "You took the photo? Where is it now?"

"It's in my desk drawer. After Avi and the gang showed up, I went off to my office and starting drinking. I kept looking at the photo. Finally I passed out at my desk. When Wilson woke me up the next day, he saw it on the desk next to me and I shoved it in the top drawer. I had no right to take it and I'll return it when we get back."

Elle whispered: "It was your baby too."

I nodded: "She was our baby."

Elle's lip started to tremble and I didn't hesitate. I held my arms out and she moved right into my embrace. She buried her face in my shoulder and cried.

As I held her, I remember Tony saying that Elle had cried for 4 days after their miscarriage. It had been 5 days now and I wondered how longer she would grieve. Then I decided that it really didn't matter. After letting her down during her pregnancy, I just needed to be here for her now, no matter how long it took. I rubbed her back, stroked her hair and kissed her forehead to extend every measure of comfort that I could possibly give her until the tears subsided and she simply rested in my arms.

We lounged on the bed for a half hour or so until Elle needed to pee and then we both got out of bed. I went into the bathroom when she was finished and then met up with her in the kitchen where I found her sipping on a glass of water.

She looked up when I walked in the room. "Um, I was thinking, would you mind if we just hung out around here today? There's some other stuff I wanted to talk to you about and we could go swimming or take one of the boats out too. I was thinking of getting some groceries too, so we could at least have some coffee in the morning without having to run right out for it."

I started to sweat, wondering what else she wanted to talk about, but I hid it as best I could and just said: "That's fine, sweetheart."

"OK. Let's go out for some breakfast, then we'll get some groceries and come back and hang out."

After we dressed, Elle tossed me the keys as we headed towards the car. We drove to a little diner down the road a ways, and had bacon, eggs and pancakes for breakfast. The coffee was excellent and we both got a to-go cup to take with us. Our next stop was the grocery store. We grabbed coffee, Coke, sandwich fixings, chips, a tub of potato salad and some chocolate chip cookies. Back at the motel, we put the groceries away, changed into bathing suits and headed out to the beach. Elle was content to soak up some rays for a while; she didn't seem to be in a hurry to talk so I didn't push it. I lounged back on a chair and read her People magazine while enjoying the sunshine. We baked for a while, and then Elle dragged me into the water for a swim. Like the other day, it felt good to be swimming again and I vowed that I would get back into my exercise routine when we returned to Princeton. We swam and floated until our fingers were pruney and we returned to our lounge chairs to soak up some more rays. When we got hungry, Elle returned to our room and make us some sandwiches, which we ate on the porch.

After we finished eating, Elle pointed at the big chickee and said: "Let's go sit in the swing for a while, OK?"

I nodded and followed her to the swing, dreading what I was sure to follow. I figured that she was heading into one of her comfort zones to talk about the heavy stuff. We got settled, Elle on the left side, sitting tailor-style and me stretched out on the right. I waited for her to take the lead.

She rubbed her face for a moment and then said: "Um, I really need to know what happened between you and that woman. I know we were not really together at that point, but I need to know before I can move on. Was she really a hooker?"

I nodded: "She was a hooker."

She sucked in a big breath. "I kinda thought so. How did you meet her, I mean, what, how did you hook up? Did you call someone, did you?"

She was so flustered that she couldn't make a coherent sentence.

"Elle, what do you want me to tell you? You want to know everything, how I ended up bringing her back to my place and all that?"

Her expression was distressed but she nodded: "Yes, I need to know."

My heart sank; this was going to destroy any prospects I had with her. Again I felt I owed it to her to be completely truthful, no matter how much it killed my chances for us to get back together.

I took a deep breath and began: "After Tony left, you told me that you still loved me and tried to convince me that I could be a good dad. And I blew you off. I couldn't believe that you could still love me after I dumped you for being pregnant when that was my fault. I felt like shit and I needed a distraction. I went to the bar, just intending to get drunk, but this woman sat down next to me and started chatting. I bought her a drink and then another. Then she propositioned me. I figured, you and I were no longer together and I could use another type of distraction. So we agreed on a price, took a cab back to my apartment and we ran into you. We had that charming conversation in the foyer and then we went into my place."

I looked at her stricken face: "Is that enough? You don't really want to hear the rest, do you?"

She nodded and said softly: "I need to know. Did you screw her?"

I shook my head: "After we saw you, I knew that I had made a big mistake. But there we were and she started stripping. Believe me when I tell you, that she didn't do a thing for me."

Elle looked surprised: "But she had those really big boobs."

"It didn't matter. She flashed her tits at me and my cock was lifeless. She stripped to her thong and still not a twitch. Finally she took me in her mouth."

I looked away at this point; there was no way that I could look at Elle's face and tell her the rest of this.

Feeling like a complete shit, I said in a low voice: "I closed my eyes and pretended it was you. I pictured you, back at Christmas, when you blew me wearing that Santa hat. That's what got me going. I thought of you the whole time. When it was over, she grabbed her money and left. I went to bed feeling like the lowest piece of shit ever."

Finally I looked back at her. She was sitting with her knees up, one arm wrapped around her legs and one hand over her mouth as if she was trying not to vomit.

"Elle, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say. I can't undo it, although I wish I could."

After a few minutes, she removed her hand from her mouth and said: "I don't know how I feel. One part of me is happy that you didn't actually screw her and then the other part is creeped out that you were thinking of me while a hooker was blowing you. I just don't know what to think."

She looked at me: "Greg, I think I need to be alone for a while. I need to think about all of this."

I nodded and climbed out of the swing. Before I walked away, I looked back at her and said: "Elle. Just remember. I am truly sorry and I do really love you."

I limped away to leave her to her own thoughts, hoping that she wouldn't decide to kick my ass all the way back to Princeton.

_**ELLE**_

After Greg walked away, I lay down in the swing and stared at the water. I just couldn't process. My brain would not compute. He had needed a distraction from Tony's threats and my declaration of love, so he went off to get drunk and ended up with a hooker. Was I supposed to be flattered that he couldn't get it up with that big-breasted slut without thinking of me? If he had only gotten drunk, would we even be having this conversation? Was I making too much of this indiscretion? He did seem sincerely sorry.

I picked up my cell and called my big brother. I hated to bother him while he was working, but I couldn't wait until 5PM to call.

After apologizing for disturbing him, I told Avi everything from the hooker to Greg's regrets. I even told Avi that Greg had cried about the miscarriage, but only after swearing him to secrecy first.

After I spilled the whole story, I finally gave Avi a chance to talk. "Elle. Only you can decide how you feel about House. From what you tell me, he is quite apologetic and seems completely remorseful. You know, in some ways, you could think of it as a complement. He can't get it up with anyone else, but _you_. That's how much he loves you. Remember what Ross was always screaming on _'Friends'_?"

Softly I replied: "We were on a break."

He chuckled softly: "And you were. You may not have wanted to be on a break, but you were. Elle, think about this. If this incident with the hooker had not happened, would you be taking House back?"

I just held the phone to my ear, mouth open, but could not reply. That was the big question on my mind.

Avi went on: "Because if your answer is in the affirmative, your only decision is whether or not you can forgive him for this."

"I know. You're right."

"Two questions. Do you still love him and can you forgive him? I gotta go; boss is heading my way and doesn't look happy. Call me later."

He quickly ended the call and I closed my phone as well.

I sat up in the swing, knees bent with my arms wrapped around my legs. I did still love Greg, there was no doubt about that, and he seemed sincere when he professed his love for me. He also seemed genuinely grieved about the loss of our baby, so much so that he said he wanted to try again when I was ready to do so. It was still so hard for me to wrap my mind around the complete about-face that he had done.

Then I remembered Jimmy saying that change was hard on Greg and it took him a while to accept a new situation. Jimmy had dropped some hints on Thursday, which confirmed that Greg had already made up his mind before the disastrous dinner with his parents. I decided to find out exactly what Jimmy had known before we walked into Greg's office and found his surprise visitors. I had spoken to my best friend; now it was time to call his.

I dialed his cell phone. When he picked up, I asked: "Are you too busy to talk?"

"I'm in between patients at the moment. Your timing is great."

"I needed to ask you a few questions."

"Shoot."

"On Thursday, before we ran into Greg's parents, you knew then that Greg had had second thoughts. Had he told you that he changed his mind about the baby?"

He chuckled: "Not in so many words. It's House-speak and it's an unusual dialect and not just anyone can translate."

"Well, what exactly did he say that caused you to believe that he had changed his mind?"

"He stormed into my office and wanted to know if you had asked me to be a back-up guardian. He saw a list of names in your apartment. Oops, you do know he was snooping in your apartment, don't you?"

I waved my hand in the air: "Yeah, he told me that. Go on."

"So he wanted to know if you had asked me. When I said no, he asked how I would answer if you did ask. I thought about it and said that I would do it if you asked me. He got really defensive and said that I wouldn't be able to handle _his_ kid because HE would be too smart for me. When he personified the fetus, I knew he was a goner. When I pointed out that slip to him, he tried to escape, but before he left, I asked him directly if he had changed his mind. And he nodded. He wanted you back and he was going to try to be a dad. He had made up his mind before his parents showed up. That wasn't a dinner show; he was expressing his true feelings. I think seeing that ultrasound photo made it real for him. The baby was no longer an abstract concept."

I pondered that for a minute and then asked: "Jimmy, is it true that the photo was lying on his desk when you found him Friday morning?"

"Yeah, and he was somewhat embarrassed about that. I got the impression he sat there drinking all night and staring at the photo."

"What did he do with the photo after you saw it?"

"He tossed it in his desk drawer."

"Jimmy, he says he loves me and wants us back together. He talks about trying to have another baby once I get anticoagulated again."

He let out a long breath: "He loves you, Elle. My Gawd, he loves you completely. He stood up to his father for you. You know, he used to get pissed at stuff his dad would say about Stacy, but he never stood up to him for her the way he did for you. I used to think Stacy was the love of his life. I don't think that anymore. You are the one. You opened up that walled off heart of his and showed the big lug that he could love and be loved."

Softly I said: "Thanks, Jimmy."

"Did that help?"

"Yeah, I think it did."

"OK, I'm glad. My patient's here; I gotta go. Call me anytime. Keep me posted, OK?"

"We will. Bye."

I closed the phone and laid it down next to me. I scanned the area for Greg and found him sitting in a nearby lounge chair. His elbows were on his knees, his head was bowed and he was tapping his cane against the top of his head. He looked completely lost in thought. He was close by, but clearly giving me some space to think about everything.

If I had a piece of paper, I would have made a list of pros and cons. Since I didn't, I'd have to make do with my fingers. On one hand I listed the reasons why I should take him back. I loved him. He seemed sincerely remorseful about everything that had happened. He loved me and wanted us to start over, even to the point that he talked about trying for another baby. I definitely wasn't ready to think about that yet, but it was good to know that he was now open to the idea. And I loved him. I realized that I had counted that reason already, but it was one of the important ones. So I definitely had the answer to Avi's first question.

So with my other hand, I tried to think of reasons why I didn't want him back. The only thing that I could think of was my hurt about the hooker thing. Was it worth throwing away the man I loved over that slut? We had been apart for 3 weeks before it happened and he had been drunk and under mob mental duress. Was I making excuses for him? Perhaps, but I believed that he wouldn't do it again.

That was it. I couldn't think of a single other reason why I didn't want him back. I knew Tony and perhaps some others might have another opinion about why I shouldn't take him back since Greg had dumped me when I was pregnant. But I believed Jimmy when he said that change came hard to Greg and he had needed time to wrap his mind around all the newness. This would not be a repeat behavior; Greg had realized what he wanted and he wanted us. And I now knew for certain that I did too.

I looked around for him; he was carefully edging his way to the water. I smiled; he must be going for a swim. I decided to let him get in the water and then I swim up to him and wrap my arms and legs around him, kissing him passionately. Words would not be necessary. My actions would demonstrate to him what my decision had been.

**_HOUSE_**

The waiting was killing me. I wondered how long it would take for her to make up her mind. The longer it took, the darker my thoughts became as I started to assume that she would decide against continuing our relationship. I glanced over at the swing; I could see her staring down at her hands and she looked like she was counting on her fingers. I wondered what that was all about, but simply had no clue. I needed to do something and the soft sand was not conducive to pacing, so I decided to take another swim while I waited for her to make up her mind. I emptied my pockets and laid the cane across my chair. I headed straight for the water intending to wade in until it was deep enough to swim. That was probably not my best move, since I needed to tread carefully on the shifting sand so I didn't lose my balance and fall on my ass. I should have walked over to the dock and dove in, like Elle and I had done before, but one of the owners was busy feeding the pelicans on the dock and I'd have to weave my way through 20 large hungry birds, so this seemed the better choice. Or at least I thought so until my right foot came down on something hard. I was in the middle of shifting my weight and now my right foot was pulling back in pain and I couldn't shift back to my left foot fast enough. So I fell on my ass.

Crap! Could this day get any worse? I glanced around to see if there were witnesses to my idiotic move, but the only person in sight was the woman still feeding the birds and she was paying no attention to me.

I reached under my foot and found the offending item. It turned out to be a broken bit of shell. I tossed it out into the water, watching it skim the surface twice before it sank.

"Hey, that was pretty good. I never could skip stones. Never could seem to toss them the right way."

I glanced to my right; Elle's gorgeous legs were right next to me. Great. She must have seen me fall. I shrugged and tried to be blasé, despite looking like an idiot with my ass in the wet sand. "It's all in the wrist."

"Maybe you could show me sometime."

I looked up at her, wondering about her words. "Maybe I could."

She tilted her head to the side: "Going for a swim?"

"I was, but decided that getting sand in my swim trunks was definitely much more fun. So I thought I would sit here and let the water swirl the sand up the crack of my ass."

She crinkled her nose in a most appealing way: "Well, if you like that kinda thing, enjoy it. I'm going swimming. Are you sure that you don't want to join me?"

"Well, OK. Don't want you swimming alone. Should use the buddy system and all that."

Elle nodded her head. "Right."

She extended her hand. I felt embarrassed to accept her help. I stammered out: "There was this sharp shell."

Elle leaned down and grabbed my hand. "I know. Everybody stumbles sometimes. You just gotta pick yourself back up and keep going. Ask for a helping hand if you need one."

She tilted her head towards the water: "Come on, cowboy. Let's get wet."

My heart thudded. She called me _cowboy_ again.

In a low husky voice, I said: "I'd like to make you wet."

The left side of her mouth curled up in a smile: "Well, you are very good at that."

She tugged on my hand, but this time, I tugged back. Since I was considerably stronger, I won this little battle and pulled her down on top of me. She squealed as she landed on my chest but didn't attempt to move away and I took that as a good sign. I wrapped my arms around her and held her tightly. I lifted my head so that our mouths were mere centimeters apart and we were breathing each other's air.

"So you're saying I'm good at making you wet."

She sighed softly: "Yes."

I moved my lips closer to hers but still kept just a margin of space between us.

"Are you getting wet now?"

This time her answer came out more like a moan: "Yes."

My cock went from flaccid to erect in record time. "Maybe we could skip the swim for now."

Her expression grew sad. "Kelly said I'm not supposed to have sex for 2 weeks so that I don't get an infection."

I gently corrected her: "You can't have intercourse for 2 weeks, but we can still make love."

Her eyes darkened and her mouth dropped open a little. I took the opportunity to suck her lower lip into my mouth and I was rewarded with a throaty groan. She cupped my face with both her hands and kissed me full on, her tongue desperately roaming inside my mouth. I sucked her tongue even deeper and felt my cock grow even harder from her moans of excitement. My hand slipped down to grip her ass and I rolled her over on her back. I was in between her legs and starting to rub against her when I felt the sand and realized that we were out in the open and it wasn't exactly a private beach.

Despite my raging hard-on, I managed to struggle to my feet and this time I extended my hand to her. "Come on. Let's go have a shower and I'll let you wash the sand out of my ass crack."

Elle giggled: "Oh golly gee, Greg. I think that is the most romantic thing you've ever said to me."

She took my hand and I pulled her to her feet. I pulled her into my arms again and we gently kissed. I grinned when I felt her hand squeeze my ass.

Elle murmured into my mouth: "Is Lisa OK with you staying until next week?"

"She will be when I call her later. I guess it's a good thing I packed the big suitcase, huh?"

"A very good thing."

Once inside, we dropped everything and headed straight into the bathroom. Elle turned on the shower and then lifted her hair up. She turned her back to me and said: "Would you untie me, please?"

I pulled the strings on her bikini top and let it fall to the floor. She turned to face me and I saw that her nipples were erect. She released her hair, letting it fall softly around her shoulders, and wrapped her arms around my neck. Her bare breasts pressed against my chest and I crushed her closer still. My lips found hers and we kissed passionately for a moment. Then Elle pulled back and said: "C'mon, I think the water's hot enough now."

She dropped her bikini bottoms and stepped into the shower. I pushed my swim trunks off and followed her. The shower was small and there was barely enough room for the two of us. Elle stepped under the spray and wet her hair while I grabbed the shampoo and poured some into my hand. I backed up enough so that she could move away from the water and I started washing her hair. She closed her eyes and sagged against the wall, practically purring at my ministrations. I was enjoying her reaction and also the view of her wet naked body. When I had finished washing her hair, I gently steered her under the spray to rinse her hair off. Then I grabbed the soap and started washing her body.

Earlier, I had been so sure that she was going to dump me and now here I was, with my hands all over her naked body. Mt. Gregory rose as I gently washed her breasts. I slipped my hand between her legs and lightly rubbed her most sensitive spot. Elle had the most beautiful smile on her face as I stroked her. As much as I wanted to continue soaping her, I figured I had better rinse her off before the hot water ran out. After Elle was all rinsed off, she grabbed the soap and said: "Your turn. Get wet."

We carefully changed spots in the cramped shower and I took my turn under the spray. When I was sufficiently wet, I moved out of the water and let Elle soap me up. I had one hand on the wall for balance and I closed my eyes to better enjoy the sensations. It was delicious feeling her soapy hands rubbing all over my body. She kept bypassing my dick and I hoped she was just saving it for last.

I gasped and my eyes flew open when I felt her hand rub the crack of my ass.

She laughed at the apparently funny expression on my face. "Well, you said for me to get the sand out of your ass. I'm just doing what you asked. It's all clean now."

"You missed a spot."

"I did? Where?"

I wagged my dick at her.

She gave me a sultry smile: "I was saving him for last."

Elle soaped her hands up well and grasped my cock. I couldn't help groaning at the contact. She washed my cock and my balls and it was so pleasurable that I thought that I would just come in her hands.

Elle whispered: "Ready to rinse off now?"

I nodded, currently incapable of speech, and stepped under the shower spray. When I was rinsed off, Elle grabbed my cock again and stroked me, standing up on tiptoe for a quick kiss. Her hands started running down my body and I belatedly realized that she was going down on her knees and was just about to take me in her mouth, when I stopped her. I tugged on her arms to make her stand up again.

"No, not like this. I don't want you on your knees. If anyone should be on their knees, it should be me. Let's go to bed where I can pleasure you properly."

Elle looked surprised, but I kissed the look of shock off her face. I turned off the water and grabbed a towel. I dried her off and then let her dry me. Then I sat on the toilet and watched as Elle combed the tangles out of her wet hair and pulled it back into a braid. When she was finished, I took her hand and led her into the bedroom.

We lay in each other's arms, gently kissing. I relished the feel of her naked body against mine.

She breathed into my mouth: "I missed this. I missed you."

I pulled back enough to look into her eyes; tears were pooling but had not fallen yet. I stroked her cheek and whispered: "Me too."

I kissed her lips again and then the corner of her mouth and down to her jaw. I slowly worked my way down her neck to her shoulder, planting kisses the whole way. Meanwhile, my hands caressed her breasts and her sides, while Elle tangled her fingers in my hair. When my mouth found her nipple, Elle gasped and then moaned: "Cowboy."

I wanted my hands and my mouth to tell her what I verbally couldn't say. I kissed, licked and stroked her until I reached her Mound of Venus. I nuzzled the soft hair and then I gently tongued her already swollen clit.

At that first touch, Elle moaned my name and that was all I needed. I pushed her legs further apart and settled between her thighs. My tongue thoroughly explored her folds and teased her clit. I couldn't risk any chance of infection so I didn't slip my fingers inside of her. Instead, I stroked her inner thighs as I continued to tease her clit into submission.

Elle pushed her core against my face and sighed: "Oh, Greg, I want to be fucked so bad. I want to feel you inside of me."

I murmured: "Not just yet, sweetheart. Soon."

I licked and teased her until she was writhing on the bed and then I sucked her clit into my mouth and rubbed it hard with my tongue. Elle fisted my hair so hard that I thought she would pull out handfuls as she screamed out her orgasm.

When I figured that I was pushing her over the edge into pain, I eased up and just gently licked her as she lay panting from the exertion.

"Omigod, omigod, that was soo good. Oh Greg, that was sooo good. Come up here. Hold me."

I wiped my sopping mouth and chin on the sheet and then moved up the bed to take Elle into my arms. I planted little kisses on her face while she played with my chest hair and her breathing normalized.

She looked into my eyes and smiled: "That was amazing."

I rubbed my cock against her soft skin. "I can still flick your Bic."

"Ummm, yes, you can."

I continued kissing her and rubbing against her until I couldn't take it any more. I moaned: "Elle. Touch me."

She immediately took my cock in her hand and started stroking me. I felt like a horny teenager again as I didn't last more than a couple of strokes before I shot my wad all over her. I rubbed against her hand a few more times as I rode out my orgasm, and then I pulled her tightly against me. Kissing her on the mouth, I whispered: "Oops, made a little mess there. And we just showered too."

Elle whispered back: "S'OK."

We held each other for a while and then I got up for a washcloth and cleaned Elle off. We ordered pizza for dinner and ate it in front of the TV watching an old Cary Grant movie. I simply pulled on a pair of boxers and Elle put on a cami and some boxers as well. After we ate, we just snuggled up on the couch together until we were ready for bed. After Elle's shot and the teeth brushing ritual, we climbed into bed together for the first time in weeks.

We slipped our clothes off and made love again. This time, Elle took me in her mouth, so there was no need for cleaning up. We cuddled afterwards for a long time, kissing and touching and just enjoying being together again. Elle talked about things she wanted to do during the rest of our stay and after a short while, she yawned and burrowed into my chest. I knew she was getting ready for sleep, but my cock has woken up again and I couldn't help rubbing it against her belly.

Elle murmured: "I'm so sleepy. More tomorrow, OK, cowboy?"

I kissed the top of her head: "Tomorrow? You promise?"

She snuggled deeper into my embrace. "Yes, tomorrow. The next day and the one after that too."

I squeezed her tighter: "How about for the rest of our lives?"

She sighed sleepily: "Ummmm, hmmmm."

The next words just popped out of my mouth before they even became a conscious thought: "Marry me."


	55. Chapter 55

_The next words just popped out of my mouth before they even became a conscious thought: "Marry me." _

**_HOUSE_**

Elle slowly lifted her head and looked at me. "What did you say?"

I repeated it without hesitation: "Marry me."

Elle looked completely dumbstruck. She sputtered: "What? Why? Huh?"

How could I explain it to her when I didn't really understand it myself? I just knew that I wanted to wake up next to her every morning for the indefinite future. "I love you and I want us to be together. I know you said that thing about not needing a piece of paper to prove our love and we don't, but I don't want to call you my girlfriend anymore. It is juvenile. I wanna call you my wife."

She tilted her head and looked at me intently: "So let me get this straight, you want to get married just so you can refer to me with a more mature sounding title? You could just refer to me as your old lady or your ball-n-chain."

I shook my head: "It doesn't have the same cachet."

She smirked, but then looked deeply into my eyes. "You're serious?"

"Yes. You want me to get down on one knee? I don't have a ring but I'll buy you one tomorrow."

The stunned look was back on her face. "You are really serious?"

"Yes."

I paused, waiting for her response and then a horrible thought occurred to me. Maybe this wasn't what she wanted. "Elle, you still love me, right? I mean, we're OK, right? You're not still mad, I mean, you wanted me to stay and we got naked and all."

I had to stop; I sounded completely pathetic.

Elle sat up and stroked my face. "Greg. I love you. I'm not mad and yes, I think we're OK. But we just got back together _today._ Mere hours ago. This past week has been insane. We were apart and now we're back together. I was pregnant and now I'm not. You didn't want a baby and now you do. And on top of it all, I find out that I have an autoimmune disease and need medication for the rest of my life. I'm already completely overwhelmed and now you _propose _on top of it all."

She was right; it was a lot to process in a short period of time. But I still couldn't help feeling like I had just been kicked in the gut. I was an idiot to think that she could love me enough to marry me, not after everything I had done to her.

I tried to roll over away from her, but I felt her hand on my shoulder. "Oh, no, no. Don't go away. Cowboy, look at me. Please."

I plastered on a neutral expression and did as she asked.

"Greg, I love you. I never stopped loving you the whole time we were apart. I tried to just give you some space to think about things, about the baby, without feeling too much pressure. I had really hoped that you would come around. When I saw you with that woman, I was so hurt. I was sure that you didn't love me anymore. But I know differently now. You worked so hard to find me. You could have just waited until I came back to Princeton for us to talk, but you couldn't wait. You had to find me. I know you love me and I love you. We've talked about all the bad stuff and we are going to put this behind us. We are going forward, but cowboy, I gotta take it one step at a time. I can't make any huge decisions right now. Please, understand. I love you, I wanna go to bed with you every night and wake up with you every morning, but I'm not ready to get married. Having that little piece of paper isn't going to make me love you any more than I already do. Because I already love you with all my heart."

She looked and sounded sincere and I wanted to believe her. I wanted to believe that she loved me in spite of my faults. I patted my chest and she snuggled right into my embrace. I gave her a gentle kiss on the lips and asked: "You want to go to sleep with me every night?"

She nuzzled her face against my chest and planted a kiss over my heart. "Yes. Every night."

I kissed the top of her head: "I'd like that too."

We kissed a few more times and then I said: "I'm gonna turn out the light now, OK?"

"OK."

I switched off the light and we snuggled together in the darkness.

"Elle?"

"What, cowboy?"

"Can I really call you my old ball-n-chain?"

She laughed: "If you want to."

I murmured: "Maybe I'll just call you my 'wife' until you get used to the idea and then we'll seal the deal."

Elle laughed again: "Go to sleep, cowboy, we'll talk more in the morning."

_Wed. June 13, 2007_

_**HOUSE**_

I awoke to the aroma of coffee and for a moment, I thought we were back in New Jersey. Then I opened my eyes, saw the parrot mural and remembered where we were. This was Elle's little piece of paradise and despite Tony's disparaging remarks about it the place wasn't half bad. A king sized bed would have been an improvement and the murals were tacky, but we were right on the water and Elle seemed quite content. I limped into the bathroom and emptied my full bladder before following the coffee scent into the kitchen. I found a naked Elle staring at the coffee pot, mug in hand, waiting for the pot to finish brewing.

I walked up behind her and gently lay my hand on her hip: "Ah, you're wearing my favorite outfit."

She leaned back and rubbed her ass against me. "Glad you like it."

My nether regions started to wake up from the contact. I rubbed my cock against her ass, then bent down and nibbled on her neck. "Come back to bed."

She turned, smiling, "You don't want coffee first."

"Nope. You first. Coffee second."

Elle set down the mug and took my hand as we walked back to the bedroom together.

An hour later, sated and satisfied, Elle slipped out of bed and headed back to the kitchen. I lay there blissfully waiting her return. If I was this horny for her now, when we can't even have intercourse, I was probably going to rub myself raw when the two weeks were up and we could actually screw again.

Elle returned with two mugs of coffee. We lounged in bed for a while, our bodies in constant contact as we sipped on our caffeine.

I hear my cell phone ringing, but it was all the way out in the living room and I was too comfortable to bother getting up. It did remind me of what I needed to do.

"I guess I should call Cuddy and let her know how long I'm staying. And I better call Wilson too. I'm sure he's all girly, wondering if we made up or not."

"I spoke to him yesterday."

That took me by surprise. "You did?"

Elle nodded: "Yeah, when I was in the swing. I spoke to him and to Avi. I wanted to run my thoughts past my best friend and yours."

Curiosity got the better of me: "What did Wilson tell you? He tell you to dump my sorry ass?"

Elle let out a small chuckle. "No, just the opposite really. He told me that you loved me. He said he used to think that Stacy had been the love of your life, but he doesn't think that any more. He thinks I'm the one."

I set down the coffee mug so that I could put both arms around her. "You are. You know, I never proposed to Stacy. I never wanted her to be my wife. I was satisfied with her as my girlfriend."

I tilted her chin so that she looked up at me. "You on the other hand." I gently kissed her lips.

Elle giggled: "Still on that _wife_ thing, huh?"

"Until you say yes."

She chuckled and shook her head. Then she reached over and set her mug down on top of the TV. Lying on her side, facing me, she indicated that I should do the same and I complied.

As she stroked my face and my chest, Elle said: "Tell me what you want."

I snarked: "Besides never being forced to see clinic patients again?"

She playfully slapped my arm: "Besides that. I mean, us. What do you want, for us? Where do you want to be in 6 months, a year?"

I murmured: "Why do you get to ask all the hard questions?" I tried to distract her by nibbling on her neck, but it didn't work.

"Stop trying to distract me. And you can ask questions too, you know."

But I couldn't. I was afraid of what the answers might be.

I don't know what look passed over my face, but Elle saw it, whatever it was. And she was quick with her reassurances. "Greg, I love you. I'm not going anywhere. I'd just like to know what's on your mind. I wanna know what you want. You've proposed; you've mentioned trying to have another baby. You really want that?"

I nodded: "Yes. I've never wanted this before in my life, but I do now. I want to marry you and have a child with you, if we can."

Her face fell just a little: "But what if I can't?"

"If we can't, it's OK. A baby would be the cherry on top of the ice cream, but we'd still have each other. And we could look into adopting, if you wanted to go that route."

She bit her lip and looked like she was going to cry: "You'd be OK with that?"

I shrugged: "Yeah, sure. You have a much better chance now, but there could still be problems sustaining a pregnancy. If it didn't work out, we could adopt and get a little rug rat that way."

"You'd be OK raising a kid that didn't have your genes?"

The light bulb suddenly went on in my head. This is what she was worried about. This was why she ditched Tony, afraid that she couldn't give him what he wanted and she sacrificed herself for his desires. I was having none of that.

I pulled her closer. "Listen to me. You are the most important thing to me. I want you, first and foremost. Reproducing my genes does not take precedence over you. If we have a baby, either natural or adopted, that will be a bonus. I am OK with either. If we adopt a baby, it will be _ours_."

"But you'd like to try again, wouldn't you? You said so the other day."

I couldn't deny it. "Yes. I'd like to try again, in a couple of months when you are properly anticoagulated, if _you_ want to. I'm not going to sugarcoat it; you will need to be carefully monitored. You probably won't be able to go full-term. They'd probably want to take the baby early, to prevent late-term fetal death. It is risky, but you have an 80% chance of success with the meds. Are those odds good enough?"

Her face fell. "I don't know. I can't make this decision right now, OK? I just. It's, umm. It's nice to know that you would be OK with adopting if I fail again."

Through clenched teeth, I snarled: "Don't. Use. That. Word. YOU are not failing. You have a medical condition that causes clots and it is completely out of your control. It is NOT a failure on your part."

She growled back: "Just like it's not a failure on your part if you stumble and fall because of your leg? You don't fail; it's because of your medical condition."

She had me. I took a deep breath and kissed her forehead while letting my temper subside. "Touché. Elle, sweetheart. You don't have to decide anything right now. You asked what I wanted. Did I answer you to your satisfaction?"

She nodded: "You want to get married. Have a kid, naturally if possible, but adoption is OK too. You want a house in the suburbs with a white picket fence too?"

I shuddered: "Ugh. It makes me think of _'Leave it to Beaver'_ and that's just creepy. I hadn't thought that far ahead yet. If we have a child, I guess we would need a bigger place as opposed to two separate apartments, but that decision can wait for a bit."

"Yeah, it can."

We lay quietly for a few minutes. Suddenly her head popped up, eyes bright with a mischievous look on her face. "Wanna know what I want?"

"Absolutely."

"I want you to call Lisa and clear the rest of the week off and then I want to show you around the Keys. There are so many cool places to see."

I chuckled to myself. She had shifted gears. The serious talk was over for now. It was time for fun.

I made the necessary phone calls. Cuddy reminded me that I had tons of unused vacation time and to use as much as I wanted. I told her that I was reachable by cell phone or e-mail if something came up and she actually said she would only bother me if it were really important. I hung up, shaking my head in amazement.

Wilson, naturally, squealed like a girl when I told him the news. He was rather pleased that I was staying for the remainder of Elle's vacation. I gave him the number and the time of our return flight and he promised to pick us up at the airport.

I also called Enterprise and asked them to pick up my rental car. There was no point in having two cars and the convertible was much more fun to drive than the one that I rented. I gave them my credit card number over the phone and agreed to leave the key with the motel's front office.

While I was on the phone, Elle had packed us an overnight bag, stating that there was no point in driving 200 miles in one day. We would just drive down to Key West, checking out the sights along the way and find a room for the night down there. Elle mentioned that there were a lot of great bars in Key West and she wanted us to be able to imbibe without the worry of driving back. Sounded fine to me, so I readily agreed. We tossed the bag and her laptop in the car, put the top down and we took off, Jimmy Buffet tunes blaring from the CD player. Elle drove and pointed out interesting places along the way.

We stopped in Marathon for lunch at a place called Shucker's. Elle got some couch chowder and a fresh grouper sandwich that she raved about. I had a delicious burger, so there were no complaints from me. I wanted to drive next, but Elle insisted that, as we were about to cross the Seven Mile Bridge, I should just kick back and enjoy the view. She promised that I could drive the whole way back tomorrow. I grumbled, but agreed.

Elle was right, the view was magnificent. There was one span that rose to 65 feet to allow for boat passage, but the rest of the bridge was fairly close to the water. You could see the next island off in the distance and the old bridge, now used as a fishing pier off to one side, but the ride gave you the feeling of coasting over the ocean, like a sea bird. Elle told me about several movies that had been filmed on the old bridge including the awful Timothy Dalton Bond movie, _'License to Kill'_ and the Schwarzenegger movie _'True Lies'_.

As we rode over the bridge, I found myself smiling. I glanced over at Elle and she had noticed, smiling back at me. She reached for my hand and brought it to her mouth, kissing it and holding it next to her cheek for a minute. Then she kissed it again and set it down on her thigh.

I squeezed her thigh and snarked: "You know, this ain't half bad. I'm in a convertible, top down, with the ocean breezes blowing through my hair and my chauffeur is a gorgeous brunette who I'm going to get drunk tonight so I can have my wicked way with her. This is livin'."

Elle laughed and punched a couple of buttons on the CD player until she found the song she wanted. We both knew the words to the chorus: _"Why don't we get drunk and screw?"_

We laughed and sang along with Buffet all the way to Key West.

Actually I was glad I let Elle do the driving, as she seemed to know exactly where she wanted to go.

"Ready for a bit of luxury, room service and all that?"

I smiled at her: "That'd be fine."

We zipped along U.S. 1 past several decent looking hotels and then Elle veered right. "We're going straight to Old Town. The Hyatt is within walking distance of a lot of the bars and restaurants. No worries about drinking drunk or finding a cab."

"Sounds good."

The streets grew more crowded as we got closer to our destination. Finally we reached the Hyatt and Elle pulled into the parking area. At the reception desk, I asked for their best room with a king-sized bed. We were given a deluxe gulf-front King room with a private balcony. The view was gorgeous, the bed was large and the shower was huge. I was already envisioning washing up my dirty girl in there before the bellman even left the room.

Elle wrapped her arm around my waist and said: "This is nice, huh? I'm sure it's more your speed than my little campy place."

I kissed the top of her head: "Your place has its charm, but I have to admit I do love room service. And wait until you see the shower. I have plans for that shower."

Elle giggled and squeezed me tighter.

We decided to head out and explore. We strolled through the hotel first. It had a huge pool and a whirlpool that I thought would be quite enjoyable after a lot of walking. Then I noticed a sign by the concierge's desk.

"Hey, they do weddings here."

Elle waved her hand at me. "They do weddings everywhere here. You can have a wedding at any hotel, on any beach; you can rent a sailboat for the event. It's a big business down here."

She gave me a playful slap on the butt. "Don't get any ideas."

"Too late."

Elle rolled her eyes and we walked out onto Front Street. We browsed along, looking in shop windows, poking our heads into bars. There were 2 places that really caught my eye; one was a jewelry store and the other was advertised as an adult store for lovers.

I pointed at the adult store: "I bet they have some fun stuff in there."

Elle giggled: "I'm sure they do."

"Why don't you head on in and find something sexy to wear for me tonight?"

"And what will you be doing while I shop?"

"I'll be doing my own shopping. Go on; I'll catch up to you in there."

She gave me a suspicious look but went into the store. Once she was out of sight, I hurried across the street to the jewelry store.

I scanned the cases while the salesperson was helping another customer. For a small store, there were a ton of rings. I really had no idea where to start. I didn't know what style she would like or if she would prefer yellow gold, white gold or platinum. Should I get one large diamond or several small ones? The decision felt too overwhelming right now without further information so I decided to ease my way out and rejoin Elle across the street. Just as I turned to leave, another salesman came out of the back room and asked: "May I help you sir?"

"Hmm, I was looking for a ring."

"Certainly, sir. What type of ring? Is it for an engagement or a anniversary?"

I thought for a moment and then said: "Kinda both."

He nodded thoughtfully: "What type of stone are you looking for? A diamond? The lady's birthstone?"

"Her birthday's in January."

"Ah, garnet. Lovely stone. Here, let me show you a few examples that we have."

The third one that he showed me was perfect. The ring was white gold. The center stone was a square shaped garnet, which was flanked by two diamonds. It didn't look like a traditional engagement ring, but it could still be one. I stood there picturing it on her hand when the salesman interrupted my musing: "Do you know what size her finger is?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't. She is very petite."

"Well this ring is a 5, but it can always be resized. Once she tries it on, we can adjust the fit later."

I don't know why I told the guy this; it just popped out of my mouth. "It's a surprise."

"It's lovely. I think your lady will really like it."

_My lady_. I smiled at that term. It was almost as good as my wife. "Yes, I think my lady will like it. You take American Express?"

**_ELLE_**

I wondered what Greg was up to, but I figured I would find out sooner or later. I just hoped he wasn't lining up a justice of the peace or something. This adult shop was huge and had a vast array of toys. I stopped here and there to browse, but then moved on to the lingerie area. After a few minutes of looking, I found something that I liked. It was a burgundy corset with black lace overlay. The underwire bra pushed my breasts up at least 2 sizes. It had a matching skirt, well, if you could call it a skirt, as it was barely long enough to cover the cheeks of my butt and clung to me like a second skin. It also came with a black lace choker collar. It was hot and I knew Greg would like it. I quickly took it to the register, paid and then went back to browsing through the toys and waiting for Greg's return.

**_HOUSE_**

I found her over by the dildos. Creeping up quietly behind her, I whispered in her ear: "What? I'm not big enough for you?"

She jumped a foot. "YOU! Don't scare me like that." She looked away for a moment and then turned back with a smile. "And, yes, you are. I was actually just amazed at how big they make these things. But come over here, and check out these toys."

Elle grabbed my hand and dragged me two aisles over. I glanced around: every sex toy imaginable was in this place. Elle picked up a package and thrust it into my hand: "Check this out."

It was called a lover's thong. The package indicated that it was made for the woman to wear during sex and it had 2 rows of stimulating pleasure beads designed for mutual pleasure. It looked interesting.

Elle stage-whispered: "What do you think?"

I grinned: "It might be fun. Let's see what else is here."

We had a good time checking out the toys and showing them to each other. I loved her enthusiasm; in spite of all the bad things that had happened to her, Elle really did enjoy sex and I was the happy recipient of her excitement.

"Greg, look at this. THIS might be really interesting."

I looked over her shoulder to see what she was holding. It was simply called "Bo" and was a vibrating ring that slid over a man's cock for enjoyment by both parties.

"Yeah," I said slowly. "That might be fun. Let's get that."

"The only bad thing is that we can't use it until next week."

"That's OK. Anticipation will make it even more fun."

"I want something we can play with tonight."

Elle was excited by her next find, glow in the dark edible body paint.

"Look, Greg, it's got 4 flavors and one of them's cherry, your favorite."

I shuddered at the thought of my cock glowing green, but consoled myself with the fact that Elle would lick it clean afterwards. I threw the package of paints in the basket with the "Bo". After another 20 minutes of shopping, we also added some edible panties and a kit containing fur-lined handcuffs, a blindfold and a feather to our basket. I paid for our toys and we headed back to the hotel to drop off the bag before we hit the bars. When Elle's back was turned, I slipped the ring box into my toiletry bag.

We made our way through a few of Key West's more famous bars. Captain Tony's was definitely worth a visit if just to see the tree growing in the bar all the way through the roof. It was the original site of Sloppy Joe's, the famous hangout of Hemingway. The current Sloppy Joe's is now just a few blocks away. The Hog's Breath had the best tee shirts; I just had to buy a particularly obnoxious one for Wilson. He'd never wear it, but seeing the look on his face will definitely be worth the price of the shirt. We had some chicken wings, nachos and fries with our beers and then we headed off to watch the sunset at Mallory Square.

Apparently watching the sunset in Key West is a big deal. The place was mobbed with watchers, jugglers, musicians and other buskers. I couldn't see the big appeal, but Elle really wanted to show the place to me, so I went along with it. When the sun had set, she squeezed my hand and said: "Wanna go finger-paint?"

Her eyes were sparkling, so I quickly agreed.

Back at the hotel room, I found an extra blanket in the closet and spread it out on the bed in case we got really messy. That way, I could just roll up that blanket and we'd still have clean linens to sleep on. We stripped and started painting each other. My cock and balls (frank and beans) ended up blue, but not for long, as Elle licked most of it off in a very satisfying manner. I painted yellow flowers petals on each of her breasts with long green stems running down her belly all the way to her core. The paint had a weird aftertaste, but it was very sensual swirling the paint over each other's bodies and licking it off. We headed to the shower to finish the cleanup.

Running my soapy hands over her body was even more fun than the paints. We soaped each other up completely and rubbed our bodies together. And even though Elle had just sucked me off while trying to remove the paint, I found myself getting hard again while rubbing against her in the shower. I ended up sitting on the wooden shower stool, with Elle straddling my lap, rubbing my cock against her slit, but not entering her. The soapy friction was fantastic and I blew my wad all over her belly.

I sighed: "My Gawd, woman, what you do to me?"

She laughed: "I just can't wait until I can fuck you again."

"Me either, sweetheart."

I rubbed my softening cock right up against her clit until she came, moaning my name while clutching my shoulders tightly. We sat for a few moments, blissfully happy, and then suddenly she giggled.

"Remember the first time we showered together?"

"You mean, the time I had food poisoning and crap running down my legs? Yeah, that was just how I wanted it to happen the first time we got naked together."

She giggled again: "Well, remember, I wasn't actually naked. I had on my bathing suit. Only you were naked."

"Yeah, that's true. Boy, the look on your face when you saw my cock. That was worth all the embarrassment, seeing your expression when you saw my big uncircumcised dick for the first time."

I rubbed my cock against her and nibbled her neck. She giggled again and said: "You must have thought I was such a silly naïve girl."

"Oh, hell no. It was hot, watching a sexy young thing like you drooling over my dick. If I had felt better, I would have definitely nailed you that night."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Oh, most definitely. And when you were on your knees, helping me pull my boxers on, fuck me to tears, I wanted to stick it in your mouth so bad. As sick as I was, I wanted you. And you wanted me too, didn't you?"

She smiled dreamily: "Yeah, I did. As I was pulling up your boxers, I so wanted to take your cock in my mouth."

"Why didn't you? You know, no man turns down a blow job."

She shrugged: "I don't know. You were sick, and I wasn't sure how you felt about me."

I smirked: "You found out 2 days later."

She smiled: "Yeah, I did."

She wrapped her arms around my neck, and laid her head on my shoulder. We sat together under the warm shower spray for a while. Finally we stood up and rinsed off. We dried each other and wrapped up in the fluffy, hotel supplied bathrobes.

"Hey, let's raid the mini-bar for some scotch."

Elle laughed: "Oh, I can do better than that. I brought along the bottle of Glenlivet."

I kissed her cheek: "Excellent. How about pouring us each a shot and I'll join you on the balcony in a minute?"

She kissed me back: "Sure, sweetie."

She grabbed the bottle of scotch and headed out to the balcony. When I was sure her back was turned, I slipped the ring box out of my toiletry bag and into the pocket of my robe.

We sat side by side on the balcony, watching the lights play on the water as we sipped our scotch. When our glasses were empty, I took hers out of her hand and set both glasses down on the table.

I patted my good leg: "C'mere."

Giggling, Elle slid over and got comfortable on my lap. I untied her robe and let it fall open, exposing her naughty bits to the night air. I slowly slid my hand up her leg and over her hip, pulling her infinitesimally closer to me. "You're so beautiful."

My mouth hovered over hers. She leaned in for a kiss and I backed away. Pouting, she moved back and I went after her. We breathed each other's air, our noses briefly rubbed together. She leaned forward again and I moved back. We continued this dance, coming close enough for just a quick brush of the lips but nothing more. Finally I could take no more, and my hand swiftly went to the back of her head and forced her to me. My lips captured hers and my tongue went exploring in her mouth. Elle moaned and that only made me kiss her harder. Her hands cupped my face as her tongue danced with mine. After a long passionate moment, we finally had to come up for air. I pulled back just enough to see her face. Her eyes were sparkling and she smiled lovingly at me. Now was the time.

I whispered: "Close your eyes."

She immediately complied.

I opened the box inside my pocket and took out the ring. Gently I picked up her left hand and slid the ring on her third finger, all the while watching her face change as she realized what was happening. Her lower lip started trembling and she whispered: "Greg? Wha, what's that?"

"You can open your eyes."

She complied and gasped when she looked at her hand. "Oh, Greg, it's beautiful. But why? I mean, I didn't say yes. Is this? What does this mean?"

Elle was just stammering all over the place. I picked up her hand and admired how perfect the ring looked on her.

"What size is your finger?"

"It's a 5."

If I believed in signs, I would certainly take the ring's perfect fit as one of those.

"Do you remember when we met?"

She nodded: "Yes, it was my first day at work. Lisa was showing me around the hospital. You thought I was her new assistant and told me to find another job. And you wanted us to go back to your office so you could demonstrate how good you are with your tongue."

She smiled cheekily at that memory.

"Do you remember the date?"

She thought for a moment, and I could actually see by her expression exactly when the realization hit her. "Oh, it was a year ago, yesterday."

"That's right. It was a year ago, yesterday that we met. You moved in across the hall and we became friends and then lovers. You made my life so much better. You loved me like no other but I was an ass and pushed you away."

I paused and then went on: "And it was yesterday, exactly a year later, that you decided to give me another chance and let me back in your life. So June 12th is kinda special, a day of new beginnings for us. So this ring."

And here I floundered. I took a deep breath as I tried to figure out how to phrase my feelings into words without sounding too damn sappy. "So this ring is a symbol of beginning anew. I want you to have this. I want you to see it everyday and know how much I love you.

Elle stared at her hand for a moment, and then looked up at me. "So it's not really an engagement ring?"

I tried to gauge her emotional reaction to that question. Would she be sad or would she be relieved if it were not an engagement ring?

"It is, if you want it to be. The offer still stands. I want to marry you. If you aren't ready for that, please, just accept the ring as a symbol of my love."

Elle stared down at her hand as she toyed with the ring. "It fits perfectly. How did you know my size?"

I shrugged: "I didn't. He only had this one ring. He said if it didn't fit to come back and get it properly sized."

Softly she said: "It's beautiful. I love it. And I love you."

She cupped my face with both hands and kissed me tenderly.

In a voice filled with emotion, Elle softly whispered: "I love you so much, but I still feel like I can't make any big decisions right now. There's so much to think about. I really want to learn more about my condition and think hard about whether to try to get pregnant again. And marriage. Man, you really came at me from left field with that one. I never expected you to propose. Two weeks ago, all I wanted was for us to get back together, continue our relationship as it had been before we split and somehow learn to be parents together. Then."

Her voice drifted off. Tears filled her eyes as she stared off over my shoulder. I gently stroked her back to try to give her some small measure of comfort while I waited for her to finish her thoughts.

After a moment, she stroked my cheek and then leaned her forehead against mine.

"The one thing I do know is that I want to be with you and a piece of paper from a judge is not going to make one bit of difference in how I feel about you. I love you and I want us to be together."

"I want that too."

She smiled shyly: "So you're OK if I don't answer your question affirmatively right now?"

I nodded: "But don't be surprised if I ask you again one of these days. And if YOU change your mind."

I raised one eyebrow at her.

She laughed: "Don't worry. You'll be the first to know."

_Thursday, June 14, 2007_

As we ate a lovely room service breakfast on the balcony, Elle voiced the opinion that we should stay another day as she claimed to have so many other things that she wanted to show me in Key West. So I called the front desk and arranged for another night's stay. Once that arrangement was taken care of, we donned our bathing suits and tee shirts and headed out. At the opposite end of Front St. there was a place that you could rent watercraft. Elle signed us up for a tour of the island via Jet Ski.

It was actually pretty cool. That sucker had a lot of power. It was like riding a motorcycle through the water. The Jet Ski was operated strictly by hand controls, so once I got on the ride, my leg didn't give me any issues with operating it. I drove and Elle rode behind me, just like on my motorcycle. Parts of the tour were a bit cheesy, but it was no problem to go zooming around on your own. I had a blast and actually hated to see our 2 hours end.

We wandered down Whitehead Street and headed up at Kelly's Caribbean Grill and Brewery. It is the only brewery in the Keys. We had lunch and sampled their beers. Then we strolled down to the Hemingway House and walked around the grounds for a while. We read that there were 60 cats living on that property and some were supposed to be descendants of Hemingway's own six-toed cat.

After visiting Hemingway's House, we strolled to the end of Whitehead Street to see the Southernmost Point. It was a large marker, built to resemble a buoy that stood at what was supposed to be the southernmost point of the continental United States. On the marker is painted these words: "90 miles to Cuba", which I found rather amusing. Elle got someone to take our picture standing next to the marker.

We took a cab back to the hotel at this point. That had been a lot of walking for me, and although I tolerated it better than I thought I would, my leg was begging for a rest. Back at the Hyatt, we headed straight for the Jacuzzi, and after a 20-minute soak in the hot water, I felt somewhat better.

We headed back up to the room for a nap. The long day on the water and walking had tired me out, but in a good way. We stripped off, climbed into bed and slept for a couple of hours. We woke, refreshed, and took a shower before heading out to dinner at Jimmy Buffet's place, Margaritaville.

We had some fried calamari and you-peel-'em shrimp for starters. Elle insisted on having a 'Cheeseburger in Paradise' for her entrée and I went with a sirloin steak. We hung around after dinner, sipping on beers and listening to a local band before catching a cab back to the hotel. Once we were back in our room, Elle said she was going out on the balcony for a bit to call Avi. So I seized the moment to call Wilson.

He answered promptly. "Hey, how's it going?"

"Not too bad. We're in Key West at the moment."

"Having a good time?"

"Yeah, we took a ride on a Jet ski today. That was cool, like riding a motorcycle on the water. Hit a few bars, watched the sunset, I proposed."

He made a choking sound: "What? What did you say?"

I smirked: "I know, watching the sunset is corny, but everyone does it here, like it's a real big deal for the sun to go down."

Wilson stammered: "No, no, not that part. That last part. What was the last thing you said?"

"You mean, when I asked Elle to marry me. That part?"

Incredulously he asked: "You asked her? Seriously?"

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me: "Seriously."

"Wow! That's big, House, really big. But the tone of your voice is off; how did she answer you?"

I sighed inwardly: "She says she can't make any big decisions right now."

He paused for a moment and then said in his most sincere voice: "She decided to take you back. That's the most important decision of all. Give her some time on this one. You've sprung a lot of her in a short period of time."

He was right, but I didn't want to admit it. "She liked the ring, though."

"You bought her a ring? Oh My Gawd, you are serious! So she's wearing the ring, even though she didn't actually say yes?"

"Yup."

"That's good, House, that's a good sign."

Elle came in from the balcony at that moment. She set her phone down on the table and started unbuttoning her blouse, the gems on her ring catching the light as her fingers made swift work of those buttons. I barely heard anything else that Wilson was saying as I watched Elle strip down to bra and panties and then walk over to straddle my lap. She pulled on my belt and started unbuckling it. She leaned over in just the perfect position so that I had an excellent view of her cleavage.

I interrupted Wilson: "I gotta go. There's a half naked hot babe here trying to get into my pants.

I could hear his laughter and the word 'whipped' as I closed the phone. I'd get him back another time. Right now all I could do was concentrate on those perky girls in front of my face and Elle's hand rubbing my crotch.

**_ELLE_**

I took my phone and a small glass of scotch out to the balcony to call Avi. He answered on the 3rd ring.

"Hey, sweetie, what's going on?"

I took a deep breath and said: "We made up."

"And that's a good thing, right? You love him; you forgive him for that indiscretion? You're happy?"

I smiled, even though he couldn't see me: "Yes to all of that."

"Well, all right then."

He hollered: "Ricky! Elle and House made up!"

I heard Ricky's distant voice yell back: "YAY!"

I chuckled: "So you guys are OK with that? You're not mad at him anymore?"

"Oh, sweetie, we were mad at him for treating you so badly. I told you, if you're happy with him and you love him, we're happy for you. If you could have seen him when he came looking for you at Satchel's on Saturday night, he looked like such a lovesick puppy. Tony made an ugly crack to him that he only wanted you back because of your newfound wealth and House didn't even punch him although I know he wanted to cuz I saw his hand curl into a fist. But House was so desperate to find you that he held his temper. He does love you, little sister."

I filed away Tony's crack for later when I could deal with it appropriately. I took a deep breath and dropped the other bombshell. "Avi, he proposed."

There was an audible gasp: "What?"

"He asked me to marry him. Gave me a ring too, even though I didn't say yes. Told me to consider it a symbol of his love until I decide if I want to get married. Then it can be an engagement ring."

"Wow. I can't believe it. What kind of ring is it? Is it a big diamond or what?"

I extended my hand in front of my face to take a good look at it again. "It's white gold with a garnet in the middle flanked by a diamond on each side. It's really beautiful."

"It sounds lovely. I can't wait to see it."

"We'll be back Wednesday evening. We're in Key West at the moment, and tomorrow we'll head back to Key Largo. I took him for a Jet Ski ride today and he really liked that."

"So you're having a good time? That's great. I'm glad it's all worked out. Have you decided anything else?"

"No, I'll figure out the money and all the other stuff when I get back. Right now, I just want to relax and have some fun with Greg."

"Good. You need a nice, relaxing vacation. Everything will work itself out."

"Yeah, I think so, too."

I glanced over my shoulder at Greg; he was on his phone and I assumed he was talking to Jimmy. I smiled and decided I was ready for some more fun. So I said to Avi: "I'm going to go now. I'll talk to you soon. Give my love to Ricky."

"Will do, sweetie. Kisses from both of us."

"Bye."

I closed my phone and walked back inside. Greg glanced up at me as he continued to listen, but I could see that his attention towards Jimmy started to wane when I started removing my clothes. When I was down to bra and panties, I walked over and straddled his legs. The look on his face was priceless as I started unbuckling his belt as he attempted to continue his phone conversation. I loved that horny teenager that dwelled inside of him. I pouted my lips and leaned to give him the best view of my cleavage as I started working on his belt. I rubbed my hand over his crotch for a moment and then started tugging on his zipper. He quickly ended his call and set the phone down.

He placed his hands on my shoulders and slipped my bra straps down, whispering huskily: "You little minx."

I slipped my hand inside his boxers and wrapped my hand around his shaft: "Did you want me to stop?"

He groaned. "No, don't. Don't stop."

"You have too many clothes on, cowboy. We need to remedy that."

I quickly pulled his tee shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor. Then I knelt down in front of him and removed his sneakers and socks. He grinned lasciviously at me as I undressed him. He ran his finger along the lacey edge of my bra and said: "You're so hot for me, aren't you?"

I stood up and said cheekily: "What gives you that idea? Hmm, are my panties wet? Let me check."

I stuck my hand inside my panties and I thought his eyes were going to bulge out of his head. I was already dripping wet, so I gathered a little moisture on my fingertips and then touched them to his lips. His tongue darted out and licked my fingers while his hand reached between my legs.

"Oh, fuck me, you're so wet."

I pouted: "I wanna fuck you, but we still have to wait. But there's some other things we can do."

I turned my back to him and started fingering the clasp of my bra. After a minute of teasing, I popped it open and slid my bra off, tossing it over my shoulder. He growled, grabbing me by the hips and pulling me down on his lap. His hands reached around and cupped my breasts, squeezing and kneading them, tweaking the nipples with his fingers. I wiggled my ass against his bulging crotch and reached my hand back to stroke his hair. I half turned and kissed him hard on the lips and then I made my escape. He lunged at me but I scampered away.

He pushed himself off the couch and came after me. Greg looked so sexy; wearing only unzipped jeans, his naked chest and arms sending lust-filled thoughts through my mind. I tried to escape into the bathroom, but he caught me and backed me up against the wall, his body pressing into mine.

He rubbed his hips against me and breathed into my mouth: "And just where were you going?"

I whispered: "Just going to get some lotion."

I ran my hands up his body and hooked my fingers behind his head, pushing his lips down to mine. After a slow sensual kiss, I said softly: "Go lay down on the bed. I want to play with you."

He smiled and said nothing as he stepped back away from me. He glanced down at his jeans and then back at me. I knew what he wanted.

"Oh, yeah, we don't need those."

I knelt and pushed his jeans and boxers down to his ankles, nuzzling my cheek against his cock as I did so. I gave the head one quick wet kiss as I pulled the clothes away from his feet.

I stood up, kissed him again and whispered: "Go lay down." He complied as I ducked into the bathroom for the lotion. As I walked back to the bed, I noticed him lying there; hands behind his head with a full erection and a smug look on his face. I made that look quickly disappear when I sat down and placed his left foot in my lap.

He protested: "Hey, the body part needing attention is over here." He pointed at his crotch.

I smiled serenely: "I'll get there."

I put some lotion in my hands and rubbed them together to warm it up. Then I started massaging his foot. Within a few minutes, he was groaning with pleasure as I rubbed and kneaded his sore muscles. I started with his foot and worked my way up his left leg. When I got to his hip, I retreated to my former position and started on his right foot. Greg looked completely relaxed occasionally letting out a gentle moan to let me know that he was enjoying this. I slowly worked my way up his right leg. He opened his eyes and watched as I gently massaged his scarred thigh. He still had a certain amount of discomfort when I touched his damaged thigh, so I didn't linger there too long. I ran my hands up over his hipbones and across his belly, giving his cock one long lick from base to head at the same time. He let out a loud groan that time and his cock twitched with pleasure.

I straddled his hips, my dripping core positioned right over his cock, separated by mere centimeters. Every time he twitched his cock, he made contact with my pussy. Meanwhile, I poured some more lotion on my hands and then started rubbing my breasts. I tilted my head back so Greg could get the best view as I stroked and kneaded my breasts.

He groaned: "You're making me crazy doing that."

I smiled: "Am I?"

"You damn well know you are."

"Well this might make you crazy too."

I reached down and stroked his cock with one hand while I continued to rub my breast with the other. He was rock hard and pre-cum was leaking out of his cock. His breaths were shallow and rapid with his excitement.

"Rub your pussy against me."

I held his cock against my slit and rubbed against him. It felt so delicious and I badly wanted to slip him inside of me. I was afraid that if I kept this up that I might throw caution to the wind and slip him in and that wasn't such a good idea. I rubbed him a few more times, shivering with pleasure and then murmured: "Wanna fuck my breasts?"

His reply was a growl. He grabbed my hips and pushed me onto my back. He quickly straddled my hips and placed his dick in the valley between my breasts. I pushed the girls together to give him greater contact and watched his face as he rubbed his hard red cock between my white breasts. I could see his excitement growing as he watched the action. Every time he thrust forward, I licked the head of his cock with my tongue. He put his hand behind my head and held my head up as he thrust between my breasts and just slightly into my mouth. When he came, I caught some of it in my mouth and the rest ended up on my chin.

Greg collapsed on his side, gasping: "Oh fuck, that was good. Elle, you are so fucking sexy."

He pulled me to him, and gave my face a quick swipe to get some of the spunk off. Then his lips crashed down on mine and he kissed me passionately as his hand roamed in between my legs. I was so turned on that just a few rubs on my clit had me coming hard. Waves of pleasure hit me as he stroked me over and over until I finally had to clamp my legs shut to stop him. He removed his hand and cupped my ass, pulling me even closer to him. We kissed for a few minutes, our bodies pressed tightly against each other. Then Greg reached over and switched the light off. I nestled into his embrace and, after a few more gentle kisses, we fell asleep.

**A/N: Happy New Year's everyone!! Thank you for reading and reviewing!!! I love hearing from you.**


	56. Chapter 56

**Chapter 56**

_Friday June 15, 2007_

**HOUSE**

We had room service for breakfast again. I had to admit that it was a luxury that I really enjoyed. After we ate and showered, we went down to the lobby and checked out. On the way out to the car, we passed the sign advertising weddings again. I tapped my cane against and asked: "Whatcha think? We could have it arranged and I could be calling you Mrs. House by noon."

Elle smiled at me and said: "Not today. I think that when we get married, I'd like Avi and Jimmy and all our friends to be there."

I noticed that this time Elle said 'when', not 'if'. That was an encouraging sign. I heaved a dramatic sigh and said: "Fine. Well, if you won't marry me, do I at least get to drive the car today?"

She laughed and handed me the keys.

We took our time driving back, stopping at a few places along the way that Elle wanted to show me. She claimed that Bahia Honda State Park had the best beach in the Keys so we stopped there for a little while. It did have a rather long sandy beach, unusual for the Keys, which generally had small patches of sand or mangroves growing in between the land and the water, cutting off water access. We turned on a side road in Big Pine Key and went looked for the small Key deer. They are a tinier version of the white-tailed deer found on the mainland. We found a few roaming through backyards and on the side of the road.

We arrived back at our motel around 5PM. It had been a long drive for me and I needed to stretch my leg, so we changed into bathing suits and went swimming for a while. Afterwards, we showered and dressed before going to dinner at Café Largo, a nearby Italian bistro. We started with baked artichoke hearts and then Elle had calamari marinara over linguini and I had veal parmigiana. It was delicious and extremely filling so we got our dessert, a luscious piece of chocolate cake, to go.

Back in our room, we watched some TV for a while and then shared the very large piece of cake. After Elle's meds and the usual bathroom ablutions, we undressed and crawled into bed together.

Elle gave a contented sigh as she burrowed her face into my chest. I grinned, enjoying her warmth in my arms. She kissed my chest several times and then leaned her head back to kiss my lips. We kissed softly and tenderly for several minutes and then I turned off the light. We fell asleep wrapped up in each other's arms.

We spent the next 2 days just lazing around the motel. On Monday, Elle booked us a tour with a place called Dolphin Cove. We took a boat ride over to the Everglades and cruised around some of the narrow channels between the many islands. We docked over at Flamingo and then took a short walk on one of the hiking trails. However, the highlight of the trip was the airboat ride. An airboat is basically a flat-bottomed boat with an airplane-like propeller in the back to move it forward. The design of the craft makes it perfect for zooming across the shallow marshy waters of the Everglades. The ride was fast, noisy and a whole lot of fun. The guide tried to point out places of interest, but it was hard to hear him over the noise of the engine. I tuned him out and just enjoyed the ride.

We spent Tuesday lazing around the motel again. We swam, sunned and lounged in Elle's favorite swing. I think we both hated to see our idyllic vacation end. That evening as Elle packed her things, I called the airline to confirm our flight and bump Elle's seat up to first class. Fortunately the seat next to me was empty, so it was easy to move her there.

We woke up early on Wednesday, packed the car and checked out. It took us a little over 2 hours to drive back to Miami International Airport, return the rental car and check in at the airline. Elle was pleasantly surprised at the upgrade, saying that she had never flown first class before. The larger seats and wider legroom were worth the higher price tag as far as I was concerned. She sat on my right side, next to the window. As the plane accelerated on takeoff, she closed her eyes, leaned back into the seat and squeezed my hand tightly.

I gently inquired: "Don't like flying?"

"The flying part is OK. I don't like takeoffs and landings. And turbulence scares the crap outta me."

I couldn't help smiling at her small hand tightly gripping mine. I cradled her hand between both of mine, enjoying the feel of her ring pressing against my palm, and said: "I got you, babe."

She leaned against my shoulder, squeezed my hand and whispered: "I know."

The flight was uneventful and even landed 5 minutes early. Wilson was waiting for us by the gate. He broke into a broad smile when he saw us walking towards him, hand in hand. He gave Elle a hug and clapped me on the shoulder.

"Wow, you two look good. Great tans."

I smirked: "A week on the beach will do that."

He scrutinized me closely: "You look better than you have in weeks."

I fluttered my eyelashes: "It's the tan. It brings out the blue in my eyes."

He chuckled: "Right. It has nothing to do with the fact that you have the woman you love back in your life again."

Elle laughed: "Don't pick on him, Jimmy. He's just relaxed and mellowed out from all the sex we've been having."

I grabbed her by the ass and pulled her tightly against me. "I seem to recall that you were the one who basically passed out last night from the pleasure I gave _you_. I was still ready for action, but you wanted to sleep."

Elle gave my ass a squeeze: "Well, after 3 orgasms, I was,"

Wilson held up his hands in surrender mode: "Stop. That's enough; I don't want the details of your sex life. Let's go get your luggage so you can go home and make each other pass out. I don't need to hear about it."

Elle grinned at me. "Sounds like a plan to me."

**WILSON**

I drove to Baker Street and helped them in with their bags. After a quick stop for some Thai take-out, I headed over to Lisa's place. She was anxious to hear how her world-famous diagnostician and his girlfriend were doing.

I was in her kitchen, pulling containers out of the bag when she walked in, barefoot, dressed in a pair of tight faded jeans and a red knit top that hugged her breasts like a second skin. I wanted to push everything off the table and take her right then and there. I made do for the moment with pulling her into my arms and rubbing my groin against her.

Lisa sighed in my ear: "Hmmmm, someone's happy to see me."

I squeezed her tighter: "I'm always happy to see you."

My lips found hers and we stood there kissing until the need for air was greater than our need for each other. Somehow we managed to pull apart and set the table for dinner. We started eating and then Lisa asked about House and Elle.

"They look good, both have great tans. House couldn't stop touching her. When they walked off the plane, they were holding hands. He had his arm around her shoulder; he grabbed her ass. When we got in the car, he was in front and Elle was in the back. He put his arm over the seat and held onto her knee for the whole ride home. It's like he's afraid to let go of her or she'll disappear. But I've never seen him look this good, this relaxed. This vacation did him a world of good."

"The fact that Elle took him back is what did him a world of good. If she hadn't, a year's vacation wouldn't have him looking that relaxed."

I nodded, conceding the point.

Lisa asked: "Did you see the ring?"

"Oh, yeah. Elle didn't flash it around, but when she saw me sneaking peeks at it, she held up her hand so that I could take a good look. It has a square garnet in the middle with a square diamond on each side of it. It doesn't look like a traditional engagement ring, but it's very nice. Elle seemed pleased with it and House tried to act nonchalant but was strutting like a peacock about it."

She shook her head: "He really proposed, huh? That's amazing. Five years with Stacy and he never proposed to her."

"I know. He's changed. Something made him decide he wanted that baby and then he plunged into the deep end to get Elle back. It's just too bad about the baby."

"You think they'll try again?"

"He told me that he wants to, but he's leaving it up to Elle. After 2 miscarriages, she may not want to try again."

Lisa nodded sadly: "I can understand that."

Then it dawned on me how much Elle's miscarriage must have affected Lisa, reminding her of her own attempts to have a baby.

I hitched my chair closer to her: "Lisa, do you still want to have a baby?"

She turned to face me, tears pooling in her eyes. "I'd love to have a baby, but I don't think it's going to happen for me."

Jokingly, I said: "Well, you'd have to go off the pill first."

She started to bristle: "I went on the pill to regulate my cycles after all the hormone treatments."

Gently, I said: "I know that. I'm just thinking that you are probably regulated by now. If you went off the pill, we could just see if anything happens naturally. If it does, that would be fabulous. If it doesn't, then we could think about trying some fertility treatments or not, depending on what you want to do."

One lone tear slid down her cheek: "You want to have a baby with me?"

I caught her tear with my thumb: "Yes, I'd like that very much."

"You never said anything before."

"You were on the pill. I figured if you were interested, you would tell me, or go off the pill or something. I was waiting for you to let me know."

She stared at me for a moment and then got up and rushed out of the room. I didn't know whether to wait for her or go after her. Finally I stood up and started to go after her when she hurried back into the room. She had one hand behind her back and with her other hand, grabbed mine and pulled me over to the kitchen trashcan. She stepped on the lever and popped the lid up. She showed me what was in her hand; it was her current pack of birth control pills.

Lisa held it over the open can and asked: "Are you sure? You really want to do this?"

"Yes. I really want to do this."

Lisa dropped the pack into the can and shut the lid with a resounding thud.

I found myself grinning broadly. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her, my hand wandering down to cup her ass and pull her even closer to me.

I put my finger under her chin and tilted her face up towards me: "You wanna have my baby?"

Another tear slid down her face. "Yes. I want you to knock me up. I want your bun in my oven. Just don't be too disappointed if it doesn't happen."

I scooped her up in my arms and headed towards the bedroom. "Well, even if it doesn't, we are going to have a lot of fun trying."

**HOUSE**

It was great to be home. All I wanted to do was kick back on the couch and catch up on my soap opera, but Elle went into full nesting mode. She declared my apartment a disaster area and stated that she planned to spend all day Thursday cleaning, doing laundry and stocking up on groceries. She unpacked all the luggage, sorted the laundry and changed the sheets on the bed. I did my part by ordering Chinese food to be delivered for dinner.

Chase called me around 11AM on Thursday and gave me the details of our new patient. I didn't really want to go into work, but Elle was already starting to clean so I thought maybe it would be better for me to get out of her way, before she handed me a dust mop or something. I went to the hospital, reviewed the file, listed all the symptoms on the whiteboard and sent the kids off to run some tests. Wilson wandered over shortly afterwards and we headed down to the cafeteria for some lunch. I got my usual dry Reuben with fries and he had a tuna salad sandwich with fries, which meant more fries for me. I was just reaching over to swipe one off of his plate when he said: "Cuddy told me something that I thought you should know. She wasn't sure if we should tell Elle or not, so I told her that I would run it by you."

I paused before my fingers actually reached the fry: "What did she say?"

"Apparently Elle didn't told her boss in person what happened. She left him a voice mail and had her doctor confirm it via e-mail."

I bristled as I grabbed the fry: "There is no reason for him to know her personal health issues. She just needed to be out sick for 2 weeks; that's all he needed to know."

"I agree with you, but, according to Cuddy, he was pissed at the way he was informed of the matter. She explained that it was very sudden and of a rather personal nature, but she thinks he was just acting appeased. He may be gunning for her and I wasn't sure if we should warn Elle or not."

I tossed the fry back onto his plate: "He hasn't been pleased with her since that whole incident with Rivera. I guess he likes little robots who do what they're told as opposed to someone who will take a stand and actually give a damn about the patients."

"Are you going to tell her?"

"I don't know. I don't want to upset her. She's just getting over the miscarriage. You know, she just got 4 million bucks. She doesn't need this job, but I don't think she wants to leave it either. She really likes working with the pain patients."

"Too bad she can't do that full-time."

I nodded: "Ain't that the truth?"

I got home around 6. I was still brooding about what Wilson had said, but still hadn't made any decisions about whether to tell Elle or not yet. The apartment looked and smelled wonderful. I pulled open the oven and was pleased to see a meatloaf baking in there. I opened the refrigerator and the shelves were filled with more than beer, condiments and leftover Chinese food containers. My heart swelled. She showed her love for me in so many little ways and I seriously wondered what I gave her in return to cause her to love me so much.

Since she hadn't walked into the room on my arrival, I figured she was across the hall in her place. I headed towards the door and then I heard her voice down the hall, singing 'City of New Orleans'. I smiled; she must have her I-Pod on and didn't hear me come in. I limped down the hall and found her singing and folding laundry. She looked up when I entered the room and smiled when she saw me. I walked over to her and pulled her into my arms.

Elle pulled her earplugs out and then wrapped her arms around my neck. "Oh, good, you're home. Dinner will be ready in about 30 minutes. I made meatloaf."

I nuzzled her neck: "It smells great. Looks like you had a busy day. Groceries, cleaning, cooking and laundry. I'm exhausted just thinking about it."

Elle giggled and kissed my cheek.

I whispered in her ear: "Why do you do it, Elle? Why do you take such good care of me?"

Softly, she said: "Because I want to. I love you and that's what you do for someone that you love."

I squeezed her tighter. "But why? Why do you love an grumpy old gimp like me?"

"Oh, stop with the put-downs. That's not who you are. You're brilliant, funny, sexy and surprising."

She punctuated each adjective with a kiss.

"I'm never bored with you. You're enormously talented, endlessly amusing and infinitely sexy."

She simultaneously kissed my cheek and squeezed my ass as she said that last part.

Something Stacy had once told me resonated in my head: "Are you ever lonely with me?"

Elle sounded puzzled: "No, why would you think that?"

The words slowly spilled out of me: "Sometimes I ignore you when I've got a case."

"Pffft. You're not ignoring me. You're busy. That's different. And if I really needed you for something, I could pull you out of your trance. What's going on? Did something happen? You seem, I don't know, insecure or something."

I just shook my head; I didn't understand it myself. I grabbed a shirt out of the laundry basket and started folding it to distract myself from the conversation.

I could sense her eyes on me as I worked. "Greg, does this have something to do with my not giving you an affirmative answer on your marriage proposal?"

I shrugged and continued to fold.

"Greg, like I told you before, I love you. A piece of paper is not going to make me love you anymore than I already do. Are you afraid that I'm going to leave? Cuz I'm not going anywhere."

She moved around the bed and stood next to me.

"I'm right here. I'm cooking your food, doing your laundry and cleaning your place."

I mumbled: "Our place."

She smiled: "Our place. Tomorrow, after I see Kelly, I'm buying some condoms on the way home and I'll be jumping your big boner as soon as you walk in the door."

She grabbed my hands and placed them on her hips. "I'm right here. I'm in your arms; I'm in your bed. I'm exactly where I want to be, with you."

"You're wearing my ring."

She smiled so lovingly that I wanted to swoop her up in my arms. "Yes, I am. I'm wearing your ring. I'm yours."

She tiptoed up and planted her lips on mine. Lost in her embrace, I let my fears and insecurities melt away for now.

The meatloaf and mashed potatoes were fabulous. I really had missed her cooking. There were brownies and vanilla ice cream for dessert and I felt like a spoiled over grown kid. I did help with the dishes and then we trooped down the hall to the bedroom and finished up the laundry together.

"What time is your appointment tomorrow?"

"At 1:30."

I hesitated and then asked: "Can I come with?"

She looked up surprised: "You want to?"

I nodded. "If it's OK with you, I'd like to talk to her about the APS and get her input on trying again."

Elle thought for a minute and then nodded: "Sure. If you want to come, that's fine. Shall I swing by your office on the way up to hers?"

"Yeah, that'd be good, in case I'm in the middle of the differential and lose track of time. Even if I look busy, interrupt me. I want to go to your appointment."

"OK. I'll swing by around 1:00. That will give you time to wrap stuff up."

We finished folding the laundry and put the clothes away. As soon as the bed was cleared off, I sat down and pulled her down onto my good leg.

"I need to tell you something else."

I told her what Wilson had said about her boss. She bristled but then quickly composed herself. "Let him try something. I'll sic Bill on him so fast that his head will spin. I'm not compromising my principles for a job."

I kissed her cheek. "Good for you. And you don't have to, especially now that you have 4 millions bucks."

She laughed: "Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. I have to figure how what to do with all that money."

Hesitantly I said; "You were looking at real estate ads before we ended up in Florida."

"Yeah, well, that was then. Now I think I'll find somewhere to park it for a while until we decide if we want to move. If we want a house, we can take our time looking for one. There's no rush."

"There's no reason for you to think you have to pay for it. I have money too, you know."

She kissed the tip of my nose: "So we'll split the cost or whatever. We'll work it out. Despite what Tony said, I know you didn't want me back for my newfound wealth."

I frowned: "Who told you what Tony said?"

"Who do you think? Avi, of course. He also told me that you looked like you wanted to punch him after he said it."

"I wanted to wipe that smirk off of his face with my fist. Elle, you know that's not the reason. You know that."

She silenced me with a finger to my lips. "Oh, stop. Of course I know it's not the reason you wanted me back. I know better than that. If money were that important to you, you wouldn't be driving that old beater of yours. And you would have bought a new motorcycle, not a used one with a big scratch on it. You would already have a McMansion, instead of renting a one-bedroom apartment. I know what's important to you and it ain't the dough. It's nice to have to be able to buy stuff and all that, but being rich is not your ultimate goal in life."

She looked at me mischievously: "Besides I know you already have a fairly sizable brokerage account. You're not after me for my money."

"And just how do you know about my account?"

"You left the statement lying around one day and I was naughty and peeked at it."

Well, so she knew about my holdings. It wasn't like it was a big secret anyway. If we got married, she would find out about my investments when I added her name to my accounts. In a way, it was good that she knew, truly knew that I wasn't after her for her money.

I chuckled: "That was very naughty of you. I think you need to be punished."

"You think?"

"Oh yeah."

I spun her around so she landed on the bed on her back. My hand quickly went to the fly of her jeans and I started unfastening them.

"What's my punishment?" She looked half anxious and half eager to find out.

I grinned lasciviously as I pulled her jeans and panties off in one fell swoop. I spread her thighs apart and positioned myself in between them. "I'm going to make you scream for mercy. You'll be begging me to stop."

I dove in for my dessert. I had her screaming within minutes.

_Friday June 22, 2007_

**Elle**

Greg was alone in his office when I arrived at 1:00. He had a search engine open on his computer for rhabdomyolysis, two open textbooks on his desk and he was reading a third book. I smiled; I loved watching him work and he looked so sexy with his reading glasses parked halfway down his elegant nose.

Quietly, I said: "Rhabdomyolysis, huh?"

He nodded and set the book down on his desk. "Just don't know the cause of it yet. The kids are running tests."

"Can you still get away?"

"Absolutely."

He took his glasses off and laid them on top on the book. He slowly stood up and gradually eased some weight onto his right leg. He must have been sitting for quite a while for his leg to get that stiff. I stepped closer to him and put my hand on his thigh.

"Been sitting long?"

He nodded, wincing just a little as I rubbed his thigh. "A bit too long. Ummm, that helps."

He put his hands on my hips and pulled me closer. His lips brushed mine and I moved closer to deepen the kiss. He pulled back teasingly for just a second and then covered my mouth with his. I felt his tongue rubbing across my lips and I parted them allowing him access. His tongue slowly danced with mine. My hands moved up to cup his face and coax him closer still. We became completely lost in each other.

Behind me, I thought I heard someone clear his throat, but I ignored it enjoying the sensations coursing through my body from Greg's touch. It wasn't until an irritated voice yelled 'House' that we broke the kiss. Turned out that the irritated voice belonged to Foreman and all 3 ducklings were standing in Greg's office trying to get his attention.

I started to back away but Greg kept a firm hold on me. In an annoyed tone, he asked: "Whatcha got?"

Chase started out with: "Liver enzymes are climbing, and his kidney function is starting to decline, despite the IV hydration."

Foreman, Chase and Greg threw some ideas back and forth, but Cameron was just staring at us, mouth hanging open. I followed her sight line and realized that she was staring at my hand. I guess my new ring caught her eye.

After listening to them for a few minutes, I piped in: "Is he on a 'statin' for cholesterol?"

Cameron hissed: "Joining the team again, Dr Kaplan?"

Greg growled: "Cameron. I've warned you."

Chase interjected: "Rhabdomyolysis could be caused by statins but we checked that one, Elle. He's not on any of them. He probably should be as his cholesterol is high, but he's a real health nut. Eats only organic produce and all that. Says he doesn't believe in allopathic medicine, prefers natural products to treat any illnesses."

Greg sneered: "Until he gets really sick and has to get admitted to a real hospital instead of having a shaman shake a stick at him."

I glanced at my watch; it was 1:20 and we needed to get upstairs. Greg caught my glance and nodded. He grabbed his cane and took my hand, saying to the team: "I'll be back in a half hour. Don't kill him while I'm gone."

As we headed towards the door, I looked back at Chase. He really was the only one that was nice to me. I figured it was because he used to have a crush on me, but he seemed to have gotten over that and accepted my relationship with Greg. Cameron, on the other hand, was openly hostile and Foreman was just indifferent.

So I addressed my next words right to Chase: "Ask him if he's taking any herbal meds, in particular, red yeast rice and if he is, which brand it is. Also, ask him if he drink a lot of grapefruit juice."

Chase nodded. I felt their eyes boring into our backs as we left the office and headed over to the elevators.

We got up to Kelly's office right on time and were shown into an exam room. I stripped off the bottom half of my clothes and climbed up on the table, covering myself with the provided paper blanket. Greg sat on a chair next to me.

"Your ass is showing."

I turned to see him staring at my backside. So I wrapped the blanket more securely around my hips and said lightly: "Not anymore."

He pouted: "I liked it better the other way."

I started to laugh and just then Kelly walked into the room. To say that she looked surprised that Greg was with me would be an understatement.

"Shall I surmise that since House is here, that you two are back together?"

Greg placed his hand possessively on my thigh and snarked: "Stating the obvious, sister."

Kelly rolled her eyes and rolled her stool closer to the exam table. "So, you are giving me verbal permission to speak freely about your medical condition in front of him?"

I nodded: "Yes."

"OK. Well, you look great, tanned and rested. How are you feeling? Any problems?"

"No. I had some cramps and spotting for about 3 days, but it wasn't bad. The ibuprofen took care of the cramps. I took all of my antibiotics and I feel fine."

She eyed me suspiciously: "Did you hold off on having sex?"

I could see Greg scowl, so I answered quickly: "Yep. We knew we needed to wait until I saw you again."

Greg muttered darkly: "We're not idiots."

Kelly ignored his remark and said: "Slide down and put your feet in the stirrups."

She gave me a quick exam. "Well, everything seems fine. Is there anything you want to discuss?"

I sat back up and repositioned the blanket. "Greg said that he e-mailed you about the APS."

Kelly nodded: "Yes and I concur with his findings. Diagnostic guidelines say we should repeat the blood work in 12 weeks and we can. I don't think it is absolutely necessary as your symptoms are textbook. Are you on anti-coagulants now?"

"Yes, Greg started me on aspirin and Lovenox about 10 days ago."

Kelly addressed Greg: "Draw any labs yet?"

He shook his head: "We've been gone the whole time, just got back into town. We can do them now."

"OK, we'll do them before you leave. I'm sure that House explained the syndrome to you, but do you have any questions for me about it?"

I nodded slowly: "Yes, I do. Greg says that when I'm on anti-coagulants, my chances of sustaining a pregnancy rise to 80%. Do you have other patients with APS? In your experience, what is their success rate?"

Kelly tilted her head and thought for a moment: "I think my success rate is closer to 90%, but then I send all of my patients to Rich Lottenberg for a consult. He specializes in high-risk pregnancies and I'm afraid that you now fall into that category."

Greg nodded: "I've heard of him." He looked at me and I could see the approval in his eyes.

Kelly went on: "I would definitely want you to see him. So you're thinking of trying again?"

"I'm thinking about it. I wanted to know what my chances are."

"There are no guarantees, but I think with proper monitoring, your chances are quite good. You'll need more frequent check-ups. You'll have to stay on the meds, of course, and most likely we'll want to take the baby about 4 weeks early. There is a risk of late-term fetal death and if we deliver early, we circumvent that problem. I would suggest waiting until you've had two normal menstrual cycles. That gives your body time to recover from the miscarriage and time for you to be properly anti-coagulated. If you want to consult with Dr Lottenberg before you get pregnant, I'll set that up."

"OK. Thanks. I'll let you know."

"If there's nothing else, I'll send my nurse in now to draw your blood."

"Oh, thanks for not listening to me when I wanted you to tie my tubes."

She stood up and gently laid her hand on my shoulder: "You were in too much emotional distress to make that kind of decision. There's no way I would have honored that request. Plus, he told me not to."

She jerked her chin towards Greg.

My mouth fell open in surprise.

She nodded: "Uh, huh. Oh, and you can resume sexual relations anytime now."

She grinned at me and walked out of the room.

After my blood was drawn, I got dressed and we headed out to the elevators. We managed to snag one all to ourselves.

Once the doors had shut, I grabbed Greg around the waist. "You told her not to do it?"

He winced as if the memory caused him pain: "I didn't really _tell_ her. I was just shaking my head behind your back while you were telling her to do it. That's all."

I propped my chin on his chest and looked up at him. "Have I told you lately that I love you?"

He looked down at me, gave me a small smile and kissed my forehead. Then he wrapped his free arm around me, pressed his cheek against my temple and whispered: "I know".

We rode the rest of the way to his floor locked in our embrace. When the elevator dinged to let us know we had arrived, we broke apart. I punched the button for the ground floor as he started to exit.

He frowned: "Aren't you coming with me?"

"Well, you're working. I thought I'd just head for home, after a pit stop to buy condoms, of course." I grinned and wiggled my eyebrows at him.

He held out his hand: "Don't you want to see if you were right about the patient? Come on."

The ducklings were in the conference room when we walked in. Chase grinned when he saw me. "You were right, Elle."

He tossed a bottle at me. I caught it and examined the label. It was a red yeast rice product called Cholestrix sold by Sunburst Biorganics; it was one of the three brands that the FDA had discovered contained more than just the herb. Those three products contain varying amounts of the prescription medication, lovastatin.

Chase went on: "He was told that he had high cholesterol three months ago, but refused to fill the prescription he was given. He didn't want to take anything that wasn't natural. So he changed his diet, and started taking red yeast rice. The first bottle he bought was not this brand. When he ran out of that one, a friend told him that this brand worked better so he bought it. Two weeks ago, he started drinking a pint of grapefruit juice a day. He'd read an article that said a certain compound in grapefruit juice helps to reduce excessive production of cholesterol from the liver. So he thought he found another natural way to lower his cholesterol."

I interjected: "Great. So he starts taking a 'natural' product that contains an unknown amount of lovastatin, predisposing him to the possibility of rhabdomyolysis and then he starts drinking grapefruit which inhibits the metabolism of lovastatin and increases the chances for rhab to develop."

Chase went on: "Well, now that we have convinced him to stop taking this crap, the hydration should flush all the toxins out of his kidneys. If he's lucky, he won't have permanent renal damage. Good call, Elle."

I tossed the bottle back at him and smiled: "Thanks."

Greg let out a theatric sigh: "Well, my work here is done. I'm taking the rest of the afternoon off. Keep him hydrated and check his labs again tonight. If they continue to decrease, he should be good for discharge in the morning."

After that pronouncement, he took my hand and pulled me into his office.

Once we were safely in his office away from potential eavesdropping, I smirked: "Taking the rest of the day off, huh? Got big plans?"

In a low voice, he said: "I have a few ideas."

"I bet you do. Any of those ideas involve us getting naked?"

His back to the glass wall that separated the two rooms, Greg gave me that big smile, the one that went all the way to his eyes. "It's entirely possible."

I smiled back: "Let's go home."

Greg thought I was stopping for condoms when in reality I had bought them yesterday when I did the shopping. That ruse gave me the opportunity to give him a small surprise. I slipped into my own apartment and headed to my bedroom. I quickly stripped off and opened my lingerie drawer. I pulled out a red sheer lace-trimmed baby doll with matching g-string and slipped it on. I put my robe on over it, pocketed the condoms and went over to Greg's. He was waiting for me, leaning up against the back of the couch. He was shirtless, wearing just his blue jeans, a look that I found incredibly sexy.

"Did you dress for me?"

I nodded and said softly: "Yes, just for you."

I started to untie the robe and he quickly stepped forward: "No, let me."

He slowly loosened the knot and opened the robe. He let out a small hiss when my outfit was revealed. He gently stroked the lace over my breast and ran his hand down my body until it rested on my hip.

Softly he said: "You're so beautiful."

Quietly we walked to the bedroom together, Greg's hand resting in the small of my back. The drapes were drawn and just one small lamp by the bed was on. I laid the condoms on the table and turned to face him. With my eyes locked on his, I slowly let my robe slip off my shoulders and onto the floor. He smiled as he started unzipping his jeans.

I grinned when he shoved them down. "You dressed for me?"

He was wearing the Rolling Stones tongue boxers and the 'tongue' was already starting to swell. "Only for you, sweetheart."

He took 2 quick steps forward and pulled me into his arms.

_**House**_

I loved that she dressed for me. That red lacy number was hot and Mt Gregory sprang to attention. Once we were in the bedroom, Elle casually tossed the condoms on the nightstand and slowly slipped the robe off of her shoulders. I watched her eyes as I undid my jeans, waiting for her reaction when she saw what I was wearing for her.

She smiled broadly when my 'tongue' boxers were revealed and said: "You dressed for me?"

"Only for you, sweetheart."

I took two quick steps forward and pulled her into my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck and our mouths met in a passionate kiss. Her lace-covered breasts rubbed enticingly against my bare chest. I inched us over to the bed and gently her pushed her down. I climbed in next to her and started nibbling on her jaw. Elle let out a sigh of pleasure and kissed the corner of my mouth. Our lips met and we kissed slowly and tenderly. Our tongues danced slowly in each other's mouths. I grabbed her lower lip gently between my teeth, tugged it a little and then licked it soothingly. My hands were not idle while we kissed. I pushed the flimsy fabric up and over her breasts, teasing and caressing as I uncovered her body. We stopped kissing long enough to pull the nightie off over her head.

I took in the lovely sight before me and then I murmured: "You're so beautiful."

Elle made the most exquisite purring sounds as I kissed and licked my way down her neck, over her clavicle to her luscious breasts. Each nipple needed considerable attention before it was properly puckered to my satisfaction.

I kissed my way down her belly, spent some time tonguing her belly button and finally reached the promised land. I mouthed her sex right through her G-string, which was already damp with her juices. Elle moaned and pushed her core up against me. I grabbed the edge of the tiny panties with my teeth and pulled them off of her.

I revealed in the sight of my lovely lady, all in her naked glory. My erection throbbed to be inside of her and feel the warmth of her walls wrapped around him, but I wanted to take it slow. I gently touched her clit with my tongue and Elle released a loud moan just from the small graze. I started off slowly, licking her folds gently and occasionally poking my tongue inside of her cleft. Her passion was climbing and she thrust herself against me, trying to increase the contact, but I kept the pressure at a constant level.

"More!" she cried out in frustration.

I gave her what she wanted. I fucked her hard with my tongue and then switched to nibbling and sucking on her clit while I fucked her with 2 fingers. She moaned and writhed on the bed while I gobbled on her sex. When I sensed that she was close to falling over the edge, I backed off and planted little kisses along her inner thigh while I tenderly stroked her slit with one finger.

In a low husky voice, I commanded: "Tell me what you want."

Elle moaned: "I want you inside me."

I continued to stroke her pussy lips with an occasional foray up to her clit. "Tell me more."

She moaned and pushed against my fingers, trying desperately to increase the contact, her eyes imploring me, her voice a pleading whisper. "I need to feel you inside of me. I want you to fuck me. I want to feel your big hard cock inside of me."

My hard-on throbbed with a new intensity at her words. I pulled my boxers off and released Mt Gregory in his full glory.

Elle grinned lustily at his release. She reached down and grasped him with her small hand. As she slowly stroked him, her other hand went to the back of my head and pulled me to her. She kissed me slowly and lovingly and then murmured: "Come home."

My heart thudded and my breaths grew shallow at her words. I quickly grabbed a condom and rolled it on. Elle settled back and watched me with a sensuous mysterious smile on her face. I climbed on top on her and teased her entrance with the head of my cock. She pushed against me, trying to get me inside faster, but I was intent on taking my time. We had not had intercourse in weeks and the last thing I wanted was to move too fast and cause her any discomfort. I eased in, an inch or so at a time, letting her get used to my girth again.

Finally I was completely inside of her and I just stopped moving. After a long absence, I was home again. I closed my eyes and took a moment to relish the warmth of her walls wrapped around my cock. When I opened my eyes, I could see an intense loving look on Elle's face. Did it mean the same to her, for us to be joined like this again? She touched my face and slowly tightened her walls around my cock to a most pleasurable degree. I started moving slowly inside of her. Her hands gripped my shoulders as she pushed her pelvis up to meet my thrusts. We both tried valiantly to keep our eyes open, but the pleasurable sensations were so intense that we kept losing the battle. I suckled on the sweet spot on her neck as I stabbed inside of her.

Elle moaned: "Oh, Greg, oh, Gawd, oh, that's so good."

I whispered: "Come for me, baby."

I shifted my angle just a little and increased the pressure on her clit. Just a few more thrusts and Elle fell over the edge, crying out my name. The fresh flood of wetness and the fluttering of her walls sent me over the edge in just a few more thrusts. I pumped deeply inside of her until I was spent.

I rolled us on our sides, my cock still buried inside of her. Our lips found each other's and we kissed sweetly until Elle's head dropped onto my shoulder and we both dozed off.

We were hungry when we woke up, so I ordered some Thai food to be delivered. The irony didn't escape me as I remembered this was what I wanted to do the night of my parents' surprise visit. The delivery guy gave me a strange look, and then I realized that I had just tossed on the 'tongue' boxers to answer the door. Elle got a laugh out of that. We ate on the couch in front of the TV, a veritable feast of shrimp panang curry, Pad Thai, and beef satay. We ate until we were stuffed and snuggled together on the couch, watching an old Twilight Zone episode.

When it ended, I clicked off the TV. Elle looked up at me with a surprised expression on her face. She knew I only did that when I had something serious to talk about, otherwise I talked over the TV.

I started hesitantly: "At the doctor's today, did she answer all of your questions?"

She paused for a minute, obviously thinking, and then said: "She answered all the ones that I had at that moment."

"So what do you think? Do you want to try again?"

She bit her lip and looked away from me: "I'm not sure."

"Why aren't you sure? What's holding you back? It's simple, really. Do you want to have a baby?"

Elle leaned her head against the back of the couch and closed her eyes. "When I had that first miscarriage in college, I thought, oh great, I'm just like my mom. I squashed my desire to have a family, positive that it would never happen for me. I buried it deep within me. When I got pregnant this time, that desire woke up and when I passed the 10th week, I thought maybe, just maybe, I could do it. Mom did it once; maybe I can too. I wanted that baby. I wanted her so badly. I thought of names; I dreamed about what she would look like."

She paused for a minute and when I glanced over, I wasn't surprised to see tears streaming down her face.

I touched her face and she opened her eyes and looked at me. "The simple answer to your question is yes. Yes, I want to have a baby. But I'm also afraid to try again. It hurt so much to lose her."

Gently, I said: "Your chances are so much better now with the meds."

She nodded: "I know. I still want to take some time to think about it. Kelly said I needed to wait two cycles anyway. I'll decide by then. I want to do my own research and talk to some other women who have this same condition and see how they managed."

I frowned: "Is there a support group or something? How are you going to find these other women?"

She gave me a small smile: "Message boards. Blogs. There's a blog for everything. I've already scanned a few of them, but haven't actually started chatting with anyone yet. I think it will be nice to connect with some other women who have gone through this too. Therapeutic, you know?"

Actually I thought it was a waste of time, but if it would make her happy, I figured it was worth it. "So you'll decide by the time you get your second period?"

She grinned: "You're in a hurry to find out my decision. This is really what you want? A little screaming, shitting, peeing bundle of helpless humanity that will be totally dependent on us for years?"

I rolled my eyes: "Well, when you put it in such a favorable light."

I pulled her closer: "Yes. I know it seems strange, especially in light of my recent behavior, but, yeah, I do. I think it could be kinda entertaining."

"There's a lot of work too, a lot of sleepless nights and diapers."

I teased: "You're the woman. I'll leave that part to you. I'm just the baby daddy; I'll get all the fun parts."

She playfully slapped my arm: "You're a big doctor. You shouldn't be afraid of a few stinky diapers. You've seen grosser stuff."

I softly kissed her cheek: "I'm not afraid of a few diapers. The only thing I'm afraid of is."

I had to pause. If I thought about it, I was afraid of a lot of things.

"What is it, Greg?"

I was sorry that I had opened my mouth. "I'm afraid of not being able to keep up with a kid, especially a boy."

I rubbed my damaged thigh for emphasis.

"You'll do just fine. They might outrun you. That's why you should always keep candy in your pocket to lure them back."

She winked and pecked me on the nose. Then she tilted her head and looked deeply into my eyes: "There's more, isn't there?"

I nodded and then buried my face in her hair. Hesitantly I said: "I'm afraid that I won't be a good dad. I'm afraid I'll turn into MY dad."

"You won't turn into your dad. I know you won't."

I teased: "Yeah, cuz you have faith in me."

She answered me seriously: "Yeah, that's right. I do. You would never hurt our child any more than you would raise a hand to me."

The thought of that sickened me. "Elle, I would never do that."

"I know."

The words came out slowly: "It's not the physical so much as the emotional."

That was a huge admission for me. I'm glad I wasn't looking at her when I said it.

Elle stroked my cheek and whispered softly: "Your dad said awful things to you when you didn't want to do the things that he wanted you to do, like join the Marines. He belittled you. You won't do that. You'll encourage the kid to explore his or her own interests. We'll expose her to lots of things, the things we love, like music, but she'll develop her own likes and dislikes. And we may not like what she picks, but we'll do our best to accept it."

That gave me the perfect lead-in to change the subject.

I pulled back so I could look in her eyes: "You really want a girl, don't you?"

She blushed: "Yes."

I gently kissed her lips. "I'd like that too. I meant it when I said I wanted a mini-Elle."

"Really? Most men want a son."

"I'm not most men."

She grinned and moved to straddle my lap. "No, you're not, and I'm so glad."

She settled on me, taking care as usual not to put too much weight on my bad thigh. When the food arrived, Elle had simply slipped on one of my tee shirts. I ran my hands up her legs and up under the tee shirt, delighting in the feel of her nakedness. Her fingers tangled in my hair and her lips brushed gently across mine. I captured her mouth and my tongue begged admittance. My hands explored under her shirt as we sucked face. She hissed when I cupped her breast and I bent down to mouth her nipple through the shirt.

"Mmmmm. Race you back to bed."

I grinned: "Don't start without me."

Elle climbed off my lap and scampered towards the bedroom with me hot on her heels. As I followed her down the hall, I realized that we hadn't made a firm decision whether to try again or not. She said she wanted to think about it and would let me know. Hell, we had to wait two months anyway for her body to recuperate and for the anticoagulants to work. There was plenty of time to convince her to try again.

A/N: Thank you everyone for all your reviews!!


	57. Chapter 57

**Chapter 57**

_Friday June 29, 2007_

_**HOUSE**_

Mom had e-mailed me that their flight was arriving in Newark at 4:35PM on Friday. Naturally, they had a long layover and wanted to have dinner with us. Normally, Dad would rent a car and drive to Princeton, but I decided to meet their flight. That way, I could tell them the bad news without Elle being there for it. Mom could cry and get it out of her system on the hour's ride between the airport and home.

Elle decided to make dinner and invited Wilson and Cuddy over to eat with us. I hoped that between the company and the bad news that Dad would be on his best behavior for a change. If he didn't feel any sympathy for me, perhaps, at least, he would feel some for Elle.

Wilson let me borrow his Volvo, saying he would catch a ride to our place with Cuddy. Since Mom and Dad didn't know that I was coming to pick them up, I made an extra effort to get to the gate early. I wanted to be sure to catch them before they rented a car and took off on their own.

I clutched my cane a little tighter and braced myself when I saw them. I had never come to pick them up before and I was afraid Mom would sense something was wrong before I could even open my mouth.

My instincts were correct. When Mom saw me, the expression on her face went from delighted surprise to concern in 5 seconds flat. She elbowed Dad and his eyebrows rose in surprise when he saw me.

"Well, well, this is a surprise! You didn't have to pick us up; we were just going to head over to Avis and get a car."

"I know, Dad, I just thought I would pick you up this time. I really needed to tell you something before we went home."

In a hushed tone, Mom asked: "Greg, what's wrong?"

I stared at my feet for a moment, tapping my cane against the ground. Then I took a deep breath and looked at them. "There's no easy way to say this. Elle lost the baby."

A strangled cry escaped Mom's mouth before she clamped her hand over it. Dad swore under his breath but it was loud enough for me to hear. He put his arm around Mom and she cried on his shoulder right there in the middle of the airport. I expected him to be embarrassed by her emotional outburst but he just patted her on the back and waited her out.

I hated seeing her cry. "I'm sorry, Mom."

Dad surprised me again by answering for her: "You have nothing to be sorry for, son. This isn't your fault. It's no one's fault. This is just what Elle was afraid of. Damn, and I was looking forward to being an Grandpa."

I stared at my Dad, certain that an alien life form now inhabited his body. He declared that something wasn't my fault, and was being sympathetic to me. He had gone from being embarrassed that I was producing a bastard child to being sad that the child no longer existed. He looked like Dad, but he sure didn't sound like him.

He pulled out his handkerchief and handed it to Mom: "So this is why you came to pick us up? You wanted to tell us without Elle around? So we could digest the news before we saw her."

I nodded.

Mom wiped her face: "How is Elle? Is she alright?"

"The first week was pretty rough, but she's doing better now."

Mom asked hesitantly: "What happened? Is it because of her family history?"

I nodded: "Yeah, we ran tests and confirmed the diagnosis. Elle has an autoimmune disease that runs in families. We can't know definitively that her Mom had it, but I'm 99% sure."

Mom shook her head sadly: "So does this mean that she'll never be able to have a baby?"

"No, but she needs to be on medication for the rest of her life. That will improve her chances of having a baby if she wants to try again, but even with the meds, there are no guarantees."

"Doesn't she want to try again?"

I winced; Mom's eagerness at being a Grandma was really coming out. "Maybe, Mom. It's kinda too soon to talk about it. Elle needs to wait two months for her meds to kick in before we even start thinking about it."

Dad looked clearly uncomfortable and seemed ready to change the subject: "Well, come on. Let's all go out and have a nice dinner, get a chance to visit. We'll tell you all about our trip."

I said: "Elle wanted to cook. She made pot roast. Wilson and Cuddy are coming for dinner too."

"Ah, she didn't have to go to all that trouble. We could have just taken you out to eat. But pot roast sounds great. Let's get rolling; the traffic is going to be crawling at this time of day."

Dad was clearly trying to be pleasant and it was distinctly weird. Then I remembered Mom's threats over dinner the last time they were here and realized that must be part of it. The drive home from the airport was long; we made small talk and I told them about our trip to Florida but didn't mention our 3-week separation period.

I could see Cuddy's car parked a few doors away as I drove down the block looking for a spot. I was relieved that they were here already. Someone pulled out only a half block away and I grabbed the parking spot. Dinner was being served in Elle's place so we went straight to her door. I deliberately dropped my cane against the door and fumbled a bit with the key to give them a head's up that we were here.

By the time I got the door open, Wilson and Cuddy were right there to greet my parents. Mom gave them both a hug and Dad shook hands with Wilson. Elle walked out of the kitchen and just stood there nervously wringing her hands. I tried to maneuver around the crowd to get to her, but Dad got to her first.

"Hey, little lady. How ya doing?"

He picked up her hand and kissed the back of it, like he had done the last time he saw her.

She gave him a shy smile: "I'm OK, Colonel. How was your trip?"

"It was just dandy. We'll tell you all about it over dinner."

Mom moved towards Elle. "Elle, honey. How are you?"

In a very small voice, Elle said: "Hi, Blythe."

Then her jaw started to tremble and her face just crumbled. She burst into tears and Mom gathered her into her arms. I didn't expect this reaction. I thought Mom would cry when she saw Elle, not the other way around. I started to go to her, but Cuddy stopped me by tugging on my arm.

"Give her a minute. I think she needs a Mom right now."

I looked at Elle sobbing in Mom's arms and then back at Cuddy, unsure of what I should do. Cuddy nodded encouragingly and whispered again: "Give them a minute."

Dad looked decidedly uncomfortable. He let out a sigh and said: "I need a drink. Got any bourbon?"

For the first time in my adult life, my Dad asked ME for a drink. I was positive that I was now living in an alternate universe. My tongue felt thick and I answered slowly: "Yeah, I have a bottle of Maker's Mark across the hall."

He looked at me: "Let's leave the womenfolk and go have a snort."

I glanced at Wilson who looked just as surprised as I felt. I managed to nod and answer: "Sure, Dad."

Wilson, Dad and I trooped across the hall, leaving Cuddy behind in case Elle or Mom needed anything. Wilson grabbed 3 glasses out of the kitchen while I opened the bottle. I poured a shot in each glass and Wilson passed them out.

We stood there holding our glasses, no one making the first move to take a drink. Finally Dad broke the silence: "I feel like we should say something, but I don't know what."

Wilson said quietly: "To better days."

Dad lifted his glass: "I'll drink to that."

I nodded and we all knocked back our bourbon. The burn felt so good going down that I wanted another. Risking an ugly remark from Dad, I poured myself another and offered the bottle around. Wilson accepted another shot and surprisingly so did Dad. This time, we dispensed with words and just drank.

After a few minutes, Dad broke the silence. "At least you were with her when it happened."

I shot him a questioningly look.

He went on: "Your Mother had one. It was right after we got married. I was overseas when it happened. She went through it alone. I always felt bad about that."

"I didn't know that."

The lie came out easily despite my surprise at Dad's statement. How could he still feel bad about something that wasn't his fault and happened almost 50 years ago? Who knew that my Dad had such emotional depth? I kept expecting to hear the theme song from _'the Twilight Zone'_ any minute now.

He shrugged: "I'm just saying it was probably a comfort for her that you were with her."

Considering the terms we were on at that time, I doubted it, but I wasn't going to tell him that. "It didn't matter that I was there. I'm a doctor and I couldn't help her. I couldn't stop it from happening."

"These things happen. You can't blame yourself. It's not your fault."

That was the second time he had said that to me today. My head was swimming and I didn't know what to think about it. I thought a ghostly Rod Serling would walk through the door any minute now.

"I want to go back and check on Elle."

They both nodded and we trooped back across the hall. Elle was nowhere to be seen when we walked in. Mom said: "She's just washing her face. Why don't you go check on her?"

I knocked on the bathroom door. "It's me."

Elle opened the door and let me in. I wrapped my arms around her and she burrowed into the chest.

I nuzzled the top of her head with my chin: "You OK?"

She nodded: "I kinda had a meltdown. I don't know why. I'm sorry."

I stroked her hair and said softly: "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I hope I didn't embarrass you in front of your dad."

"You didn't. Plus he's being amazingly understanding. I think he's been replaced by an alien life form. He had a drink with me. Two, in fact."

She giggled: "A weeping woman drove him to drink."

"I think he's actually sad at what happened. He told me that he was looking forward to being a grandpa."

She looked up and asked in a surprised tone of voice: "Really?"

I nodded: "Really. I was shocked too."

"Wow. I disappointed both of your parents."

I held her tighter. "Don't say that. No one is disappointed in you. You didn't cause this to happen. It's not your fault. I should have."

When I didn't continue after a few minutes, Elle prompted me: "You should have what?"

"I should have listened to you. I should have paid better attention to your Mom's symptoms and your fears that you had the same condition. I could have tested you before this happened. Maybe I could have prevented it."

She grabbed my face with both hands and said firmly: "NO. Don't go down that road. This is not your fault."

"It's not yours either."

Our eyes locked for a long moment, then Elle reached up and kissed my lips. In a voice cracking with emotion, she said: "Let's not look back anymore. All this shoulda, coulda crap isn't going to do us any good. Let's just go forward. OK?"

She was right; although I would always regret my actions from the time that pregnancy test came back positive to the moment I saw that ultrasound picture. I couldn't change the past; I could only deal with the present and perhaps the future.

I nodded and gave her a kiss. "Dinner ready?"

She smiled: "You hungry?"

"Starving."

"Let's go eat."

She marched out of the bathroom and announced cheerily: "So who's ready for dinner?"

Elle shooed us men folk to the table while the three ladies brought out all the food. Then she lit the candles and said the Blessing over them just like she did every Friday night when we ate at home. I could see the surprise on Dad's face, but amazingly he held his tongue and didn't make any smart remarks.

Wilson and Cuddy had brought over a couple bottles of a rather nice Merlot and I poured that out while Elle served the food. When Elle extended her hand to accept the glass from me, Mom's jaw dropped and she gasped: "Elle. That's a lovely ring."

Elle smiled: "Thanks, Blythe. Your son gave it to me."

"May I take a closer look?"

"Sure."

Elle held her hand out and Mom examined it closely. Elle pointed to the center stone and said: "That's garnet, my birthstone."

"It's a really lovely ring, dear."

Elle smiled at me and then answered Mom in a soft voice: "Thank you."

We picked up our forks and started eating, but I could tell Mom had something more on her mind. During a brief lull in the conversation, Mom daintily cleared her throat and asked: "So, is there any special significance in the fact that you're wearing the ring on that particular finger?"

Elle laughed: "It just so happened that it fit perfectly on that finger."

Mom looked so disappointed. "Oh."

To my surprise, Dad chuckled: "I believe what my wife is so delicately probing for is the answer to this question. Is she about to become your mother-in-law or not?"

Elle actually blushed. Wilson and Cuddy exchanged glances. Wilson knew that Elle had turned down my proposal and I wondered if he had told Cuddy. Scratch that, I was sure that he wouldn't have been able to keep that to himself. I wondered if I should jump in and rescue her, but Dad had addressed the question to Elle and not to me, so I figured it was best for her to answer him.

Elle glanced at me and I gave her a nod to go ahead and answer the question. She shrugged and turned to address Mom.

"I feel like I'm a real disappointment to you tonight. There's no grandchild on the way and no wedding on the horizon. Greg gave me this ring as an anniversary present. We met one year ago on June 12th and he gave me this ring to commemorate the occasion."

She bit her lip and shot me an anxious look. She was probably afraid that I was going to contradict her statement, but there was no way I was going to do that. I didn't want Dad to know that she had turned me down, even if it was, I hoped, just a temporary rejection. But it bothered me that she still thought she was a disappointment.

Mom put her hand over Elle's. "Dear, you couldn't possibly be a disappointment to us. When I saw the ring on your finger, I was just hoping that my only son had finally found the right girl and was going to get married."

She glanced at me and I smirked: "Well, you never know, Mom. The impossible could happen."

Elle said: "You'll be the first to know, well after these two, anyway." She tilted her head towards Wilson and Cuddy.

Mom laughed: "I think we can handle being number 2 on your call list, dear."

We all had a bit of a laugh and continued with our dinner. The rest of the meal went rather smoothly. Dad and Mom told us all about their trip. They had flown to Munich to visit an old Marine buddy of Dad's. Mom raved about the sightseeing and Dad raved about the German beerhalls. Mom really enjoyed visiting the Neuschwanstein Castle in Southern Bavaria. King Ludwig II built the castle in the 19th century. It is a huge lavish edifice decorated with many themes from German legends and Wagner's operas. Supposedly, it had been Walt Disney's inspiration for the Cinderella castle at his theme parks. They also spent a few days in Salzburg, Austria. As far as Mom was concerned, the highlight of Salzburg was taking the "Sound of Music" tour. I wasn't surprised as that had always been one of her favorite movies.

They insisted on calling a cab for the ride back to the airport, which was fine with me. I was definitely out of conversation and didn't relish the thought of having to drive them back to the airport. Mom gave Elle a big hug and thankfully there were no more tears this time. We walked them out to the cab and then Wilson and Cuddy took off too.

We settled on the couch with a glass of scotch and I turned on the TV. As I surfed the channels, I commented: "Dad was certainly on his best behavior tonight. He didn't make one single smart remark. I'm positive that his body has been taken over by an alien.

Elle chuckled and then said soberly: "I hope you were OK with how I answered your Mom tonight."

I thought for a moment and then said seriously: "No, I didn't like it."

Her face fell, and I hastened to add. "I really wanted you to say that yes, it was an engagement ring and that you had agreed to marry me."

Her face fell: "I disappointed you too."

I scowled: "Cut that out. I knew you weren't going to say it, but I can't help it that I wanted you to. If you couldn't give that answer, then the answer that you gave was perfect."

I stroked her cheek: "I know you're not ready, but I hope you will be one day."

"I really do love you."

I kissed her forehead, letting my lips linger for a long moment. "I know. Come on. Let's go to bed. I haven't seen the girls all day and I've missed them."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Life went back to its usual routine. Elle was back at work and so far her boss hadn't given her any trouble yet. She still saw her pain patients on Monday and Thursday afternoons and worked on the oncology floor the rest of the time. She resumed her yoga classes and I went back to swimming three times a week. The poker game still took place in my apartment on Wednesdays. Elle would spend the evening over at her place doing whatever, but she always came over and went to sleep in my bed. She'd talk to the guys for a few minutes, give me a kiss and head off to bed. She no longer seemed to be embarrassed about going to bed in front of them or worried about having nightmares. It had been such a long time since she'd had one and I really hoped those days were over.

Elle got her period on July 8th, approximately 32 days after her miscarriage. That was decent timing. Sometimes a woman will go 60 days or more after a miscarriage before getting her first period. I was hopeful that Elle would fall right back into a normal cycle again. Twenty-eight days from July 8th was August 4th. I noted the date in the back of my mind and waited for the tampon box to make its reappearance.

While I channel-surfed in the evenings, she sat next to me on the couch with her laptop. She spent a lot of time reading blogs and posting on message boards for women with APS. After our initial conversation about trying again, we had not really discussed it in any great length, but occasionally, Elle would ask me a question.

"Greg, this woman here posted that she had partial placental abruption with her first pregnancy and a complete abruption with her second one. Is that common for APS?"

"Common enough. That's why Alderman said she would want you to deliver 4 weeks early to prevent this from happening."

She looked at me: "That's what usually causes the late-term fetal death?"

I nodded.

She turned back to her laptop with a thoughtful expression on her face. "That's not too early, right? I mean, the baby would have a good chance of surviving if born that early, right?"

"The baby would have an excellent chance. Babies are born 2 to 2 & ½ months early and they survive. Four weeks early is not so bad. She may have to stay in the hospital a little longer than usual, but probably not more than a week or two."

Another night, over dinner, she asked me another question: "Greg, are you OK with raising the baby Jewish?"

I put down my fork and looked at her. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Well, I'm Jewish and according to my religion, as long as the mother is Jewish, so is the baby. And I would want our child to know my heritage. I'd want to light the candles on Hanukkah and Friday nights with her, like my mother did with me." Her voice trailed off.

I frowned, wondering just how important this was to her. "So what does that mean for me? Do you want me to convert or something? Because you know, I'm not into the whole religion thing, but I'm OK with all the rituals and dinners and stuff."

Her eyes widened in surprise: "Oh NO! No, nothing like that. Omigawd, no."

She paused for a moment and then said: "You do know, that if you converted, you would have to get circumcised."

My chest constricted and I felt like I couldn't breathe. There was just no way that I could subject myself to that. "Elle, sweetheart, I love you, but that's just, I can't, I just couldn't."

Elle interrupted: "And I wouldn't ask you to. I love your penis just the way it is." She gave me a saucy smile.

I smirked: "Well, good to know that. I wondered why you spent so much time kissing him."

I looked into her eyes: "So tell me exactly what you do mean, by raising our child Jewish?"

"Well, I just want to raise her like I was raised. Friday night dinners and stuff like that. We could do Hanukkah and Christmas. I guess what I mean is that I would want our child to know both of our traditions. I didn't want the Jewish part to get lost."

"As long as you're in charge of the dinners, celebrations and all that, I have no problem with it."

She smiled: "Great, thanks. And if it's a girl, can we?"

I answered before she could finish: "Yes, it's OK to name her after your mother."

I wanted to ask her if this meant that she had made up her mind to try again, but I held my tongue. If her answer were still 'undecided', it would make her uncomfortable. She seemed to be leaning towards trying again and I would wait until her second period before asking again.

August 4th was a Saturday and Elle was playing at the club that night. We had a nice lie-in that morning with some great sex, followed by one of her delicious French toast breakfasts. It was a beautiful sunny day, with a light breeze, so we took a motorcycle ride in the countryside for a couple of hours. We got home around 4PM and immediately laid down for a nap. We woke up around 7, showered together and dressed for the evening. The tampon box hadn't made its appearance yet, but I figured it would in the next day or so.

We met the guys in the back room as usual, and had a drink before the show started. Elle just had part of a beer while she fixed her hair and makeup. Now that I thought about it, she hadn't been drinking as much as she usually did. On the nights at Satchel's, she usually had 3 or 4 beers and then finished the evening with a couple of shots of scotch. The last time they played, two weeks ago, she had not had any scotch and I could only remember her having two beers. I grinned inwardly; maybe she was starting to cut back on the alcohol in anticipation of trying to get pregnant. I took this to be a good sign.

At the end of their first set, all the guys trooped out to the table but Elle was not with them. I shot Avi a questioningly look and he said: "Bathroom." I nodded at him as I accepted our beers from Theresa. Just as I was taking my first swallow, I heard a familiar, yet not entirely welcome, voice say: "So, it's true. You are still in the picture."

I set my beer down, stood and stretched my frame to my full height. I towered above his 5'10" built. "You bet I'm still here."

**ELLE**

I spent the last 2 months learning as much as I could about APS and pregnancy. I read everything I could find about it, and chatted on-line with women who had it. Pregnancy was risky, but there were a lot of success stories and it made me feel better. After all, my Mom had managed to be successful in 1 out of 6 pregnancies and that was without medication. They say the third time's a charm and I was Mom's third, so perhaps the charm would work for me too.

I really wanted to have a baby. As Greg had said, it was a simple question and I knew the answer to it. I just needed to overcome my fears of failing again. I knew he would monitor me carefully, but if I still lost the baby it would be devastating to both of us.

My second period was due on August 4th. I woke up feeling tired and bloated, signs that it would be appearing shortly. I knew Greg was going to want an answer today or tomorrow and I needed to decide once and for all if I was willing to take the risk and try again. Greg was already awake and once he saw that I was too, he wrapped his strong arms around me and rubbed his erect member against my thigh. We made love, slowly and sweetly, and afterwards we showered and I made breakfast for the two of us. We took a ride on his motorcycle and had a nap before going to the club that night. When Theresa brought the drinks around, I got my usual Heineken, but drank it very slowly. I was already cutting back on my coffee and my alcohol, just in case, so it wouldn't be such a shock to my system when I cut it out completely.

Our first set went well, but right at the end of it, I could tell things were starting to happen. I hurried offstage and made a beeline for the bathroom. Theresa always kept a box of tampons in the storage closet for her employees and I grabbed one of those before heading into the stall. Once that was taken care of, I washed my hands and headed out front.

I hadn't seen Tony since the day Bill told me the news about my lawsuit. So I was quite surprised to see him and Greg standing toe to toe next to our usual table. I hurried over before they could start throwing anything, including fists.

When Greg saw me, he snarled: "Your old boyfriend is surprised to see me here."

I slipped my right arm around Greg's waist and gave him a squeeze: "I can't imagine why. Didn't Theresa tell you that we got back together, Tony?"

He frowned: "Yes, she did. But seeing is believing and I can't believe after what he did to you, that you took him back."

I deliberately placed my left hand on Greg's chest; I wanted him to see the ring. "Well, we are back together and things are great, so get used to it."

Tony grabbed my hand and examined the ring. Smirking, he said: "What the hell is this? He's a doctor. He couldn't buy you a bigger rock than this puny thing?"

I snatched my hand back and placed it back on Greg's chest. "I love this ring. It means a lot to me so don't talk trash about it."

Greg said menacingly: "Don't worry Tony. _When_ Elle and I get married, I'll slip a huge rock on her finger. It will be so big that she won't be able to lift her hand to shoot you a bird."

Between having my period and listening to these two fight, I was feeling really cranky. "Just stop. I'm not in the mood for this. Tony, Greg and I are back together. Deal with it. If you still want to have a pissing contest with Greg, just know that you are going to lose. I'm going to the bar for a drink. When I get back, you better be talking civilly to each other, or Tony, you need to find another sandbox to play in."

With that, I stalked off to the bar.

Billy saw me coming and simply handed me a scotch. I muttered my thanks before slamming it back. The burn felt so good going down that in spite of my resolve to cut back on my drinking, I held out my glass for another shot. I figured I would cut back again starting tomorrow. This time, I drank my shot more slowly and tried to calm down.

Billy asked: "Everything OK?"

I shook my head: "Just those two peacocks having a pissing contest over me. Tony just can't accept that I went back to Greg."

"He'll get over it, that is, if he wants to stay friends with you."

That was true enough. Billy poured me another shot and eyed my hand as I lifted the glass. "So, is that an engagement ring or not?"

I stared at my hand: "I guess you could call it a pre-engagement ring. We've talked about doing the deed, but haven't decided anything yet."

Billy grinned: "That's great, Elle. I think you two are good together."

"Do you really?"

He nodded: "Yeah, I do. And hey, if you ever decide to do the deed, I became a minister by mail, so I could perform the ceremony for you."

I laughed: "Why on earth did you do that?"

He shrugged: "My sister wanted me to do it, so that I could perform her wedding next month. It wasn't that big a deal. I filled out an application and sent them a check."

I slugged back the rest of my scotch: "I'll keep that in mind, _Reverend_ Billy. I think if we ever got married, that I'd love to have you perform the ceremony. Well, let me get back. Our break's almost over and Greg will think I've neglected him."

Tony was still sitting at the table and there seemed to be an uneasy truce between the two men. I walked up behind Greg and wrapped my arms around him. I kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear in French: _"Sorry. I didn't mean to be gone so long. I'm feeling kinda cranky and I just couldn't deal with his antics."_

With a firm hand, he guided me until I was sitting on his good leg. Gently he kissed my lips and then whispered: "_Cranky? Got your period?"_

He had a mischievous look on his face.

I huffed: _"And why do you say that? Just because I'm cranky?'_

"_I can read a calendar. You're due for it. So?"_

"_So what?"_

He smirked: _"Going to make me work for it, huh? Do you have your period?"_

I nodded.

Greg's eyes sparkled. _"Did you decide?"_

I nodded again.

Urgently, he said: _"Tell me."_

I glanced around: _"Not here. I'll tell you later."_

"_Tell me now. You've kept me waiting for 2 months already."_

"_Right here in front of everyone?"_

"_Gen's not listening and no one else understands French. Come on. Do I get to be your baby daddy or not?"_

I looked down at my lap for a minute. I really did want to have a baby. Only my fear was holding me back. I needed to set aside my fear and have faith that it would all work out. Just like I told Greg to have faith in himself, I needed to do the same thing.

I raised my head and looked Greg straight in the eye. _"Yes."_

His jaw dropped a little: _"Yes? Really?"_

I nodded: _"Yes. I want you to knock me up."_

His grin was a mile wide. _"I'm tossing that box of condoms in the trash as soon as we get home."_

He embraced me tightly and planted his lips on mine. We kissed until Adam tapped me on the shoulder and said: "Save that for later. We gotta get back up on stage now."

I reluctantly pulled myself out of his embrace and stood up. I just had to ask: _"You're happy? It is what you want, right?"_

"_Are you kidding? I get to ride you bareback until I knock you up. What could be better?"_

I stroked his face: _"The day I see you hold our baby in your arms._

His expression softened and he gave a slight nod.

I started to walk towards the stage, but he grabbed my hand again. _"Sing something for me."_

"_Anything in particular?"_

"_Whatever comes to you." _

The song came to me as I mounted the stairs to the stage. I whispered my choice to Adam and he grabbed my acoustical guitar to accompany me on the song. As Adam played the opening bars on the guitar, I sat at the piano and waited for my cue to jump in. I had decided on _"You're My Home"_ by Billy Joel.

I glanced at his face as I sang these words: _'home is just another word for you'._

The expression on his face told me that he approved of my choice. His smile was small, because there were other people in the room, but I knew it was just for me.

_You're my castle; you're my cabin  
and my instant pleasure dome.  
I need you in my house  
cuz you're my home.  
_


	58. Chapter 58

Chapter 58

**_HOUSE_**

I had Elle swing by the clinic during her lunch break on Monday so that I could draw her labs again. I wanted to make sure her levels were in the proper range before we started trying to get pregnant. As we exited the exam room, I noticed a few of the nurses surreptitiously checking us out. This news would be all over the hospital grapevine this afternoon. Well, if they were going to be gossiping about us, I'd better give them something good. I handed the specimens to Nurse Brenda and said in a loud voice: "Send these off to the lab STAT and have them e-mail the results to me."

Then I turned to Elle, bent down and planted a big one right on her lips. "Shall we go have some lunch, sweetheart?"

Elle was surprised by my PDA, but she recovered quickly. "Sure, Greg. Let's go to the cafeteria."

I put my hand in the small of her back and guided her out of the clinic. As we went through the doors, I glanced back. Nurse Brenda's mouth was hanging open like she was trying to attract flies. Nurse Sandy and Nurse Louise were already whispering behind their hands. The hospital grapevine would run wild with this news for days. _Did you hear: Dr Crankenstein has a_ _girlfriend!_ I smirked.

Elle snickered softly: "Did you enjoy that?"

I tsked: "It was an good kiss, but give me more tongue next time."

"Like this?"

She stopped right in the middle of the hall, pulled my face down to hers and proceeded to give me an extremely hot open-mouth lots-of-tongue kiss. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see doctors, nurses and patients stopping to gawk at us. Cuddy walked by, rolled her eyes and growled: "Oh, get a room already."

We finally came up for air. My lips tingling, my throat dry, I managed to choke out: "Yeah. Just like that."

_A week later_

I consulted the calendar and figured that I needed to launch the ovarian assault on Thursday. Elle usually went to yoga class on Thursday nights; I needed to convince her to stay home.

On Tuesday evening, we relaxed on the couch, watching TV as we digested dinner.

Suddenly, I blurted out: "Don't go to yoga this week."

"Why not?"

"I got plans."

"What kinda plans?"

It sounded too clinical to tell her what I was plotting. "Just don't go. Come straight home for a surprise."

"A planned surprise? Hmmmm, this sounds suspicious."

I glanced over at her; her eyes were glittering mischievously. "Would it have anything to do with, I don't know, the fact that I'll probably be ovulating Thursday?"

My mouth fell open in surprise, but I quickly shut it when she laughed. "You're not the only one who can read a calendar."

I huffed: "You're too damn smart for your own good."

"Then our baby's oughtta be a genius."

Then she surprised me again by straddling my lap and hugging me fiercely. I hugged her back and we sat locked in our embrace for a few minutes. She sat back and only then did I see the tears on her face. Before I could say anything, she asked softly: "You really want this, don't you? You really do?"

I wiped her tears away with my thumb. "Yes, I really do."

Sadly, she said: "I just hope that I can give you what you want."

I gently kissed her lips: "I have what I want. I have you. The baby is a bonus. And I intend to have a lot of fun trying to achieve that bonus."

I pressed my hardening member up against her core. She smiled and rubbed against me, then leaned forward to nibble my earlobe. "So let's pretend it's Thursday and go practice for the bonus."

I nipped sharply on the sweet spot on her neck and then lapped it soothingly. "That's my girl. Bedroom now."

Elle climbed off my lap and scampered down the hall. I was right behind her, enjoying the view of her round ass swaying in front of me.

_Two days later_

I snuck out of the hospital at 4:30 on Thursday. I wanted an early start to our evening. When I arrived in my apartment, Elle was in the kitchen, staring into the open refrigerator. She looked up and smiled when I walked in.

"Hey, cowboy. What do you feel like having for dinner? I can't decide what to make."

I pulled her away from the fridge, nudged the door closed with my elbow and said: "A pink taco."

She looked at me blankly and then realization hit. "Ohhhhh."

I lifted her on top of the island and pushed her thighs apart. "Sound good to you?"

She wrapped her arms and legs around me and gave me a killer smile: "Sounds great to me."

I rubbed my growing member against her core: "If that isn't filling enough, we'll order Thai after. OK?"

She mumbled: "OK" right before her lips found mine. Her tongue plunged into my mouth and explored it thoroughly. The heat in my groin was building. I needed her now.

I broke the kiss. "Let's go to bed."

Once in the bedroom, we stripped each other's clothes off and lay down on the bed. I relished in the feel of her naked body up against mine, her erect nipples poking into my chest. As we kissed and fondled each other, I was struck by a sudden thought. After a lifetime of avoiding this situation, I was now deliberately trying to impregnate a woman. The irony was not lost on me and apparently Elle was having the same thoughts.

She licked the shell of my ear and whispered: "Feels a little funny, huh?"

"What, sweetheart?"

"After years of birth control, we're actually trying to get pregnant. It's just kinda strange, you know?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking that."

I pulled back and looked in her eyes. "But we both want it."

She nodded. "I just never thought I would be here."

"Me either, but we are. Now lay back and enjoy it cuz I know I'm going to love my bareback ride."

I rolled her onto her back and kissed her mouth hard. Then I licked my way down to her breasts. Her nipples were standing at attention and I flicked my tongue against the right one, before engulfing the entire areola in my mouth. Elle moaned loudly and thrust her pelvis up against me.

I murmured: "So needy, aren't you?"

"Yes, I need you. I need you inside me. I couldn't think of anything else all day, except coming home and fucking you."

"Because I'm that good, huh?"

She groaned: "Yes you are; now get busy. Your pink taco is ready and waiting for you."

I chuckled and poked my tongue into her belly button. She giggled with delight and I eased on down the road. Her clit was already engorged and I hadn't even touched it yet. I licked it very gently, eliciting a moan and a hip thrust from her. I parted her lips with my fingers and took another tentative lick.

"Greg, pleeease."

I ignored her pleas and continued with my slow assault on her pleasure spot. I gave her a lot of slow, tentative licks as she writhed and begged for more. I fucked her with my tongue, and then started licking her clit in earnest while I slipped two fingers in and out of her core. She was wet beyond belief and so ready for me. I was more than ready for her; Mt. Gregory was fully hard and ready to enter his nice warm cave.

I grabbed one of the pillows and stuck it under her butt. This created a nice downward angle for the sperm to swim to the desired spot. Not that I thought my boys needed any help, but I wanted to give us every chance. Elle didn't question; she knew what I was doing.

I knelt between her spread legs and teased her entrance with the head of my cock. She sighed loudly and thrust against me. I teasingly pulled back and she growled: "Fuck me!"

I grinned: "Louder. I don't think the neighbors heard you."

She yelled louder this time: "Fuck me, Greg! Slide that big cock of yours inside me. OH!"

I stabbed into her, balls-deep, in one thrust. I started moving slowly inside of her, watching the expression on her face as I thrust. Her face had softened and her eyelids kept fluttering shut.

"Is that what you wanted, sweetheart?"

"Yes, oh gawd, yes. You feel so good. Oh gawd, yes."

She babbled on like that and I smiled knowing I was hitting all the right spots. I lifted her left leg over my shoulder, allowing me even deeper penetration. I picked up the pace and she matched me, thrust for thrust. Her hand at the back of my head coaxed me towards her lips and I kissed her deeply, the rhythm of my tongue matching the thrusting of my cock. Suddenly she pulled away from our kiss, her head lolled back and her core thrust hard up against me. Elle screamed as her orgasm hit and I stabbed so deeply inside of her that I was sure I was hitting up against her cervix. Her walls tightened around my cock, enhancing the pleasurable sensations and it only took a few more thrusts for me to fall over the edge too. I pumped deeply inside of her, filling her with my seed. I continued to slowly thrust, riding out our orgasms until her hand grabbed my ass and stilled my movements. I let her leg fall off my shoulder and collapsed on top of her for a moment. When my breathing was almost back to normal, I propped my upper body up on my elbows and softly brushed my lips on hers. Her eyes were sparkling with that post-orgasmic glow that she gets. I kept my lips mere millimeters from hers so that we could breathe each other's air.

When her breathing returned to normal, she smiled and let out a sigh: "That was huge."

I grinned: "Yeah, I sent out all my best boys."

She teased: "Thought you wanted a girl."

I nipped her neck in retaliation: "Urgh, you know what I mean. My best swimmers."

She tightened her walls around my softening dick until I moaned with pleasure. "I knew what you meant. You think we did it?"

"We'll find out in a couple of weeks."

I didn't want to move; I wanted us to stay connected. So I stayed on top of her until my dick softened completely and fell out of her. Only then, did I roll off. I collapsed onto my back; Elle rolled onto her side and laid her head on my shoulder, her arm wrapped around my waist.

I kissed the top of her head and nuzzled her hair with my nose. She let out a sigh of contentment, as we lay there, wrapped up in each other.

_September 1, 2007 _

It was exactly 28 days since the start of her last period. I wanted her to take a pregnancy test, but she argued that it was too early. I counter-argued that the box said it was good 4 days before her expected period.

The band was playing at Satchel's tonight. Elle was trying to get ready, but our discussion was slowing her down.

Completely exasperated, she said: "Fine! I'll do it tomorrow morning. That will be the first missed day and the first morning's urine is more concentrated anyway. Geez, you're in a hurry to find out. You can't be this impatient throughout my entire pregnancy cuz we won't make it."

I slumped down on the bed: "It's just. If you are. We're going to the club. I mean; you usually have a drink or a beer."

Elle looked stunned: "Omigawd. Is that what this is about? You don't want me to drink, just in case I am? Cowboy, why didn't you just say that?"

I shrugged.

She sat down on the bed next to me and gave me a sweet kiss on my cheek. "I won't drink. I'll stick to ginger ale. If they ask, are you OK with my telling them that we're trying?"

I wasn't really OK with everyone knowing our business, but Elle was right. They would ask. It was easier to admit the truth than to try to come up with a cover story. So I nodded in agreement.

Elle hugged my neck. "You're a wonderful man and I love you. I'll take the test tomorrow morning, OK?"

I nodded again, not trusting myself to speak. My emotions were all over the place and I was barely keeping a handle on them.

Naturally, later on that evening, when Theresa brought Elle her usual Heineken, Elle asked for a ginger ale instead. Theresa stared at her for a moment and then burst out with: "Ginger ale? Are you pregnant?"

Everyone in the back room froze and swung around to stare at Elle. She sighed and said: "No, but we're trying so I'm cutting out the alcohol."

Avi whooped: "Woo-hoo!! Bring the lady a ginger ale. There'll be another rug rat in the tribe before we know it."

Everyone seemed pretty happy about the news, although nothing exactly had happened yet. But it was good to know that my lady's best friends were excited and happy for her and had accepted me back into the tribe after our break-up and reunion.

They had a good show that night and we hung around until 2AM, talking and snacking. Elle had a good appetite for a change and I managed to snag only one of her potato skins. Avi was watching her like a hawk and then shot me a look. I knew what he was thinking; perhaps Elle's new appetite was a sign that she was already pregnant. I gave him a shrug; hopefully we would know in the morning.

HOUSE MD HOUSE MD HOUSE MD

I felt a hand shaking me, but my brain said it was way too early to get up despite the sunlight in the room. The hand wouldn't stop so I finally opened my eyes and squinted at Elle.

Plaintively she said; "I have to pee."

I groaned: "So, pee. You don't need to wake me for that."

I attempted to roll over, but she stopped me. "Greg, I have to pee. I thought you might want to see the pregnancy test."

My eyelids popped open as if they were on springs. I tried to remain casual, but my heart started to race. Calmly, I said: "Sure, sweetheart. Go pee on the stick and I'll be right there."

I let her pee in private and I walked in after she flushed. She was just placing the cap back on the absorbent tip. After she laid it down on the counter, she looked up at me and said: "Three minutes."

I set my watch alarm and nodded. I walked over next to her and put my arm around her shoulder. She wrapped her arm around my waist. We both stared down at the small stick that could possibly change our lives. I could see a pink color moving across the result window, which indicated that the test was working.

At the 2-minute mark, I started to see the lines appear. When my watch alarm went off after 3 minutes, two distinct lines could be seen. Elle was pregnant.

Elle gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. Her body started to tremble and I held her tightly against my side. Doing my best to keep my own emotions reined in, I said softly: "Looks like one of my swimmers made it."

Her voice trembled with emotion: "He sure did. Omigawd, I'm pregnant! First time out of the gate, you stud!"

I smirked: "Knew I'd knock you up right away."

She wrapped both arms around my waist and squeezed me tightly, burrowing her face into my chest. I kissed the top of her head and then with a gentle finger, lifted her chin up. I could see the tears pooled in her eyes.

I planted a gentle kiss on her lips: "Don't be scared. I'm here. I'll be with you every step of the way."

She nodded and one tear leaked out of her eye. She whispered: "I know." Then she took my hand and led me back to bed.

Happily, it was Labor Day Weekend, which meant we had an extra day off to absorb the news. I felt simultaneously like thumping my chest, buying extra life insurance and wrapping Elle up in a protective cocoon. Quite a difference from the last time that Elle and I took this test together. My mind was awhirl with emotions as Elle led me back to bed, but then she pushed me down, climbed on top and I let those confusing emotions fade to the background as she rode me to our mutual bliss.

Elle was really excited and happy. She wanted to start telling people right away. She started to pick up the phone and dial my mom, but I grabbed the phone away from her.

"Those home pregnancy tests are almost 100% reliable, but let's just draw a blood test on you to be 100% sure, before we put an announcement in the paper."

She stuck her tongue out at me and grumbled: "OK. But can we go to the hospital and do it today? It will only take a minute; we'll drop it off at the lab and we'll have the results on Tuesday when we go back to work. And since it's Sunday, there will be hardly anyone around, wondering what we're doing."

She had a point, so I agreed.

It was a nice day for a bike ride anyway. We swung by the hospital and I drew her blood. We dropped the tube off at the lab and made our escape without running into anyone.

It was the last official weekend of summer, so we headed towards the ocean, ending up at Point Pleasant Beach. Elle and I wandered the boardwalk, playing arcade games and eating junk food. Suddenly she tugged my hand and pulled me over to a booth advertising psychic readings.

I groaned: "Elle. Come on. You don't believe in this crap, do you?"

"It's just for fun. Let's do it and see what she says."

"They just tell you a lot of vague stuff that could fit anyone and take your money."

"Well, I'm buying. Come on."

She went behind the curtain and I reluctantly followed her.

The woman introduced herself as Madame Gina. She directed Elle to sit down at a small table, handed her a deck of tarot cards and told her to shuffle them while thinking about her questions. Elle shuffled and then divided the cards into 3 stacks at the woman's direction.

"Now, using your dominant hand, place them back into one stack."

Elle did as she was told.

Madame Gina picked up the cards and started arranging them on the table. Occasionally she hummed as she saw a particular card but otherwise said nothing.

Once the cards were arranged, Madame Gina looked at Elle and asked: "So what is your first question, dear?"

"I want to know what my future holds."

I smiled inwardly. Elle had deliberately asked a vague question. I couldn't wait to see what this psychic came up with.

She studied the spread and then tapped two adjacent cards. "This card is the Fool and this one is the Tower. The Fool represents the beginning of life or a journey. The Tower card tells me that the journey has already begun. You are beginning a new chapter in your life."

I maintained a neutral expression on my face, but I could see some excitement creeping into Elle's expression.

Madame Gina stared at the cards for a few more minutes and then tapped two more cards. "This card is the Lovers and this one is the Moon which symbolizes confusion. You have met the love of your life. You are happy together, but he is asking you to do something that you are hesitating about.

You shouldn't hesitate to make the decision. This is the Sun card and it is directly across from the Fool. The positioning signifies that you will now have clarity with the start of your new journey. You should follow your first instinct because that is the correct decision."

Madame Gina stared at the cards for a few more minutes and then said: "You are nervous about the journey and there will be some trying times, but it will all work out in the end. The Star card here represents hope and the Empress represents love and nurturing. Ah!"

Madame Gina sat back and smiled. "I see your path now. You may not know it yet, but you are with child. And you are nervous, worried if all will be well. It will. I see it in the cards. Let me see your palm."

Elle nervously held out her right palm for the psychic. Madame Gina studies it for a moment and then proclaimed: "You're having a girl."

She glanced up at me and smiled: "Just what you wanted."

My mouth dropped a bit before I regained my composure. How could she possibly know that? I frowned; she had to be just taking a stab in the dark. It was only a 50-50 shot after all.

She smiled at me. "You don't believe, but you will see that I'm right. The pregnancy will not be an easy one, but in the end, you will have a beautiful baby girl."

Elle said nervously: "It won't be an easy one?"

Madame Gina shook her head: "I see some difficulties on the journey, but you will make it to your desired destination. You'll deliver a healthy baby girl in the spring. What other questions do you have for the cards, my dear?"

Elle looked rattled. She stammered: "No-nothing. No other questions."

She tossed some money on the table, grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the tent.

We walked away. I gave her a few minutes to calm down, and when she didn't, I stopped and pulled her into my arms.

"Hey, come on. You don't believe her, do you? She's just making it up."

"But I am pregnant! How did she know that?"

"You're glowing already. You're happy and it shows on your face. She picked up on that and made a guess."

"But what about the part about having a difficult pregnancy? How could she know that?"

"Again, she's guessing. People who come to see her are worried about something. She guessed you were pregnant and then checked your body language for clues that she was right. When she figured out that she was, it's not hard to imagine that you would be worried about the pregnancy, so she went with that. If you denied it, she would 'reread' the cards and see something else."

"And she said it would be a girl."

"Fifty-fifty shot."

And she said it was just what YOU wanted."

"Again, Elle, a fifty-fifty shot."

"But most men want a son. Why didn't she say a boy?"

I shrugged: "I don't know. Maybe she figures me as a ladies man. I don't believe she has any special powers, sweetheart. She is just guessing based on body language cues from her clients."

Elle shook her head and frowned: "She knew I was pregnant. And she said I would have a difficult pregnancy but it would be all right in the end. We'd have a girl in the spring. A healthy girl. She could be right, doncha think?"

Elle looked at me and I could see the longing in her eyes. She wanted to believe that woman. She wanted to believe that everything would be OK.

I kissed the top of her head and then rested my cheek against her temple. "We have a fifty-fifty shot of having a girl and we are going to monitor you carefully so that you will have a successful pregnancy, in spite of the APS. We didn't calculate your due date yet, but it will be in the spring. So, yeah, sweetheart, she could be right."

She squeezed me tightly and whispered: "I want to believe her. I want to have faith."

I hugged her tightly: "I know."

I wanted to tell her that everything would be OK, but I couldn't say words that I didn't believe. I didn't know for certain that everything would be fine.

We held each other for a few minutes and then I said: "I want some cotton candy."

She looked up at me; tears were pooled in her eyes, but they hadn't fallen yet. She said decisively: "Ice cream."

"Let's go."

I took her hand and we headed over to the closest stand.

It was almost 9PM when we rode back into Princeton. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted those results now. I wanted to be 100% sure that Elle was pregnant. The results would be back by now; it didn't take that long to run a HCG quantitative blood test. I took a right at the next corner and drove over to PPTH.

Elle didn't question me as I parked in my handicapped spot. She simply dismounted and took off her helmet and waited for me to do the same. I secured the helmets on the bike and we went up to my office. Since it was late on a Sunday night, there were very few people around. We made it to my office unseen by anyone except that night janitor who wore his pants backwards. As I waited for my computer to boot up, Elle drew the blinds so that we would have some privacy. I typed in her name and pulled her down onto my good leg as we waited for the screen to come up.

Thirty seconds later, we had the results. Her HCG quantitative level was 12,000 IU/ml; perfectly within the normal range for a woman presenting 4-5 weeks post LMP. Elle was definitely pregnant.

She turned and gave me a big kiss on the lips. "Now, can we start telling people?"

I kissed her again and fondled her breast. _Was it already getting bigger or was that just wishful thinking on my part? _

"Sure, sweetheart, who do you want to tell first?"

"It's not too late; let's swing by and tell Lisa and Jimmy. Then we'll go home and call your parents."

I nodded in agreement and after another quick kiss and fondle, we headed out the door.

Twenty minutes later, we were ringing Cuddy's doorbell. Wilson answered the door, barefoot, dressed in sweat pants and a faded McGill tee shirt.

He squinted at us and said: "Halloween is still two months away, kids, but I can check to see if we have any candy. Please don't soap our windows."

I scowled: "Oh, let us in. We wouldn't soap your windows anyway."

Elle piped in: "Yeah, that's so 20 years ago. We would TP the house."

Wilson rolled his eyes but he stepped back and allowed us to enter. Cuddy was on the couch, dressed in stretchy yoga pants and a cami top. It was rather obvious that she wasn't wearing a bra; the girls exhibited extra bounciness as Cuddy leaned forward to set her wineglass on the coffee table.

She tossed her hair in that distinctive way of hers, bored her eyes into mine and asked: "To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit at this late hour?"

We must have interrupted them right before they were about to get busy. I smiled inwardly and decided that they needed a long visit from us. I sank down in the nearest chair, propped my feet up on her coffee table and said: "We were just in the neighborhood and decided to stop by. Wanna play some cards, or how about charades?"

Cuddy snarled: "Get your feet off of my coffee table." Then she looked at Elle and asked: "Can't you control him?"

Elle and Wilson busted out laughing. I just smirked and twirled my cane between my fingers.

When their mirth subsided, Elle said: "No, I can't, but you know that. We just dropped by to tell you something and then we'll get out of your hair."

I whined: "But MOM, I wanna stay and play with Jimmy."

Elle stroked my hair: "Another time, sweetie. It's too late to stay and play now. It's almost Jimmy's bedtime."

She winked at Wilson and he grinned back. Cuddy just rolled her eyes.

Wilson finally spoke up: "So what's the news that you just had to tell us tonight?"

Elle looked down at me and I nodded: "You tell 'em."

She turned back and faced our friends and simply said: "I'm pregnant."

A look of shock passed over both their faces. Wilson recovered more quickly than Cuddy did, a look of pain in her eyes that she needed a long minute to disguise. I noticed Wilson take her hand and squeeze it tightly.

Wilson exclaimed loudly: "That's great! That's fantastic! We're so happy for you."

He went over to Elle and gave her a big hug. Then he slapped me on the back and said: "Congratulations, House! So when did you find out?"

I glanced at Cuddy; she was taking deep breaths and was staring at something interesting on the carpet.

Elle smiled broadly; she seemed to be unaware of Cuddy's discomfort. "Just today. I peed on the stick this morning and it was positive. Then we ran by the hospital and Greg drew my blood just to be sure. We just came back from the hospital and we wanted you two to be the first to know."

Cuddy managed to regain her composure and went over to hug Elle. "This is great news. I'm so happy for you. And you came to tell us first?"

"Yeah, after we got the results, we thought we'd swing by and tell you on the way home. Then we'll call Greg's parents. Avi and Adam went up to their cabin today and the cell phone reception is crap, so I'll tell them tomorrow when they get back."

I interjected: "And Jimmy is my bestest friend and number one on my call list, so I had to tell him first."

Wilson put his arm around Cuddy's shoulders and squeezed. "Well, we are honored that you wanted to tell us first, aren't we, Lisa?"

She leaned into him for support and said: "Yes, we are, we're really happy for you two."

There was a moment of awkward silence, an unusual occurrence for the four of us, and then Elle said: "Well, we'll let you get back to what you were doing. We're going to head home and call Greg's parents."

They didn't protest; they just walked us to the door and we said our good-byes. As we walked back to the motorcycle, Elle said: "Well, they seem happy for us, don't they?"

She still seemed unaware of Cuddy's strange reaction and I decided not to mention it. I would try to get it out of Wilson at work on Tuesday. I handed her the helmet and said: "Of course they are, sweetheart. Why wouldn't they be?"

I climbed on the bike; Elle climbed on behind me and wrapped her arms around my waist. I revved the engine and headed for home.

**_WILSON_**

Lisa burst into tears as soon as the door was closed. "She's already pregnant? We've been trying for so long now."

I held her as she sobbed. In a strangled voice, she said: "I'm never going to get pregnant. It's just useless to keep trying."

I picked her up in my arms and carried her over to the couch. I sat down and settled her on my lap. When her tears subsided, I said softly: "Lisa, in all fairness, you just threw the pills away two and a half months ago. Your body really needs 3 months to get all the hormones out of your system. We haven't given it enough time yet."

She buried her face in the crook of my neck and whined: "I'm tired of failing. I'm tired of getting my period every month and knowing that I've failed again. _They_ try and get knocked up the first month."

I kissed her forehead, letting my lips linger there: "Elle may have gotten pregnant quickly, but she doesn't have an easy road ahead of her. She still has to do the Lovenox shots every day and the baby will probably be premature. She may have gotten pregnant fast, but she doesn't have it easy."

Lisa wiped her eyes and said: "I know. I'm just feeling sorry for myself. I want to be pregnant too."

"I know. I do too."

She looked so sad: "It may never happen for us."

"Maybe not, but I still think we haven't given it enough time. Look, let's keep trying until the end of the year. When 2008 rolls around, if you're not pregnant by then, we will talk again and think about if we want to try any interventions or not. How does that sound?"

Sourly, she said: "You like the idea cuz it means you still get to have a lot of sex."

I smiled gently at her: "And you _don't_ like that? Your screams tell me otherwise."

She blushed; it was a good color for her. "No, I do like that. I like that a lot, in fact."

"Well, then, let's go do something that we both like."

She was still in my lap, so I just stood up with her in my arms. She cupped my face with both hands and kissed me soundly, letting out a soft sigh when we finally broke apart.

I brushed my lips against hers and whispered: "I love you, Lise."

Before she could respond, I flipped her over my shoulder and carried her caveman style to the bedroom. She giggled and squealed the whole way there.

**A/N: Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing. Sorry RL is interfering and slowing down my posting and replying to your very nice reviews. **


	59. Chapter 59

**Chapter 59**

**_HOUSE_**

When we got home from Cuddy's, Elle called my parents right away. I'm sure that they heard my Mom's scream of joy in Canada. Even my Dad sounded excited at the news. Neither one of them mentioned the 'M' word, so I guess they were both OK with the current situation.

Elle was giggly happy the rest of the weekend. I was awakened on Monday with her mouth kissing a certain part of my anatomy until it stood at attention. Then she climbed on board and rode the horsey until we were both sated. She made me breakfast in bed and then treated me to a lovely bath and a massage. I felt completely relaxed after that and we took a nap together. Later that night, we watched some TV and ordered Chinese food for dinner and then went to bed early for some more playtime.

Cuddy's reaction mystified me for the rest of the weekend, but I scarcely had time to think about it with Elle pampering me. Back at work on Tuesday, I tried to worm it out of Wilson, but he swore that Cuddy was just taken by surprise at the news and was genuinely happy for us. I wasn't convinced, but I let it drop for now.

Elle did drop one bombshell late Monday evening. She announced that she was going to talk to her boss about temporarily transferring out of oncology for the duration of her pregnancy. She didn't want the baby exposed to the toxic chemotherapy drugs.

I agreed with her. The risk was small, but no point in taking chances.

I frowned: "That's smart but Kirby's not going to be happy about that. He may give you a bunch of crap, there's no where for you to transfer, blah, blah, blah."

She shrugged: "Let him try. I have the right to be transferred during my pregnancy and I have a damn good lawyer. I don't think he will want to mess with Bill."

Elle called her boss first thing on Tuesday morning and set up an appointment to speak with him. She told me later that he initially had balked at her request, claiming that there were no other pharmacists with an oncology specialty available to take her spot. Elle gently reminded him of Sharon Williamson who was currently working in the ICU satellite. After obtaining her oncology certification, Sharon decided that she wasn't very fond of that specialty and transferred to critical care. Elle suggested that she and Sharon trade places for the duration of her pregnancy and Kirby reluctantly agreed to ask Sharon if she would approve the switch. Apparently Sharon was thrilled at Elle's news and was happy to change places with her, but only for the duration of Elle's pregnancy. Sharon had just had a baby 8 months prior and wanted to try for baby number two in another year or so. The timing was excellent for both women.

Kirby had also agreed that Elle could still see the pain patients two afternoons a week. I was pleased that it had all worked out for Elle.

Elle made an appointment to see Alderman on Friday and I went with her. It was too early for an ultrasound but she gave Elle an exam, a new prescription for prenatal vitamins and set up a consult with Rich Lottenberg, for the following week. She also calculated Elle's due date as May 12, warning her again that she would most likely take the baby 4 weeks early to prevent late-term fetal death. Because of that, Elle should basically consider her due date to be April 15. Alderman wanted to see Elle every month for the first 4 months and switch to bi-weekly afterwards until the 6th month when she wanted to start seeing her weekly.

The appointment with Lottenberg was for the following Friday. He repeated the same things that Alderman had said: daily Lovenox injections, monitor blood levels, frequent doctor visits and early delivery. Everyone seemed upbeat about her chances of a successful pregnancy, so Elle seemed a little more relaxed about the whole thing.

Elle was 6 weeks pregnant at this point. The morning sickness was in full force and she started keeping ginger ale and Saltines on the nightstand so that she could eat a little before she got out of bed in the morning. She was usually OK by noon, but certain smells could set it off at any time. One night we ordered Chinese food and the shrimp lo mein triggered it. I resigned myself to not eating shrimp for the next several months. She didn't want me around when she was barfing so I would just set a damp washcloth and a glass of water within her reach and leave her alone, staying within earshot in case she needed anything else.

Football season was upon us. We spent Saturdays watching her beloved Gators and Sundays watching the Jets and anyone else that was playing. The band continued to play at Satchel's every other Saturday night. It was the middle of October before Tony showed his face at the club again.

The band was in the middle of their first set when I felt movement behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and there was Tony, holding a glass of scotch in each hand.

He handed one to me and said: "A little bird told me that we have a reason to celebrate."

I accepted the glass and nodded.

"How far along?"

I replied: "Ten weeks."

He clinked his glass against mine and said: "Congratulations. Third time's the charm."

"So they say."

We both slugged the scotch back. It was Talisker. I'll say one thing for Tony; he always buys the good stuff.

When Elle approached the table for the break, I watched Tony carefully. He stood up when she reached us. He clasped her hand between both of his and congratulated her with a chaste kiss on one cheek. And he called her Elle, not _Bella_. I smiled inwardly; I had won this pissing contest. Tony had finally conceded that Elle was mine. She sat between us during the break and I kept my arm around her shoulders as she sipped on her ginger ale. Tony never scowled and the three of us actually made friendly conversation for 15 whole minutes.

Elle had her first ultrasound when she was in her 10th week. Alderman did it herself and gave her a vaginal ultrasound, explaining that in the early weeks you can get a better view this way. Plus it has the advantage of not needing a full bladder for the scan. It was weird watching Alderman place this condom-covered dildo-shaped wand inside of Elle and move it around, but Elle handled it like a trooper.

We could see a tiny embryo with a nice strong heartbeat. Alderman measured our rug-rat and the Crown Rump Length was 3.2 cm, normal for a 10-week-old embryo.

I could sense Elle's nervousness and I squeezed her hand: "The little peanut looks good."

Alderman nodded: "Yes, she does. I see no abnormalities and there is a good heartbeat too."

In a small voice, Elle asked: "Can we get a photo?"

"Of course." Alderman printed off two copies for us. As all ultrasound photos are, it was very grainy, but Elle stared at it as if it were an Ansel Adams photo or something.

Alderman removed the wand and instructed Elle to sit up. "Everything looks good so far. We'll do the next scan at 18 weeks and maybe we will be able to determine the sex at that time. Are you taking your vitamins and your injections?"

Elle nodded: "Of course."

"Good. Eat right, and get lots of rest. Nap when you're tired. You're doing great. Try not to worry so much."

Elle nodded, head down, staring at the photo: "I'll try."

Alderman stood up: "I'll see you next month. Call if you have any problems."

Once we were alone, I gave Elle a kiss on the cheek. "OK?"

She was still staring at the photo. "Yes. I thought we would put one up on the refrig and send one to your Mom, if that's OK?"

"That's fine, sweetheart."

Finally she looked up and smiled at me. "This is the first picture of our baby."

I kissed her again. "Next time, we're getting a better photographer. And I want color photos."

She giggled and flung her arms around my neck.

Cuddy was still acting weird, but every time I asked Wilson about it, he had a different excuse. They still came to the club to watch the band play, and Wilson usually came over on Sundays for football, but the four of us had not socialized together since the night that we announced Elle's pregnancy. The gear in my brain finally slipped into place one morning in the clinic when I spotted Cuddy wistfully staring at a woman holding a little blue bundle of joy. Cuddy still wanted a baby and was probably having trouble dealing with Elle being pregnant.

I stormed into Wilson's office. "Cuddy wants to have a baby."

He looked up with a startled expression on his face. "What? Did she tell you that?"

"No. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out when she's drooling over the swaddled ones in the clinic and hasn't hung out with Elle since we told you about our future rug-rat."

He sputtered: "Are you trying to say that Lisa is jealous of Elle?"

I tilted my head and thought for a moment: "Hmm, I don't know if _jealous_ is the right adjective. I think _covet_ would be the word I'd use. Cuddy covets what Elle has, a little parasite growing in her uterus."

He waved his hand in frustration at me: "Did you drop acid again? I think you're hallucinating."

I shook my head: "I just saw her in the clinic staring at a baby. I know that look. I think you should knock her up."

He laughed: "Why? So you won't be the only one dealing with a hormonally challenged female and an impending bundle of screaming, shitting joy?"

"Well, you know what they say, Wilson. Misery loves company."

**_Cuddy_**

James had been gone for 5 days. I couldn't believe that the dates of the oncology conference exactly coincided with my most fertile days this month. Unfortunately he had to attend since he was presenting a paper and presiding over one of the panels. He offered to make an excuse, say he was sick or something, but I told him to go. I didn't want him to stay behind just to try to knock me up one more time when it obviously wasn't working. Then James tried to get me to come along to the convention with him, but I had two important meetings with potential donors that I really didn't want to reschedule. We would just try again next month although I had my doubts that we were going to be successful. I had to admit to myself that I was just a little jealous of Elle. I knew that her pregnancy was full of risks, but I couldn't help feeling envious that she had gotten pregnant again so quickly.

We were supposed to go to a Halloween party the night that James returned from the convention. I wasn't really in the mood, but we had promised to go and already had costumes. James had made a big deal about surprising each other with our costumes, so we got dressed in separate rooms. He called out to me when he was ready and we met in the hallway.

He was dressed as the Phantom of the Opera and looked so dashing in that cape. His eyes bugged out of his head when he saw me. I guess he liked my costume. I had dressed as a witch, albeit a rather sexy one. The costume was a black corset with orange ribbon lace-up in the front which gaped to reveal a few inches of skin. It had small ruffled off-the-shoulder puffed sleeves and a short frilly mesh skirt. I was wearing black and orange striped thigh high tights, fingerless black gloves, a black lace choker and a witch's pointed black hat.

He gulped: "You can't go out like that. That's, that's, that's too sexy for public viewing."

"Oh, come on. Nothing shows."

He slipped his fingers between the orange ribbons holding the front of the corset together. "Hmmm, what about this right here?"

The warmth of his fingers felt good against my skin and I moved in closer to this touch.

"It's just a little bit of skin. Nothing important shows."

He murmured: "It's important to me."

James bent his head and kissed my collarbone. Slowly he tugged on the ribbon until the bow came untied. He unhooked the top of the corset and started unlacing the ribbon from the stays. Within a minute, it was half undone and my breasts had popped out of their confinement.

I tried to push his hands away. "James, what are you doing? We need to head out to the party."

"Nuh, uh. I haven't seen you in 5 days. Screw the party. I wanna stay here and screw the woman who has bewitched my heart."

I protested weakly: "But we told House and Elle we would be there."

He ran his tongue down my breast and circled the areola before flicking it across the nipple. I couldn't suppress the moan that escaped my throat.

"Would you rather show up at the party and please them or stay here and let me please you?"

His tongue continued to play with my nipple as his hand slipped under my skirt.

Suddenly he gasped: "You're wearing a thong?"

"And you're surprised? I wear thongs all the time."

"You're wearing a thong under this tiny little skirt? You bend over the wrong way and everyone will see your ass."

I laughed: "You sound jealous."

"Damn right, I am. No one gets to see that gorgeous ass but me."

He possessively grabbed my ass and pressed me tightly against his body. I could feel his hardness through the layers of clothes and my resolve began to weaken rapidly. Who needed a big costume party when we could have our own?

I leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Only you, Jamie. Only you get to see it."

He growled at the use of my special name for him and pulled me closer still. "Leelee, god, Leelee, I need you."

Wetness flowed between my legs. He only called me Leelee when we were in bed. I whimpered and said: "Oh, Jamie, I love it when you call me that."

His eyes were burning with desire and I suddenly longed to feel his naked skin against mine. I grabbed the front of his shirt with both hands and ripped it open, sending buttons flying and bouncing on the floor. I pressed my lips against his naked chest and kissed him over and over.

I felt his chuckle before I heard it. "So I take it, that means you're OK with staying home tonight?"

I tongued his nipple and murmured: "Ummm, hmmmm."

James picked me up in his arms and carried me into the bedroom. My witch's hat and my shoes fell off somewhere between the hallway and the bed. He gently set me down on the bed and stared at me lustfully as he kicked off his shoes and dropped his pants. I started to remove the corset, but he stopped me.

"No, no. Leave that on. We're having our own costume party."

He stripped off all of his clothes except for the cape. He was quite a sight, standing there naked with a full erection and that black cape flowing down his back. He adjusted my corset and laced it back up so that my breasts were completely exposed as if they were sitting on a shelf. Then he reached under my skirt and slipped his fingers inside my thong.

"Oh, my hot little witch is ready for me."

He slowly licked his fingers clean, motioning with his other hand for me to move into the middle of the bed. When I was positioned, he climbed on top of me, covering both of us with the cape. This felt so silly that I couldn't help giggling. I stopped when his mouth covered mine and his tongue delved deeply inside. He kissed me until we ran out of air and then he moved down to my neck. He nipped and sucked hard; I knew he was leaving a mark but I was beyond caring. It was Friday night; what didn't fade by Monday, I could cover with make-up. As he worked on my neck, his fingers tweaked my nipple. He was breathing hard as he kissed his way down to my right breast. I squirmed until I could reach down and grab his cock. He was rock hard; pre-cum had leaked out and I smeared it around the head with my thumb.

He groaned as he rolled off of me and I whimpered at the loss of contact. But the lack of touch was only for a moment as his hand softly slid up my inner thigh and caressed my core through the thin fabric on my thong.

He murmured: "This is in my way." Quickly, he tore it off and positioned himself between my thighs. Pushing the skirt up, he nuzzled my mound and then started licking my slit. I moaned and pushed up against his face as his tongue worked its magic on me.

I was close, oh, so close when he raised his head, face damp with my juices, and stared lustfully into my eyes. Glancing to the right, he reached over and grabbed one of the pillows. Then he lifted my butt up into the air and tucked it underneath me. His cock teased my entrance for a moment and then he slowly pushed his way in. I spread my legs wider so I could take him in as deeply as possible. He responded by grabbing my left leg and lifting it over his shoulder. The penetration was deeper and felt delicious. I was very close to falling over the edge when he surprised me by picking up my other leg and draping it over his shoulder. I couldn't move in that position; James needed to do all the work and continued to slowly stab deeply inside of me. His rhythm pushed me back to the edge again and then I felt his finger on my clit, rubbing gently in small circles.

"I love you, Leelee. Come for me."

I came hard, crying out incoherent words and clutching his strong arms as he continued to pump deeply inside of me. As the waves of my orgasm started to subside, he let out a loud grunt and thrust even deeper inside of me as his own orgasm hit. He stabbed deeply inside of me a couple more times and then collapsed on top of me. I was twisted up like a pretzel, but I gave him a minute to recover his breath before I wiggled as a sign to let my legs down. He did so promptly, with a sheepish little grin.

"Sorry about that. Hope I didn't hurt you."

I stroked his handsome face: "Not at all."

He gave me that smile, the one that melts every bone in my body and pulled me into his arms. We kissed gently for several minutes and then James whispered: "I love you, Leelee."

My heart swelled; it felt so good, so right to be with him. "I love you too, Jamie."

He sighed contentedly, planted one kiss on my lips and another on my forehead before laying his cheek against my temple. My head was snuggled comfortably on his shoulder and we drifted off to sleep.

We woke up around midnight and giggled at my rumpled costume and at his cape blanketing us. We pulled off our costumes, put on our bathrobes and headed downstairs. I popped us some popcorn; we cuddled up on the couch and watched part of the Twilight Zone marathon. When the popcorn was finished, we turned off the TV and went back upstairs to bed.

**_HOUSE_**

In the second week of November, Elle officially entered her second trimester. Her nausea had lessened considerably and she was feeling more energetic. The higher levels of estrogen were causing her breasts to swell, her skin to glow and her libido to increase. I was enjoying these particular hormonal side effects because she was jumping me every chance she got.

We were close to figuring out the diagnosis on our latest patient, so I stayed late on Friday, waiting for the lab results. The report showed improvement so I left Foreman to monitor the patient for the night and sent the other kids home. It was after 10PM when I finally walked into our living room.

Elle was playing the piano but stopped when she saw me. She immediately got up and walked towards me wearing a pale pink tank top, matching bikini panties and a big smile.

She tiptoed up, cupped my face with her hands and kissed my lips. "Hey. Glad you're home. Are you hungry?"

"I had a sandwich."

She took my jacket, helmet and backpack and put them all in the closet for me. I stared at her curiously; she usually wasn't so June Cleaver-ish.

When she finished her task, she slipped her arm around my waist and asked: "Wanna take a bath?"

"As long as I'm not bathing alone."

She giggled: "I think that can be arranged."

While Elle filled the tub, I went into the bedroom and stripped off. Leaving my cane hooked over the doorknob, I limped into the bathroom. Elle had removed her clothes while I was in the bedroom and was standing there, stark naked, watching the tub fill up. I wrapped my arms around her from behind and rubbed my cock between the cheeks of her ass. She sighed and leaned into my touch. I was tempted to just drag her back to the bedroom, but the tub was full, so we climbed in. I stretched out as best I could and Elle arranged herself between my legs.

She giggled as she settled herself against my chest. "I swear the tub is getting smaller. Pretty soon there won't be room for all three of us in here."

I gently splashed the warm water over her breasts and belly. "It'd be nice to have a big Jacuzzi tub, wouldn't it?"

Elle sighed: "Oh yeah, that would be nice."

As we cuddled in the tub together, washing, stroking and splashing each other, the seed of an idea formed in my mind. A bigger tub would be nice, but a bigger home was about to become a necessity. Once the baby was born, there would not be enough space in this apartment for all the things a baby needed. We could have the crib in our room and keep most of the baby's things across the hall at Elle's apartment for a while, but that would not be practical for very long. As much as I hated to leave Baker Street, it was time to start looking for a new home. I wondered if we should get a bigger apartment or bite the bullet and buy a house. As I pondered the advantages and disadvantages of those options, Elle turned around to face me.

"You seem thoughtful. What's on your mind?"

I didn't want to talk to Elle about this just yet; I wanted to think about all the possibilities first before I brought it up for discussion.

So I deflected by leering at her: "I was wondering just how big the girls were going to get by April."

I gave the closest one a gentle squeeze.

She giggled: "More for you to play with."

I leaned down and flicked her nipple with my tongue, and then I took it into my mouth. Elle moaned as I suckled; her head tilted back to expose her lovely neck to me. I kissed her neck and then her mouth.

Cupping both of her breasts, I said: "Gotta get my licks in while I can. After the rug-rat is born, she will be hogging these luscious funbags for a while."

"Just for a little while, but you can still play with them. And if you're a really good boy, I'll even put milk in your coffee if you want."

I grimaced: "Ewww, woman! You know I don't like milk in my coffee."

I tickled her sides until she was giggling uncontrollably. We squirmed so much that the water started sloshing out of the tub. I stopped so that we wouldn't have a huge slippery mess on the floor and simply held her close to my chest while her laughter subsided.

I felt her lips on my neck. I closed my eyes to better enjoy the sensations. She kissed and suckled that tender spot where my neck and shoulder meet. I'd probably have a hickey there tomorrow, but I didn't care. I liked it when she felt possessive enough to mark me.

Her hands stroked my chest and roamed down my body until one hand wrapped around my shaft. I let out an appreciative groan.

She chuckled: "Wanna get out of the tub?"

I answered by crashing my lips down on hers. My tongue demanded admittance and her lips parted for me. We kissed long and hard for a few minutes until we needed to come up for air.

Elle's lips looked swollen; her eyes were lust-filled. "I'll take that as a yes."

We tried to dry each other off, but hands would linger for a little too long in certain places and we would get distracted from our task. Somehow we managed to stumble our way into the bedroom where Elle playfully pushed me down on the bed and climbed on top of me. She straddled me and pulled my hands over my head, holding them down with her own. I chuckled inwardly; there was no way she was strong enough to keep me down if I decided to move, but I'd play along for now.

She pressed her lips to mine and kissed me long and hard. Her tongue explored my mouth and then her lips parted and allowed me my turn. As my tongue fucked her mouth, I thrust up against her, my hard cock brushing her core and making his needs known.

She whispered: "Close your eyes."

I complied and felt her hands release mine and her weight shift around on the bed. I snuck a peek and saw that she was doing a 180. She propped herself up on her elbows and knees and rubbed her cheek against my hard member. As her tongue circled the head of my cock, I let out a hiss.

She giggled: "You can open your eyes now."

Her mouth returned to my cock and she started doing the most wonderful things to it. She mouthed the head, lips tight, until I groaned loudly. Then she licked down the length and took one of my balls into her mouth. She gently juggled it in her mouth for a moment and then did the same to the other one. She licked her way back up my shaft; the coolness of the night air on my wet genitals was quite stimulating.

I grabbed a pillow and stuck it under my head, allowing me a lovely view that enhanced my excitement. I watched her swallow my cock and fuck it with her mouth.

Elle wiggled and I glanced up to see her glistening pussy was just inches away, so I lifted my head and lapped her slit. She moaned around my cock as I slid my tongue in and out of her core. I licked and nibbled lightly on her clit. This sent her very close to the edge. She lost the rhythm she had on my cock and just held him in her mouth as she moaned with pleasure. A little bit more pressure and my cock fell out of her mouth as she screamed with pleasure.

It was time to up the ante. I flipped her onto her back. Her thighs automatically spread for me. I moved between her legs and teased her entrance with the head of my cock. She was quite wet and more than ready for me. I slowly pulsed my way in, taking my time, enjoying the look of pleasure on her face. When I was balls-deep, I stopped thrusting and covered her body with mine. The bulge of her belly pushing against me told me that we would not be able to use this position for much longer. I ran my tongue over her lips before covering her mouth with mine. Her hands cupped my face; the kiss was tender and loving as was her gaze when I pulled back and looked in her eyes.

It was gone after a quick minute. The look went fiery and I felt her walls tighten around my cock.

"Gimme some of that, cowboy."

I teased: "Only some?"

She shook her head: "All. Gimme all of it."

I grinned: "Greedy little girl."

I propped myself up on my elbows and started pumping in earnest. Elle moaned and met me thrust for thrust. Her hands squeezed my shoulders and her head lolled back on the pillow as she screamed out her orgasm. I kept pumping as she rode out her orgasm. When her body sagged, signaling the end, I stabbed more forcefully awakening her desire again. Over the last couple of weeks, with all the hormonal changes going on in her body, we discovered that Elle was easily and quickly stimulated into a second orgasm if I just let her fully ride out the first one.

I was more than ready for my turn. Elle bent her knees and spread her legs even wider, trying to take me in deeper as she screamed: "Oomigod, oomigod. That's it. Oh, that's good. OH Gawd, yes, fuck me."

I did as my lovely woman asked; I fucked her as hard as I could. I tried to hang on until she came again, but didn't quite make it. I gasped out her name as I came deeply inside of her. I continued to pump as I rode out my orgasm, slipping my hand down to rub her swollen nub. She moaned and thrust against me. When I took her nipple into my mouth and sucked hard, she fell over the edge again, mumbling incoherently as she came.

I rolled to the side and pulled out. Rubbing my cock against her clit gave her a couple of aftershocks that made her cry out with pleasure. Finally she grabbed my hand to make me stop.

I kissed her: "Had enough? Did you get it all?"

She sighed: "Oh yeah, cowboy. I got it all, twice, and it was goooooood."

She dragged that last word out until it was 4 syllables long.

I wrapped my arms around her and she snuggled her head on my shoulder. We kissed for a few minutes and then just lay still holding each other. She started to nod off, but I roused her long enough to get us under the covers. It was too cold now to sleep on top of them. I tucked the blankets around us and she snuggled right back into my chest, falling asleep almost instantly. For a few minutes, I watched her sleep, gently stroking her back and her belly and lightly kissing her forehead. One final kiss and I pressed my cheek against the top of her head and dozed off.

_Thanksgiving, November 22, 2007_

**_HOUSE_**

Cuddy decided she wanted to host Thanksgiving this year. Elle usually liked to host the dinner herself, but since Adam and Avi and family were heading to their other brother's house this year, and it would only be the four of us anyway, I argued that we should accept her invitation and let them do all the big work. We'd still get a great meal, and surely they would send us home with some of the leftovers. Elle agreed and made a sweet potato casserole and an apple pie for us to bring along. Wilson and Cuddy were making the rest of the meal.

At 15 weeks, Elle could no longer wear most of her regular clothes. She had been so thin prior to her pregnancy but now her breasts were larger and she had a cute little pooch. It wasn't terribly big yet, but big enough that her regular jeans could no longer be zipped up. She really needed to go shopping for some new clothes, but had not gotten around to it yet. At home, she had taken to wearing yoga pants or her jeans, unzipped with a long tee shirt over them.

As she stared into the closet, trying to decide what to wear, I heard her mutter: "I gotta go shopping."

I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her from behind, one hand resting on her belly and the other cupping her right breast. "I told you that weeks ago, when you outgrew your bras."

She fretted: "I know, I know. Oh Gawd, I can't go tomorrow. It's Black Friday; the stores will be crazy. I can't get in the middle of that madness."

I kissed her neck: "It's just Wilson and Cuddy. They won't care what you're wearing."

She finally settled on her black yoga pants and a royal blue tee shirt. The color of the shirt accentuated the color of her eyes and I thought she looked beautiful.

Wilson answered the door when we arrived. He took the casserole dish from Elle and we headed towards the kitchen. Cuddy was stirring the mashed potatoes as we walked in. She was dressed simply in a red knit top and black slacks and gave us a huge smile when we walked in.

"It's good to see you."

I snarked: "Yeah, it's been so long since we last saw each other, like yesterday! So, when do we eat?"

Cuddy was calm and completely unruffled. "Very soon. Have some hors d'oeuvres." Smiling, she pointed at a plate loaded with deviled eggs and stuffed mushrooms.

I didn't need to be told twice; I dug right in.

Elle set the pie down on the counter and looked quizzically at Cuddy. As I stuffed my face, I surreptitiously looked too, wondering what had Elle so fascinated. Cuddy had seemed preoccupied these last few weeks; today she seemed to be rather happy, almost serene. She had smiled, _twice_, and merely pointed me to the food when I rudely asked when we were going to eat.

I glanced at Wilson; the expression on his face told me that something was up. I looked over at Elle; her head was tilted as she continued to study Cuddy.

I picked up a stuffed mushroom and took it over to her, popping it in her mouth. In French, I softly said: _"Something's up with these two."_

Mouth full, she nodded her head.

From the other side of the kitchen, we watched as the two of them put the finishing touches on dinner. Wilson was constantly touching Cuddy; he put his hand in the small of her back, he tucked her hair behind her ear, he affectionately kissed her cheek and whispered something in her ear.

Suddenly Elle whispered: _"Mon Dieu!"_ She grabbed my shoulder and tiptoed up to whisper in my ear.

I was taken aback by what she had to say and we both turned to stare at Cuddy some more. Wilson kissed her cheek again and then they both turned and caught us staring at them.

Wilson laughed: "What's up with you two? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Elle stammered: "Nuth, nothing. Nothing's wrong. What's new with you two?"

They smiled serenely at each other and I knew Elle's idea was spot on. "Wilson, you dog! You knocked her up!"

Both their mouths dropped. Wilson recovered first: "How did you know?"

Elle piped up: "Lisa, you're glowing. You are seriously glowing. So it's true? You're pregnant?"

Cuddy smiled radiantly: "Yes, I am. We wanted you to be the first to know. I'm barely pregnant, just 5 weeks, but I couldn't wait to tell you."

Elle squealed loudly and rushed to give Cuddy a big hug. "I'm so happy for you."

Cuddy hugged her back. "Thank you. I know it's early, but we're really excited."

Elle hugged Wilson's neck and he laughed when he felt her body pressed against him. Laying his hand on her belly, he said: "Wow. You're getting a bump now."

I snarled: "Hey, hands off the bump. That one's mine. You got your own hormonally challenged female with an expanding belly now."

Cuddy gently chided me: "House. You haven't congratulated us yet."

I replied: "Cuddy, if you're happy, I'm."

I paused for a moment; I wasn't sure what I was feeling. I knew I was supposed to be happy for them, as they were happy for us. Deep down inside, part of me was laughing that Wilson would be dealing with an emotionally charged Cuddy for the next 9 months. But I also remembered how sad Cuddy was when she miscarried after the IVF treatments and found myself hoping that it wouldn't happen again. And Wilson was born to be a dad; he looked absolutely tickled pink that his bun was in her oven.

Elle came over and hugged my waist. I was still having a hard enough time expressing myself to my lady; I wasn't sure I could do it to others, even my bestest friend. Elle gave me an encouraging smile and I made an effort to think of something appropriate to say. Finally I came up with: "Mazel tov! Can we eat now? I'm starving."

_December 19__th__, 2007_

**_HOUSE_**

Elle was now in her 18th week and she had an appointment for an ultrasound this afternoon. For a change, I woke up before she did. I propped myself up on my elbow and watched her sleep for a few minutes before snuggling up to her side and wrapping my arm around her protruding belly.

It was just last week that we had started feeling the baby move and as I laid there rubbing Elle's belly, I could feel the baby changing positions.

A sleepy voice piped up: "She's swimming around."

"Yes, I feel it. Is it strange, having another creature moving around inside of you?"

She giggled: "Sometimes, I can't stop thinking of the movie, _Alien_, you know, the first one. When the little alien burst out of the guy's stomach. Oh, that was so gross. I keep thinking that she could just pop out at any time. And she's still so small now. When I'm huge, I just can't imagine how I'll feel with her kicking my bladder and all that."

I kissed her belly and nuzzled my scruffy cheek against it. "Hey, rug-rat! This is your daddy talking. Your little bun can't come out of the oven until you're finished cooking. Got that? Stay in there and no scaring your parents. You'll get to do enough of that when you're a teenager."

She giggled again and looked at me with such love in her eyes. There were times that I still wondered what I had done to deserve her, but I never voiced that concern any more. I accepted and relished the fact that this woman loved me.

She stroked my cheek and said sweetly: "You're amazing."

I hid my face as I kissed her belly again. "You know you're halfway now. Just 18 more weeks to go."

Elle nodded: "I know. It's going fast, isn't it?"

I kissed her again: "Come on. Let's go shower. I'll wash your belly for you."

She teased: "Just my belly?"

"No, I'll wash those _genormous_ breasts of yours too. Gad, they're lovely. They're more than a handful now." I reached up and gave the left one a gentle squeeze.

Elle giggled again: "Come on. Don't start anything that we don't have time to finish. I have to be there at 8:00. I don't have the luxury of your flexible schedule. Race you to the bathroom."

I rolled over and prepared to stand up. "What a race. A gimp and a preggo. That would be amusing to watch, doncha think?"

She laughed all the way to the bathroom.

I was busy with a case so that by the time I got down to Alderman's office, Elle was already in a paper gown and sitting on the exam table.

I gave her a kiss as an apology and she smiled at me nervously.

I sat down next to her and picked up her hand. "Don't be nervous. Your triple test came out well last week. And remember, Madame Gina said you'd have a healthy baby."

That made her smile. I was pleased that the ruse was still working. Every time she started fretting over her pregnancy, I reminded her what the psychic had said and she seemed to calm down. I may consider the psychic a fraud, but Elle seemed to want to believe in her.

Again, Alderman herself performed the exam instead of a technician. I wasn't sure if it was because Elle was high-risk or if it was because of me, but it didn't really matter. I was glad that she was doing it herself instead of a tech with a 2-year degree.

Elle's bladder was full and she was definitely ready to get on with the exam. Alderman squirted the gel on Elle's belly and we got rolling. We could see the right number of arms and legs; the head size and the femur length were within normal limits. We zeroed in on the heart and all four chambers could be clearly seen and functioning properly. After we noted that the kidneys were normal sized, I breathed a sigh of relief. Everything looked good.

Alderman asked: "Now, do we want try to check for the sex of the baby?"

Elle responded affirmatively and Alderman zoomed in on that part of the anatomy. We looked carefully but could not discern a penis.

Alderman finally announced: "I think it's a girl."

She printed several copies and handed them to Elle while I took a cloth and wiped the gel off of Elle's belly.

Elle quickly handed the photos to me and announced: "I gotta pee." She hurried to the connecting bathroom and shut the door.

Alderman looked at me and said quietly: "Everything looks good. Really. Is she still nervous?"

"I think she'll be nervous until she delivers, but she handles it well most of the time."

Elle walked out of the bathroom at this point. Alderman rose and gave her a hug. "You're halfway there and doing great. Keep up the good work. Happy Holidays and I'll see you in January."

I watched as Elle dressed. "More pictures for the refrig?"

"And one for your parents. I didn't send their Christmas card yet so I could add the photo before mailing it to them."

I nodded and then said slowly. "They wanted us to come out for Christmas."

Elle looked surprised: "They did? What did you tell them?"

"It's a long flight and I didn't want to put you at greater risk for a blood clot due to the traveling. They understood."

That was only part of the reason. I wasn't sure that I could take several days under Dad's roof despite his improved behavior over the last few months. Maybe with limited exposure, we could pretend to get along for a while longer.

Elle nodded in understanding: "Oh, well that makes sense. You should take a picture of my belly so your Mom can see how big I'm getting. She'd like that."

I pulled her into my arms and hugged her as tightly as her belly would allow.

"Yes, she would."

_December 25, 2007_

**_HOUSE_**

Cuddy invited us over for Christmas dinner and again I chuckled at the irony of 3 Jews preparing Christmas dinner for the only goy in the group. Two weeks earlier, we had invited the whole gang over to Elle's place for the fourth night of Hanukkah. It happened to be a Saturday night that the band wasn't playing. Elle and Wilson made the latkes and Adam, Gen, Avi and Ricky brought the rest of the food. It was just as delicious as last year's. We lit the candles, played dreidel and watched Audra open her gifts. At some point in the evening, it occurred to me that when we celebrated this holiday next year, our little group would have two new members. The gang was already looking forward to the new additions. Avi had given Elle a tummy kiss when he arrived. Audra kept patting Elle's belly and talking to the baby. She squealed every time she felt the baby move. It was still a bit uncomfortable for me to be part of such a big group, but I was slowly getting used to it. Elle seemed happy with her little 'family' around her.

On Christmas Eve, Elle baked a ham at our place and we took it over to Cuddy's place on Christmas Day, while Cuddy and Wilson prepared the rest of the spread.

The ladies settled us in the living room with drinks and a plate of hors d'oeuvres and strolled off to the kitchen to put the finishing touches on dinner. Wilson and I watched their retreating asses; it was a lovely sight.

I stuffed a deviled egg in my mouth and commented: "Cuddy's funbags are getting bigger."

He nodded as he grabbed a mini quiche: "Yes they are. She's nine weeks now."

I wiggled my eyebrows at him: "More to play with."

He smiled but didn't say anything.

"So, are you going to marry her?"

He sat quietly for a minute, staring off into space and then said: "I don't know. My other three marriages didn't work out. What Lisa and I have now seems to be working and, I don't know. If we get married, would it change? Would it still work? Would we still be happy together?"

I understood. What Elle and I had was working too. Maybe that's why she was afraid to get married. Maybe she was afraid to change the status quo.

I addressed Wilson: "Have you asked Cuddy?"

He shook his head: "No, we haven't talked about it. I want to know how she feels, but I want to wait, at least until she gets through the first trimester, before bringing it up."

I nodded: "You'll like it when she's in the second trimester."

He gave me a questioningly look.

"Hormones are running rampant and the nausea is mostly gone. If she's anything like Elle, Cuddy will be extremely horny. You'll get the best sex of your life."

He grinned and glanced towards the kitchen. "Looking forward to that!"


	60. Chapter 60

_January 19, 2008_

**_ELLE_**

It was my 37th birthday and I was standing in the closet trying to decide what to wear to my party. Thankfully, I had finally gone shopping with Lisa and had several outfits to choose from. I needed everything to be loose around the middle now; I felt like I was getting bigger by the day. At 23 weeks, I felt exhausted carrying all this extra weight around. I couldn't imagine how I would feel over the next 2 months, as I got bigger and bigger.

This party was kind of a double celebration. Lisa had made it out of the first trimester and into her 13th week, so her risk of miscarrying had dropped significantly. It was an understatement to say that she and Jimmy were thrilled. Lisa didn't just glow; she beamed and still walked around with ease while I felt as huge as a beached whale. My stance had become wider to accommodate my bigger belly and my feet swelled if I was on them for any length of time. I was hungry all the time but embarrassingly producing a lot of gas. My little burps and farts amused Greg to no end and he chuckled every time I let one fly.

Greg was completely entertained by my changing body. Naturally my larger breasts were a source of delight for him. But he also seemed to enjoy just stroking my belly and tracing the newly developed curves on my body. Sex had become more challenging. He could no longer get on top with my big belly in the way. I could still get on top on him, but I didn't have the stamina that I used to have and I tired quickly. Doggie style and the spoon quickly became our new preferred positions and while they were fun, I missed making love to him face-to-face. I missed being able to kiss him while we were actually screwing and seeing that look on his face when his orgasm hit.

He had this theory that listening to Mozart would make our baby smarter, so every night for a half hour or so, we would either listen to some Mozart on the stereo or one of us would play some on the piano. If we were listening to it on the stereo, he would lie with his head in my ever-shrinking lap, stroke my belly and quietly explain the nuances of the music to the baby.

In fact, he talked to her all the time. He claimed that the baby would be able to recognize his voice by the time she was born. It was rather cute, although I would never say that to him nor did I tell anyone that he was doing that. He would probably be embarrassed and stop and I didn't want that to happen. After what had happened during my other pregnancy, I loved his tenderness and his involvement with everything concerning the baby.

After staring into the closet for a few more minutes, I finally settled on some black stretch pants and a red-and-black vertically stripped shirt. I couldn't reach my feet any more, so I carried my shoes and socks out to the living room so that Greg could help me with them.

Lisa and Jimmy were already here to pick us up. I waddled out, displayed what I was carrying and simply said: "Help."

He smiled smugly at me: "My little orca. Sit down."

Lisa frowned: "Orca? Why'd you call her that?"

"Cuz she's already as big as a beached whale. Orca sounds nicer than whale. Gimme your foot."

He addressed that last part to me. I had plopped down on the couch and he had parked his butt on the coffee table so that he could help me finish getting dressed.

Wilson exclaimed: "House that's not a very nice thing to call your pregnant wife, I mean girlfriend, partner, whatever."

Greg smirked: "She doesn't mind, do you, my little orca?"

I looked up at Jimmy and said: "I AM as big as a beached whale and only going to get bigger. Anyway, orcas are kinda cute. That black and white coloration is pretty. But they are really not whales; they are actually the biggest members of the dolphin family."

Greg went on: "And they are the most amazing predators. Did you know that they will actually hunt and kill young blue whales, sharks and seals? They're cool." He slipped my shoe on and gave my foot a little squeeze, his eyes dancing with mischief and a small smile on his face.

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "OK, you're an expert on marine biology too. Let's get going."

Greg grinned at her: "Hungry, little mama? Don't worry; the food will still be there. They won't start the party until the birthday girl gets there."

The party was fun. Adam and Gen threw it at their place. There was plenty of food and a huge chocolate birthday cake. Lisa and I were eating like horses, but I'm sure that Greg still outpaced us. That man could really eat.

It was after midnight when they dropped us off. We wandered down the hall to the bedroom to get undressed. Of course, I had to make a pit stop in the bathroom first. When I walked into the bedroom, Greg was standing there, shirtless and barefoot, fiddling with a small box. He looked up, startled, and slipped the box behind his back. His shirtless state and that momentary look of vulnerability kicked my hormones into overdrive and I started pulled off my blouse.

He grinned broadly: "Ready for some birthday sex?"

"You bet I am. And what's that behind your back?"

He gave a nonchalant shrug: "Just a little something."

He placed the box in my hand and I slowly opened it. Inside was a heart-shaped diamond pendant necklace.

Tears formed in my eyes. I looked up at him and said: "It's beautiful. I love it. Thank you."

He cupped my face with his hands. Softly he said: "You don't have to thank me; I should be thanking you."

His lips found mine before I could ask him what he meant by that. He kissed me so deeply that I forgot about my question.

When we came up for air, I said: "Would you put it on me?"

He nodded: "Lift your hair."

I complied and he fastened the chain around my neck. I walked over to the mirror and looked at my reflection. The necklace was stunning; it was a lovely present.

Greg came up behind me and unsnapped my bra. He pushed it off my shoulders and let it fall on top of the dresser. Then he wrapped his arms around my big belly and said: "You look beautiful."

I stared at our reflections in the mirror and my body started to ache. "I want to make love to you."

He kissed my shoulder: "Hmmm. I like it when we both want the same thing."

He took my hand and led me back to the bed. I sat down and he pulled off my shoes and socks for me. He dropped his jeans, I took off my pants and we crawled into bed with just our underpants on.

I wiggled my hand into his boxers and started playing with a rapidly growing Mt Gregory. He planted kisses all over my face and neck, working his way down to my breasts. After a few lovely minutes there, he kissed his way over my big belly and down to my mound. He slowly pulled my panties off and then kissed and nuzzled my hair. Settling himself between my legs, he planted a kiss right on top on my belly before whispering. "Close your eyes, rug-rat. I'm going to do things to your mommy that you probably shouldn't watch."

Then his head disappeared behind my belly. I couldn't see him anymore, but he sure did make me scream.

**_HOUSE_**

In my spare time at work, I found myself perusing real estate web sites instead of porn. I started out looking for a bigger apartment, but after two months, I still had not found anything suitable. Either the apartment was a bi-level, which was completely unacceptable for me, or it was in a crappy neighborhood, or the rooms were so tiny that you could barely move around. None of them had a living room that was big enough to accommodate the piano, the sofa and all of my bookcases. Naturally, none of them had a Jacuzzi tub either. I hated the thought of moving in the first place, but since it was inevitable, I wanted to move into something better than what we had now, that had the amenities that we really wanted. I decided that it was time to bite the bullet, become a grown-up and buy a house. The rent on two-bedroom apartments was so expensive that I figured a mortgage would be cheaper anyway. And my Mom's voice kept nagging me about having a yard for the kid. I didn't mind that as long as someone else mowed the grass and shoveled the snow.

I started thinking about everything I wanted in a home. It needed to be on one level as much as possible. A two-car garage would be great; it would be nice to have a warm car on cold mornings and a place to park the motorcycle for the winter. The living room needed to be large enough to accommodate the piano, bookcases and all the other necessary furniture. In fact, if it was big enough, I could trade up to a big-screen TV. I wanted us to have a nice Master bedroom suite with a Jacuzzi tub and a shower big enough for two. We needed at least 2 other bedrooms. I shuddered to think that if we had a guest room that my parents would want to stay with us when they visited. Naturally they would want to come visit more often after the baby arrived, at least Mom would. I still wasn't so sure about Alien-Dad, but presumably Mom would occasionally drag him along.

I also wanted to stay in Princeton. I didn't want a long commute to work. I searched a few of the local realtors' websites, but I wasn't having much luck. It was taking a lot of time to sift through all the ads looking for what I wanted.

Foreman stuck his head in my office, waving a file to announce that we had a new patient. I minimized the page I was on and limped over to the conference room to read the file. I listed the symptoms on the whiteboard and we haggled over the possible diagnoses for a while. Once we narrowed it down to three possibles, I sent them off to run tests.

Back in my office, I maximized the screen and started my search over again. By the time I read the 15th ad, I was feeling frustrated. This was taking too much of my time. I couldn't think about the case and read these ads at the same time, the way I could think while watching my soap or porn. I needed someone to scour the ads for me and just give me the best ones to look at. It was time to enlist help and I suddenly thought of the perfect person. Someone who owed me a favor. I opened my phone, scrolled through the directory until I found her number.

I almost cringed when I heard her whiny voice.

"Bonnie Wilson."

"So you're still a Wilson? Are you still the worst realtor in New Jersey?"

"Oh, my God. I know that voice. Oh, no. This isn't, oh, no, please. Not you."

"Yup, your fantasy has come true."

She screamed: "URGH! House, what do you want?"

I feigned hurt: "Well, there's no need to take that tone."

"No need? This is Dr. Greg House, right? The guy who wrecked my marriage and tried to kill my poor dog?"

"Hey, I didn't wreck your marriage. Wilson did that himself by cheating on you. And I didn't try to kill Hector; he tried to kill himself. He's the one who chewed open my bottle of Vicodin and tried to overdose. Although I should have killed him for chewing up my original Sun Elvis 78. What dog likes to chew vinyl?"

She interrupted: "Why are you calling me? What do you want?"

"You didn't answer my question. Are you still the worst realtor in New Jersey?"

I could feel her bristling right through the phone line. "I'll have you know that I'm number 3 in my office."

"Oh, boy. How many are in your office, three?"

"For your information, there are 27 realtors in my office."

"And you're number three? Perhaps I should talk to number one or number two?"

"I'll be happy to transfer you."

"You're willing to lose a potential commission just so you don't have to deal with me?"

"In a word, yes."

"Hum, you must be doing very well then. Congratulations."

There was a pause and then she said: "Seriously, House, why did you call?"

"I want you to find me a house."

She snorted: "Yeah, right. Just like when you wanted me to find you a new condo and all you were doing was fishing for information about James."

"I do need a house and you owe me. Pay-back for baby-sitting Hector and for all the stuff he destroyed."

"I don't owe you anything. I know that James paid you back for the record, the cane and anything else that Hector chewed up."

I took on a very serious tone: "OK. Fine. If you don't want the commission, I'll find another realtor. Perhaps you could transfer me to the number one in your office."

I paused, waiting for that to sink in.

"Are you serious this time?"

"My lady is pregnant. When the rug-rat is born, we'll need a bigger place. The three of us can't live in a one-bedroom apartment. The baby's due in April, so we don't have a whole lot of time."

There was a stunned silence. After a moment, she said: "You're having a baby? YOU?"

"Hey, the gene pool needed an upgrade. So are you interested in the commission or not?"

She took a deep breath. "I'm probably going to regret this, but tell me what you are looking for."

I gave her a run-down of the must-haves and the highly-desirables. She must have been taking notes because when I finished, she read it all back to me. I was somewhat impressed that she got it all right. Bonnie said she would start checking the listings and call me when she found anything. I instructed her to call me on my cell or at the office; I still didn't want Elle to know that I was looking until we had something to go look at.

Bonnie started e-mailing me the listings that she thought I would like. If one caught my eye, we would make an appointment to go see it.

By Valentine's Day, I had seen 7 houses but none of them were quite what I wanted. I felt like we still had some time, so I was willing to wait for something better to pop up.

I made dinner reservations at the Ferry House for Valentine's Day. I probably wouldn't have except Wilson forced my hand. He reminded me that this was the last Valentine's Day we would spend alone, as in without the rug-rat, so I should do something romantic for her. I smirked but secretly decided he was right. Dinner reservations at a fancy place and some heart-shaped diamond earrings seemed romantic enough to me.

Elle squealed when I gave her the earrings. They were a good match for the heart-shaped diamond pendant that I had given her for her birthday. She had a present for me too. I was so surprised when I opened the box, that, for a moment, I was speechless. The gift was a small leather-bound photo album. Inside were a dozen professional quality black-and-white photos of Elle, completely nude, proudly showing off her pregnant body. All I could do was flip the pages and stare at the photos in awe of her loveliness.

Shyly, she asked: "Do you like it? I wanted to get you something romantic and I just couldn't think of anything. Gen is trying to build up her photography business and she suggested doing this. She is the one who took the photos and did the album."

I was stunned by this gift. I always thought Elle was beautiful, but these photos seemed to magnify it tenfold. "Sweetheart, this is amazing. These pictures are fantastic."

She blushed: "I'm glad you like it. I just thought, maybe one day in the future, when my boobs have sagged, you might want to remember how I looked at this stage."

I cupped her face: "You will always be beautiful to me. This is a wonderful gift. Thank you."

I folded her into my arms and kissed her deeply.

"You really like it?"

"Yes, I like it so much that I'd like her to take some more of you as you get closer to term. I want some really big belly shots right before the rug-rat pops out."

She giggled: "I'll tell her. She'll be so pleased. Maybe you could be at the next session with me and we could get a couple of shots together."

I nodded: "If you want to, sure, but I'm not getting naked. No one gets to see my package but you."

She giggled and kissed me again.

We headed out to dinner after opening our gifts. We had a nice quiet table at the Ferry House. It was a romantic setting, with candlelight and soft music.

After our entrée had been served, I thought it was time that I broached the subject of moving with Elle.

"You only have about two months left to go."

Elle nodded: "I know. It's exciting, isn't it?"

"I was thinking that we should probably start making some preparations for the baby."

"You're right. Lisa is already getting her nursery ready and she's only 17 weeks along. I feel like I'm lagging behind."

"Their kid is definitely going to have OCD cuz he will get the genes from both sides."

Elle laughed at that and then said: "Well, they may be jumping the gun a little, but you're right. We should get started. What did you have in mind? You want to go crib shopping with me?"

She said that with a gleam in her eyes, knowing full well that I did not want to go shopping for baby furniture.

"You can go crib shopping with Cuddy or Gen. I was thinking bigger."

Her eyebrows went up: "How much bigger?"

"A new home, bigger?"

She sat back in her seat: "Wow. Yeah, OK, you beat me size-wise."

I gave her a minute to let it sink in and then went on. "You know it's going to be hard to add a baby to our current space. We can't let her sleep in your apartment while we stay at my place."

"No, that would be impractical. I guess we could put the crib up in our room for a while and put other things in my place, but yeah, you're right. It's time to move. So what did you have in mind?"

"I looked for a bigger apartment, but I couldn't find anything suitable. I mean, if we have to move, we should get what we want, and not settle for whatever is available. So I'm thinking we should get a house so that we can have the space that we need. We'll just need to get someone to take care of the yard for us."

Elle nodded: "OK. That's fine."

She thought for a minute and then said: "Hey, let's get one with a big bathtub for us. What do you say?"

I smirked: "I like the way your mind works. I'd like a big double shower along with the Jacuzzi tub. What else would you like?"

She tilted her head and thought for a moment. "I'd like a nice kitchen and a real dining room so we can have people over for dinner."

"OK, but not every week. How about a two-car garage so the cars will be warm in the winter and we won't have to dig them out?"

"Oh, I like that too. We also need a big enough living room for the piano."

I nodded: "I'd like the house to be on one level as much as possible."

"Yeah, it would be a bitch carrying the baby and laundry up and down stairs all the time. I think we need as least three bedrooms. One for us, one for the baby and one for you."

I smirked: "One for me? Is that for the nights that you get pissed at me and kick me out of bed? Instead of being banished to the couch, I'll have my own room to sleep in?"

A look of distress crossed her face; she obviously took my words seriously. "No, no. That's not what I meant. I just thought you might like to have your own space. You know, a guy's room where you can shut the door and watch monster truck rallies or porn without being disturbed by the women folk."

I narrowed my eyes at her: "You _know_ that I still watch porn?"

She laughed: "Of course, I know. Sometimes you forget to remove the movie from the DVD player."

I mentally kicked myself.

She reached across the table and took my hand. "Greg, I don't care that you watch porn. That's no big deal. You're a guy; you're going to look. I know you still check out Lisa's ass and don't even _try_ to deny it. I don't care that you look as long as I'm the only woman in your life."

I picked up her hand and bought it to my mouth. I kissed her palm and then laid her hand against my cheek. I could feel the cold metal of her ring against my skin. Her hands were starting to swell and soon she would have to take off my ring for the rest of her pregnancy. I loved seeing her wear it and hoped that one day she would accept another one from me.

"Brad can have Angelina. Those tattoos really turn me off. You are the only woman that I want. And one day I hope to convince you to marry me and be my little ball and chain."

She gave me a big smile. "I think that's the most romantic thing that you've ever said to me."

I smirked: "More romantic than the time I said '_let's go have a shower and_ _I'll let you wash the sand out of my ass crack'?"_

Elle laughed and then suddenly said: "Oh!" She closed her eyes and rubbed her belly for a moment.

My heart thudded and I focused on speaking calmly: "Are you OK?"

She opened her eyes and smiled at me: "Yeah, I guess the baby liked that line too. She kicked me really hard and now she's swimming around like crazy."

She sighed: "I can't wait until she's here and we can _see_ her. I want to see her little face. That last ultrasound was weeks ago. I bet she's changed a lot since then, right?"

I nodded: "She'll have grown a lot in the last 9 weeks and her features will be more refined now."

She sighed again: "I can't wait to see her."

An idea hatched in my mind. I glanced at my watch; it was after 9PM. There would be no one around except for the night janitor. I signaled the waiter for the check.

Elle looked a little worried as we walked into the darkened clinic. "Are you sure about this?"

I shrugged casually. "Yeah, nobody's around. It's cool."

We slipped into room six and I locked the door. I flipped the light on and shoved some towels into the crack under the door to block the light in case anyone happened to walk by.

"Hop up on the table, sweetheart."

She smirked: "Hop? With this belly? Yeah, right."

I grinned and slid the stepstool over to the exam table. "How's that?"

"Much better, thank you."

"It'd probably be easier if you just took your pants off."

"You just want me naked in the clinic. More embarrassment if we get caught."

"We're not getting caught. It's Valentine's Day. No one is around. Even Cuddy and Wilson are out doing something expensively romantic."

"Oooh Kay."

Elle stood on the step stool and shoved her pants down to her knees. Then she sat on the exam table and I bent down to remove her shoes and then pull her pants off. She laid back, pulling her shirt up to expose her belly.

I pulled the ultrasound machine over to the exam table and turned it on. I grabbed the bottle of gel and positioned it over her belly.

"Raise your blouse higher. I don't want to get gel on it."

Elle let out a big sigh: "I'll just take it off, OK?"

"Hey, don't be cranky on me. You wanted to do this too."

"I do want to see her; I just don't want to get caught half-naked in here."

"We're not getting caught. Trust me."

Elle removed her blouse. I wiggled my eyebrows and leered at the sight of my lovely lady, clad only in her bra, panties and socks. She rolled her eyes and tossed her blouse at me, which I dropped on the chair along with her pants.

I held up the squeeze bottle: "Ready? Cold gel."

I squirted her belly; she grimaced a little from the cold but then got used to it. Moving the wand over her belly, I angled the screen so we could both watch the show.

She was much bigger than the last time we peeked at her. At 27 weeks, she probably weighed around 2 pounds. I took my time looking her over and checking her out. Her heart, kidneys and everything else looked just as good as it had the last time.

Elle gasped when I zoomed in on the baby's face. "Oomigod! Look at her. Look at that little face, that cute little nose."

"Lucky for her, it looks like she has your nose and not mine."

It seemed like she was looking right at us. It was a perfect pose so I quickly snapped off a couple of pictures. Elle was transfixed by the image and tears pooled in her eyes. Then Rug-rat yawned and her thumb found its way into her little mouth.

"Oomigod, Greg! She's sucking her thumb. Look at that."

I playfully thumped Elle's belly. "Hey, cut that out. I don't want to be paying for braces 13 years from now."

Elle giggled but her eyes never left the screen. "She's lovely, isn't she?"

"Just like her mother. That's Mini-Elle."

She teased: "I thought her name was Rug-rat."

I shrugged and said: "Either one will do. You're in charge of her official name, but I get to pick the nicknames."

"Plural? Will there be more than one?"

"There already is, Rug-rat, Mini-Elle. I'm sure there'll be more after she pops out and I get to know her personality better. By the way, you never told me what her official name is going to be?"

"You can't tell anyone. Only we can know. It's bad luck to tell anyone the name before she's born."

"Really? Who told you that?"

"My mother. She said you have to keep the name a secret to protect the baby from evil spirits."

I almost laughed out loud, but Elle seemed completely serious. Considering her belief in Madame Gina's ability, it was not surprising that she believed in this superstition also.

"So, is it a secret from the baby daddy also?"

"No, you and I are the only ones who can know. I would like her name to be."

She whispered the full name.

"Just House? Not Kaplan-House?"

"No, I don't want to burden the baby with a hyphenated name. Her first name, of course, is after my mother. And I just like the middle name, obviously, and I thought the two names go well together."

Shyly, she said: "Do you like it?"

I looked back at the ultrasound screen and whispered her name out loud. It seemed to fit.

Turning back to Elle, I said: "It's perfect, sweetheart."

She warned: "You can't tell anyone, not even Jimmy."

I chuckled inwardly but promised to keep Rug-rat's real name a secret.

"Let's clean you up and go home."

I grabbed a towel and limped back to the table to wipe off her belly. When I got most of the goo off, Elle sat up, scootched to the end of the table and cupped my face with her hands.

"I know I was a little nervous, but thank you for bringing me here. It was really wonderful to see her."

She pulled me closer for a kiss. I stepped in between her knees and wrapped my arms around her. As I pressed her body against mine, I suddenly realized that the table was the perfect height. As her tongue explored my mouth, I took her hand and placed it over my crotch, so she could feel my growing desire. She smiled against my mouth as she ran her hand up and down my shaft. I slipped my fingers inside her panties and caressed her soft hair.

She moaned: "Oh, Greg. Let's go home. I don't want to start anything here that we can't finish."

I slipped my fingers deeper: "Who says we can't finish it here?"

"Here, in the clinic? You gotta be kidding!"

"Your mouth protests but your body responds."

Indeed, I could already feel the moisture as my fingers teased her petals apart.

I could sense some hesitation along with her growing desire: "Greg, we shouldn't. Someone could catch us."

Soothingly, I said: "No one is going to catch us, because no one is around. The clinic is closed. The door is locked; the light is blocked. This table is the perfect height. You said you missed making love face to face."

"Yes, but."

I grabbed her hips and pulled her to the edge of the table, pressing up against her core as best I could. Her belly was too big for me to get as close as I wanted.

"Come on, you know you want me."

She gave me a sultry smile: "I always want you, cowboy."

I reached behind her and unsnapped her bra. "Let's get this off and let the girls breathe."

I pulled it off and tossed it aside, grinning at those gorgeous breasts. I cupped one in each hand.

Elle pouted: "How come I'm almost naked and you're completely clothed? That's not fair."

"Help me even the score, then."

She unbuckled my belt, unzipped my pants and pushed them down below my hips so that Mt Gregory could come out and play.

I said teasingly: "Better?"

She commanded: "Take your shirt off."

I complied and she smiled: "That's better."

She lifted her ass so that I could slip her panties off. Then I moved between her legs and rubbed my cock against her core.

"Greg, my big belly is still in the way. I don't think this is going to work."

"Oh yes, it will."

I pulled my pants up enough to limp over and grab the rolling stool. I sat down long enough to remove my shoes, pants and boxers. Clad only in my socks, I went into the supply closet and found a pillow. I motioned Elle to lay back and I placed the pillow under her head.

"Comfy?"

She nodded.

I quickly swung the stirrups into place, pulled her hips down to the edge of the table and positioned her feet into the stirrups.

She shrieked: "Greg! What are you doing?"

"Shhh, not so loud. Trust me, you'll like it."

I grabbed the rolling stool and pushed it over. I sat down and positioned myself between her spread legs. My fingers delicately stroked her inner thighs until I reached her core.

"Ready for your internal exam, Ms. Kaplan?"

She sighed: "Yes, Doctor. I'm ready."

"Try not to scream as loud as you usually do. There is always the possibility that the janitor is around."

I snickered as I dove in for dessert. My tongue caressed her folds and circled her nub. Elle let out a soft moan as my tongue probed inside of her. I lapped her slit from top to bottom a few times and then focused on her sensitive button. Tongue flattened, I rubbed against it, varying the pressure until she couldn't take it any more.

"Oh, Greg, come inside. Fuck me, cowboy."

I stood up and rubbed the head of my cock against her wet entrance. "You feel very hot. Shall I take your temperature with my thermometer now?"

"OH GAWD, yes, please. Insert the thermometer now."

I pushed in slowly. Elle's face contorted with pleasure and it was nice to be able to see her expressions again.

I started pumping slowly and rhythmically. "Open your eyes, sweetheart. Look at me."

When our eyes met, I felt another gush of moisture flow over my cock. It was a real turn-on to be able to look in each other's eyes again as we fucked.

Elle propped herself up on her elbows and I leaned down for a kiss. We made contact over her big belly and I kissed her deeply as I continued to pump.

Elle moaned: "OH, this is amazing. I can kiss you again while we screw."

"We need one of these tables at home."

She laughed: "I can't believe I'm in the stirrups and getting a ride from my cowboy. I'll never be able to look at an exam table with a straight face again."

I kissed her again and then straightened up, grabbing her hips for better thrusting action.

"Play with those big tits for me."

She gave me a sultry smile as she stroked her breasts and pinched her nipples for me. Watching her put me dangerously close to the edge and I wanted to take her with me. As I licked my thumb, her smile grew even bigger; she knew what was coming next.

I put my thumb on her clit and massaged her engorged button. Elle moaned and thrust against me. I felt a fresh flood of moisture; then her walls tightened and she fell over the edge with just a soft cry. I tried to ride out her orgasm before reaching mine, but I came after only 4 or 5 more deep stabs. I softly moaned her name and continued to pump inside of her until I was completely spent. I leaned over her, my weight supported on my hands, until I was able to catch my breath.

She reached up and gave me a quick kiss. Her breath still hitching, she said: "That was incredible. This was the best Valentine's Day ever."

I buried my face between her breasts and just moaned in agreement.

We kissed for a few minutes and then I stepped back from the table. Elle eased herself into a sitting position and I helped her get her feet out of the stirrups. Then I burst out laughing: "Do you realize that all either of us is wearing is our socks?"

She looked down at my feet and back at hers and then started laughing too. "Very sexy look, isn't it?"

"I don't know about sexy, but it's more comfortable while standing on a cold tile floor. C'mon. Let's get dressed and go home."

After we donned our clothes, I put the ultrasound machine back where it belonged, tucked Rug-rat's photos in my jacket pocket and we snuck out. The clinic was still dark and there was no sign of anyone, including the janitor. Back in the car, we both chuckled at our little adventure.

It had started snowing again. I put on the oldies station and we listened to Sinatra and Martin as I drove slowly home. Happily, my usual parking spot was vacant so we didn't have to walk too far to get to our door.

It was already past 11PM, so we got ready for bed right away. As we snuggled in the darkness, I suddenly remembered a snatch of our earlier conversation.

"Did you really mean it when you said you wanted me to have my own room?"

She laughed: "Sure, why not?"

I nuzzled the top of her head: "It's a nice thought, but what about you? Wouldn't you like some space of your own? Sometimes you still like to go across the hall and be alone."

She played with my chest hair. "Yeah, that's true. Sometimes I like to be alone too. I can always put up a Do Not Disturb sign on the bathroom door while I have a nice soak in our Jacuzzi tub. I just thought you would like your own man cave, so that you could be alone sometimes, you know, when the estrogen level in the house gets to be too much for you."

My heart swelled with emotion. She wanted me to be happy and was doing her best to make me comfortable with the changes that were happening in our lives.

I gently put my mouth over hers and kissed her with as much love and tenderness as I could. My tongue slipped past her lips and began a slow sensual dance with hers. Elle's fingers laced through my hair while I pressed my body as closely as possible against hers.

I murmured: "Have I told you lately that I love you?"

I felt her smile against my mouth. "Every time you kiss me, or touch me or just look at me. I know."


	61. Chapter 61

**_HOUSE_**

A few days later, I got an e-mail from Bonnie with 3 attachments. Two of the houses looked interesting so we set up a meet for the next morning. The living room of the first house turned out to be too small for our needs, and the kitchen was in definite need of an upgrade so I passed on that one.

As Bonnie and I drove up to the second house, she said: "I think you're really going to like this one. It's actually a little bigger than what you requested. It has 4 bedrooms instead of 3 and a 3-car garage. Most of the house is on one level, but there is a finished basement too. The owners used it as a party room. It has a wet bar and there is a half bath downstairs too."

"Is the laundry in the basement?"

"No, that's upstairs too. The basement just has that one large room and the half bath. Everything else is on the top level."

That was good. I figured that I wouldn't have to make a lot of trips up and down stairs to visit that room. If the house had 4 bedrooms and Elle wanted one of them to be mine, perhaps she would like the downstairs space as her own. I'd think about that as I toured the rest of the house.

We parked in the circular driveway and Bonnie used her secret realtor decoder machine to unlock the house. As we walked towards the door, Bonnie said: "The husband was transferred to Chicago, so the owners are eager to sell this place. They are asking $550,000, but I think you can get them to come down since they would like a quick sale."

I stowed that information away for future reference. The front door opened right into the living room. There was a large picture window providing a lot of sunlight and the floors were bamboo. The room was huge; it could definitely accommodate the piano, bookcases and all the other furniture. It opened into the dining room with a small section of wall in between that housed a two-sided gas fireplace. The dining room was long enough to easily fit a table for eight. It had two sets of sliding glass doors that overlooked the wood deck and the back yard. A couple of steps through an open doorway brought you into the kitchen. Although the house was 30 years old, the kitchen had been recently upgraded. There was a five burner flat top stove, built-in microwave, dishwasher and a large stainless steel refrigerator. The cabinets were white with opaque glass door fronts. The walls had been painted a summery yellow and there was a large picture window that looked out over the back yard. A small breakfast table for two was parked in front of the window.

Bonnie broke the silence: "You think Elle would like this kitchen?"

I really thought she would, but I grudgingly said: "She might. Let's see the master bedroom suite."

She led me back through the living room, down a bookshelf-lined hallway to the master suite. I gauged the size of the room; it seemed large enough for our king-sized bed and all the other furniture. There was a huge walk-in closet that I knew would thrill Elle. It had more than enough space for all of our clothes. The master bath just about cinched it for me. There was a huge Jacuzzi tub, big enough for two of us, a large glass enclosed shower and two sinks.

Bonnie walked me back through the living room to the other side of the house. There were three bedrooms and one large bathroom on that side. She led me to the back bedroom first.

"I thought this might be a nice room for the baby."

It was a decent size room, not as big as the master bedroom, but still a good size. The room was situated in the back corner of the house and had two sets of windows that overlooked the back yard. It was sunny and bright and I suddenly had a vision of the crib positioned against the wall between the two windows.

Bonnie went on: "The house is wired with an intercom system. So I know it seems like this room would be far away from yours but with the intercom, you'll be able to hear the baby back in your bedroom, the living room or the kitchen."

I nodded: "Let's see the rest of the house."

The next bedroom was slightly smaller than the baby's room. I had to laugh at myself for already calling it the baby's room. This house looked really good, definitely the best I had seen so far, and unless there was some huge flaw with it, I wanted to show it to Elle right away.

Next to that bedroom was a full bath with double sinks and a standard size tub. On the other side of the bathroom was the last bedroom.

As Bonnie opened the door, she said: "Now this room is not as big as the other rooms. The husband used this room for his office."

The floors were dark wood planks and the walls were painted mocha brown. There was a long, low built-in bookcase that Bonnie explained had housed the guy's electronic equipment. Holes in the walls indicated where the TV had hung. Another wall was lined with floor-to-ceiling bookcases. I sucked in a deep breath. There was a faint lingering odor of cigar smoke. When I mentioned it to Bonnie, she said that the husband used to smoke cigars in here and assured me that this room had its own ventilation system.

Even without furniture, I immediately felt at home in this room. It felt like a man's room. I started picturing exactly where I would park the couch and put up the poker table. I could put all my medical books in here and set up a TV with a DVD player and my video games. There were plenty of bookcases for my movie collection. I could hold my poker games in here and continue to smoke cigars without disturbing the rest of my household.

It was almost noon and I needed to get to work, so Bonnie quickly showed me the rest of the house. The three-car garage was easily large enough for both of our cars and my motorcycle with space left over. The laundry room was right off the garage and came equipped with an almost new front-loading washer and large capacity dryer. There was even a small sink and a pull-down ironing board.

I put off seeing the basement until we returned with Elle. We arranged to meet here at the house at 5PM and Bonnie dropped me off at my apartment. I grabbed my things and headed off to work.

I had just entered my office when Wilson appeared.

"It's lunch time and you're just getting in? That's late, even for you."

I shrugged out of my coat: "Had an appointment."

He frowned: "What type of appointment?"

I pulled out my cell phone and sat down at my desk. "I'll tell you while you're buying me lunch. Hold on a sec."

I dialed Elle's number. She answered on the second ring.

In a soft voice, she said: "Hey."

As usual, I left out the customary pleasantries. "Can you meet me in my office at 4:30?"

"I'm off at 4:30, so I can be there right after that. What's up?"

"It's a surprise. Just get here as soon as you can, OK?"

"You're not going to tell me? You're going to leave me wondering about this surprise for the rest of the day?"

"Yup. See you at 4:30."

I closed the phone and chuckled, knowing that it would drive her nuts all afternoon wondering what the surprise was.

Wilson interrupted my thoughts: "That's a evil grin on your face. Are you torturing Elle? It's not nice to do that to your pregnant girlfriend."

"Well, if you buy me lunch, I'll tell you about it and YOU won't be wondering about it all afternoon."

As usual, Wilson was an easy mark for lunch. I grabbed a Reuben and some fries while he got a tuna salad sandwich and some chips. Once we were seated, I told him what I had been doing.

He almost spit out his Coke: "Bonnie? My ex, Bonnie, has been helping you look for a house? She's a terrible realtor."

"Seems she is number three in her office now."

"What, out of four?"

"She claims there are 27 realtors in her office."

His eyes grew wider: "And SHE'S number three? Wow, who would have thought?"

I nodded in agreement as I shoved some fries into my mouth.

He took another bite of his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully. "So she found you a house?"

I pulled the flyer out of my pocket and showed him.

He took a minute to read it and then looked up at me: "Wow. I can't believe you are thinking of buying this. It looks like a great place. What did that basement room look like? Can you make that into a game room or something?"

"We actually didn't go downstairs, ran out of time. I figured I'd see that with Elle, but the rest of the house looked good. I've seen 8 or 9 now, and this is definitely the best of the bunch."

"If the room is big enough, you could put a pool table down there."

"Yeah, maybe. I dunno. There's a small bedroom that used to be the guy's office. I was thinking maybe I'd commandeer that room. It has a separate ventilation system that would suck our cigar smoke outside and not bother the rest of the house. It's big enough for the poker table, couch and TV."

He nodded: "Well, that sounds good and then you wouldn't have to deal with the stairs. What will you do with the basement room?"

I shrugged: "We'll get to that. I wanna see if Elle even likes the place first."

He read over the flyer again: "Three-car garage? Nice in the winter time."

"Yup."

He looked up at me: "Jacuzzi tub in the Master bath?"

I nodded: "That's nice anytime."

_**ELLE**_

I spent the rest of the afternoon wondering about Greg's surprise. It was difficult to focus on my work, but by 4:15, I was caught up on my orders and decided to sneak out a little early. I closed up the satellite office, ran by my locker to get my coat and purse and headed down to Greg's office.

He was in the conference room surrounding by his team and a huge stack of charts. I watched in fascination as Cameron would open a file, place it in front of Greg and point to where he had to sign. Once Greg signed it, Chase would whisk it away and hand it off to Foreman who placed it in one of four growing stacks. The efficiency of his team caused Cameron's pile to shrink very quickly. I could see that they would be finished shortly, so I turned to walk into Greg's office to wait, but Chase looked up and saw me.

"Hey, Elle. Nice to see you. How're you doing?"

I smiled politely at him: "I'm good, thanks."

Greg glanced up at me and held up a finger. "Almost done." Then he turned to Chase and snarled: "Focus. Let's get finished. I need to get out of here."

Chase went back to his assigned task, but kept talking to me. "You look great, Elle. How far along are you now?"

"I'm 28 weeks."

"Fantastic. Only 3 more months to go."

"Well, two actually. My doctor wants to take the baby early because of the APS."

Chase glanced up at me, but Greg elbowed him to keep him on task. Chase grabbed the signed chart and slid it over to Foreman who glanced at it and then placed it on the far right stack. I wondered what was the significance of the different stacks.

Chase tried to continue a conversation with me as he worked. "Well, taking the baby early makes sense, actually, with your condition. Have you been feeling alright?"

"I feel huge, but otherwise I feel good. I'm hungry all the time; this girl's got quite an appetite."

Three heads spun around and it was Cameron who asked: "It's a girl?"

A dark cloud passed over Greg's face as he grabbed for another chart. Oops, maybe I wasn't supposed to say anything to the kids, but it was too late now. "According to the ultrasound, it seems to be a girl. If it's a boy, he's playing hide the salami really well."

My statement caused Chase to grin and even Foreman let out an appreciative snort at my small attempt at humor. Cameron gave her congratulations although she addressed it more to Greg than to me. He just wiggled his fingers at her to indicate that he wanted her to pass him the last few charts.

He finished just a few minutes later. Standing up, he said: "Take those down to records and get them out of my sight."

He tilted his head towards his office and I followed him in there. Once the door was shut and we had some semblance of privacy, I said: "Did I say too much?"

He shook his head as he tossed his things into his backpack. "Naw. It's fine. I just don't talk about my personal life with them."

His back to the conference room, he rubbed my belly and leaned down for a kiss. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Chase watching us. He was smiling. Then he flashed me a thumb's-up, grabbed a stack of charts and left the room.

We took my car but he wouldn't let me drive. We drove through Princeton for about 10 minutes and then he told me to close my eyes. I grumbled, but complied. After another 2 or 3 minutes, the car rolled to a stop and Greg told me to open my eyes. I did and looked around in surprise. We were parked in front of a brick ranch home.

I looked back at Greg and asked: "Where are we?"

"Our new home, if you like it."

I gasped: "You're kidding."

He shook his head. "I've looked at a bunch of them and this is the best so far. Let's go in and see if you like it."

We got out of the car and walked to the front door. A short brunette, nervously playing with her pearls, was waiting for us.

She stuck her hand out: "Bonnie Wilson. You must be Elle. I'm so happy to finally meet you."

I took her hand: "It's nice to meet you too. Wilson? Are you, by any chance?"

She answered before I could finish the question: "I'm James' second wife. We're still on good terms. Sometimes he dog-sits Hector for me."

Greg rolled his eyes: "He tells you he dog-sits Hector, AKA Destroyer, but in reality, he gets me to do it."

"House, it was just that one time."

"One time too many. What kind of mutant dog chews vinyl?"

Obviously these two went way back. I interrupted quickly before things got too heated. "Can we go inside? It's cold out here."

Bonnie sniffed: "Of course. Let me get the door."

They let me walk in first and I took in my first view. The door opened right into the living room. It had a huge picture window and it seemed large enough for our needs. I mentally started arranging the furniture.

Greg obviously wanted a private conversation because he started speaking to me in French: _"What do you think so far?"_

"_I was thinking we could put the couch in front of the window facing the fireplace and hang one of those plasma TV's on the wall above it. The piano could go in that corner."_

The left side of his mouth rose in a small smile.

I walked over and took a look at the fireplace and then walked around the wall into the dining room. It was a nice size; I could easily have a table for eight in that room. Two sets of sliding glasses doors opened from the dining room out onto a wood deck.

I turned back to Greg: _"I like how the fireplace works for both rooms and I like the size of the dining room. And the deck looks great. We could have some nice dinner parties here."_

He smirked and pointed to the left: _"Check out the kitchen."_

The kitchen was lovely, bright and airy with lots of cabinets and counter space. There was a new stainless-steel refrigerator, a five-burner flat top stove and a dishwasher.

Greg came up behind me and asked softly: _"Do you like it?"_

I nodded: _"Yes, it's great. Where's our room?"_

He took my hand: _"Come on."_

We walked down a short hallway. I inwardly squealed with delight at the built-in bookcases lining the passage. The master bedroom was large and had a huge walk-in closet. My mouth hung open; there was plenty of space for all of our clothes.

Greg chuckled softly in my ear: "_I knew you'd like this closet. Come see the bathroom."_

I actually let out a squeal when I saw the bathroom. It was gorgeous. It had everything we wanted, a huge Jacuzzi tub and a big shower.

I looked up at Greg: _"I'm liking this so far."_

He nodded: _"Let's go see the rest."_

We walked through the living room to the other side of the house. The back bedroom was large and bright with two big windows displaying a view of the backyard. As I looked around the room, the baby gave me a big kick.

I rubbed my belly and grinned at Greg: _"This is her room."_

He put his hand on my belly and nodded in agreement.

My excitement was growing. This house seemed perfect so far. Greg showed me another bedroom and the bathroom.

He paused dramatically before the last bedroom's door: _"Wait until you see this one."_

Flinging the door open, he ushered me in. I took two steps in and stopped. My mouth dropped open as I took in the room.

He muttered in my ear: _"What do you think?"_

I whispered excitedly: _"It's your room. It's your man cave."_

A big grin flashed across his face for just an instant. _"This room has a separate ventilation system. I could smoke cigars in here and not bother the rest of the house."_

That room was perfect for Greg. I was getting more and more excited about the house. We continued with the tour, seeing a decent sized laundry room and a huge three-car garage. We took a walk out back onto the deck and checked out the size of the backyard.

Greg said: _"There's one more room to see. I didn't have time to go down there earlier, but there's a finished basement and half bath downstairs."_

We headed slowly down the stairs. It wasn't a long staircase, but I could see that Greg would have some difficulty climbing up. Fortunately there was nothing important down here. Even the furnace was on the upper level. Still it was a decent sized room and it never hurt to have some extra space.

Greg wrapped his arm around me and said: _"I thought this could be your room, where you could escape to when you want some time alone."_

"_This room is way bigger than anything I need."_

He shrugged: _"Well, it's here for whatever purpose."_

He leaned down and gave me a gentle kiss. "_So what do you think? Do you like it? Should we put an offer on it or do you want to keep looking?"_

I shook my head: _"I don't see the need to keep looking. I like this house. What do you think? You've seen some others."_

"_This is the best one by far. It has the most space for the price and it's right in Princeton. They're asking $550,000 for it but Bonnie said the owners_ _have already relocated and might take less for a quick sale."_

"_I wonder if they would take a lot less for a cash sale."_

He frowned: _"I don't have that much available cash."_

I smiled: _"Between us, we do."_

Actually I had more than the sale price myself, but I knew Greg would not like it if I bought the place outright all by myself. He was an alpha male and needed to be the provider, at least partially. He could put up whatever cash he had and I could fill in the rest.

I named a figure and he nodded. _"Come on. Let's tell Bonnie and have her dangle the bait and see if they bite."_

We walked back upstairs. Bonnie was waiting in the living room. She put on a bright smile as soon as she saw us. "So what do you think? Isn't it a lovely home?"

I nodded: "It's quite nice. What's their asking price?"

"$550,000, but I think they'll come down. The husband's job transferred him to Chicago and they had to leave right away. They seem anxious for a quick sale."

"We want to make an offer. $450,000."

She frowned: "Well, that may be a bit low. I'm not sure that they will take it seriously."

"Tell them that it's cash. They won't have to wait while we get a mortgage approved."

Bonnie gulped: "Cash?"

Greg nodded: "Cash."

To her credit, Bonnie recovered quickly. "Great. I have the papers right here in my briefcase. Let me write up the offer and I'll fax it to them as soon as I get back to the office. I'll need a check for a good-faith deposit."

Greg pulled his checkbook out of his jacket pocket: "How much?"

Bonnie nodded: "Ten percent of the price is usual."

Bonnie filled out the papers and we both signed them. Greg wrote a check for $45,000 without batting an eye. We shook hands in the driveway, Bonnie promising to call as soon as she heard from the owners. Since it was Thursday, I called our favorite Thai restaurant and phoned in our order. We swung by and picked it up on the way home. As usual, we ate on the couch in front of the TV.

During a commercial, Greg asked: "If we move into this big fancy house, are we still gonna eat in front of the TV or will we have to eat in the dining room all the time?"

I faked a shiver: "Eat without Sponge Bob and Scooby-Doo? Don't be ridiculous."

After dinner, Greg flicked off the TV and I knew we were in for a serious discussion.

"Elle, I've got about $175,000 that I can access right away. To get more, I'd need to sell some stocks, but in this market, I'd take a loss on them."

"Greg, I've got my settlement money. I don't think you need to sell any stock. You put in what you have and I'll put in the rest."

He frowned: "You'll be putting in a lot more than I will."

"It doesn't have to be 50-50, does it?"

In a halting voice, he replied: "I guess not. It's just, I wanted to buy it for you."

I wrapped my arms around his neck. "I know that. Is it OK if we buy it together, you know like a partnership?"

He quipped: "Well, that's almost like a marriage."

Greg pulled me closer and buried his face in my neck. I held him and stroked his hair. I knew he needed a few minutes to assimilate all of this.

We sat like that for a while. Finally he rubbed his scruffy cheek against mine and said: "You know they are not going to accept our initial offer. They're going to try and see if they can get more money out of us."

"I know, but you'll haggle back and get us a good price. We low-balled it so that we have some wiggle room."

"You want me to do the negotiating?"

"Of course. I know you'll get us the best price."

His eyes bored into mine: You really do have faith in me, don't you?

I smiled: "I told you that a long time ago."

Greg texted me at 3:00 the next day. After a few offers and counter-offers, he got them to settle for $480,000. We needed to go over to Bonnie's office after work and sign all the papers. I was thrilled; I was sure that we could get it for under $500,000 and Greg had pulled it off.

Greg wanted to take my car again, so I climbed in the passenger seat and let him drive. I briefly wondered about this new behavior, but then decided that I didn't care. My belly was getting so big that it was almost touching the steering wheel, so if he wanted to drive, that was actually better for me.

After signing the papers and arranging for a home inspection, we headed over to the Alchemist and Barrister to have dinner with Lisa and Jimmy. They oohed and ahhed over the flyer for the house and congratulated us on our new purchase. Lisa and I started gabbing about decorating and the guys talked about Greg's plans for 'his' room. After a yummy piece of triple chocolate cake, we parted ways and headed for home.

I kicked off my shoes as soon as we got home. My feet were swelling a lot now and it was a relief to get them off. We collapsed on the couch and clicked on the TV. Greg flipped through the channels until he found an old Star Trek episode, 'Wolf in the Fold'. He massaged my tired feet for me as we watched Scotty being accused of some bizarre murders. Naturally by the end of the episode, he was exonerated and the bad guys blasted out into deep space. We turned off the TV at that point and went to bed.

As we snuggled in bed, I said: "I knew you'd keep the price under $500,000. You did a great job."

"Humph, I don't need praise, but a reward would be nice."

Something hard poked against my thigh.

I grinned in the darkness: "One reward, coming right up."

I kissed my way down his body. When I reached a certain body part, I concentrated all my efforts there until he received his reward. He moaned loudly in appreciation and kissed the top of my head as he recovered. Then he put his hands under my arms and tugged me back up the bed, until my head was settled on the pillow.

"Lay back, sweetheart. You need a reward too."

I hadn't done the negotiating, but who was I to turn down a reward?

The following Tuesday, I was scheduled for my OB appointment right after work. I was glad that I was seeing Kelly today. I'd had a couple of dizzy spells these last 2 days and I wanted to ask her about them. They had been very minor, so I didn't want to worry Greg with it.

The cardiac floor was hopping today. Wintertime was always busy in the hospital and this year was no different. I kept running back and forth between my little satellite office and the ICU and the cardiac step-down unit, which were my assigned areas. Due to the cold weather, the heat was running full blast and my little office was stifling hot, so I was glad not to spend too much time in there. Around 11AM, I had solved all the current problems so I settled into my desk to attack the pile of accumulating orders that were waiting for me. The office was very warm and I took off my white coat. I had left my bottle of water somewhere and I needed to get another one, but I decided to just get through this stack of orders first and then I would go for an early lunch and get another bottle.

I had gotten through about half the stack when a sudden wave of dizziness hit. It was worse than the previous attacks had been. I really felt like I was going to pass out. I put my head down on my desk and waited for the sensation to pass.

I don't know how long I sat like that, but I still didn't feel better when I heard a voice calling my name. It was Gloria, the respiratory therapist, whose office was right next to mine.

"Elle, what's wrong? Are you OK?"

I managed to mumble: "No, I don't feel well. I feel dizzy."

She yelled: "Carrie! Get a blood pressure cuff and come over here."

Next thing I knew one of the nurses was taking my blood pressure. I heard her exclaim: "70 over 40. Crap!"

She called to another nurse: "Deb! Bring me the glucometer."

I felt a slight pinch as they quickly checked my blood sugar. I heard someone say: "It's 100, so she's not hypoglycemic. Let's lay her down and get a doctor."

They gently guided me to the floor and positioned me on my left side, raising my feet slightly with the telephone book. I could hear Gloria calling for a doctor, but I kept my eyes closed. I felt dizzier with them open.

A cool cloth was pressed to the back of my neck and that felt really good. After a moment, I heard Gloria say: "Make some room. I've got a doctor here."

I heard a male voice say: "What happened?" It sounded somewhat familiar, but I was still in a bit of a fog.

Gloria explained: "I just passed by her office and she had her head on the desk. Said she didn't feel well, so we took her BP, which was 70/40 and her blood sugar was 100. So we laid her down and went looking for a doctor."

I felt a strong hand on my wrist and knew he was checking my pulse. "Take her BP again and for God's sake, page Dr. House STAT."

I managed to open my eyes and saw a very worried expression on Dr. Chase's face.

_**CHASE**_

It had been a boring morning. I did the crossword puzzle until House came in and then he shooed us out to look for a new case. Cameron & Foreman took the ER and I headed up to ICU. I had just gotten off the elevator when a frantic-looking respiratory therapist grabbed my arm and said that someone had fainted. I hurried down the hall with her. Two nurses were bending over the recumbent person and I knelt down to take her pulse. It was just then that I got a look at her face and realized that it was Elle. I asked what happened and I got a quick summary. Elle's pulse was a little thready, but the longer I kept my fingers on her wrist; the stronger it seemed to get. I had the nurse take her BP again and told someone to page House STAT.

Her second BP was a little better; it was 90/60. Her eyes were open although she hadn't said anything yet.

"Elle, how do you feel?"

"Embarrassed."

I smiled to try to reassure her: "Don't be. Tell me what happened. Did you black out completely?"

"No, I was just dizzy. It was hot in here, and I'd left my water bottle somewhere. I was going to get another, but I wanted to try to get through some of my work first. But I got really dizzy and had to put my head down on the desk and then Gloria found me."

"Your pressure was 70/40 when they found you. That's why you were so dizzy. Have you had any other bouts of dizziness?"

She held up 2 fingers. "But they were very minor, just a little room-spin and it was over. Nothing like this."

"Who's your OB? We should page her."

"Kelly Alderman. I'm seeing her this afternoon right after work."

"I think you'll be seeing her sooner than that."

I looked over my shoulder at the hovering nurses. "Did you page Dr. House?"

The blonde nodded: "But he didn't answer."

I sighed inwardly; that was typical of House. I pulled out my cell phone and hit the speed dial for his office.

He actually answered: "This had better be good. I'm just leaving for lunch and Wilson's buying."

"Isn't he always? And it's not good. Didn't you get a page to ICU? That was for your girlfriend; she almost passed out. BP of 70/40 when they found her slumped over her desk. Think you should get up here."

There was a pause and then he said in a grim tone: "Have someone page Alderman. I'm on my way. Gimme details now."

_**HOUSE**_

Chase filled me in on all the details as I hurried to the elevator with Wilson on my heels. I got to Elle's office in record time for a cripple and found her surrounded by several people.

I growled: "Move. Doctor here."

The women scattered; Chase remained on his knees next to Elle. He said: "BP's back up to 90/60."

I sank down on the floor next to her. "Hey, if you needed a nap, couldn't you find a better place to lay down?"

"Wasn't my idea."

I took on a more serious tone: "Did you lose consciousness at all, even for a second?"

"No, I'm sure of it. I got really dizzy and thought if I put my head down, I'd feel better. I did that for a couple of minutes and it didn't help. Then Gloria found me and got the nurses. They took my BP, laid me down and got Chase."

Her memory of the events seemed to correlate with the version that I had already heard, so I believed that she had remained conscious all this time.

"Is this the first time this has happened?"

She looked sheepish: "It's the first time it was this bad. I had 2 teeny bouts of dizziness over the last couple of days. I didn't think it was a big deal and was going to mention it to Kelly when I saw her today."

There were other people around so I tried to keep my temper in check. There wasn't any point in speaking French since Chase was here and he'd understand everything I was saying anyway. I gently chided her: "You should have told me. It's probably nothing but with your underlying condition, we need to check everything out."

She looked close to tears: "I'm sorry."

Glancing over my shoulder, I barked at one of the hovering nurses to bring a wheelchair and a bottle of water.

"Chase, take her BP again."

It was 100/70 this time.

"Wanna try to sit up?"

Elle nodded.

"Slowly."

Chase and I guided her to a sitting position, propped up against the wall.

"How's that? Any dizziness or nausea?"

"Nope. Seem OK at the moment."

The nurse returned with the wheelchair and the bottle of water. She passed the bottle to Chase who popped the top and handed it to Elle. "Sip it slowly. Let us know if you feel any nausea."

Elle took a couple of sips, which seemed to be going down well. My phone rang and I glanced at the number; it was Alderman. I gave her the short version and she said if Elle could be moved, to bring her down to the office.

I hung up the phone and asked Elle: "Ready for a ride?"

She nodded.

I managed to pull myself to a standing position without looking like too big of an idiot. I motioned to Wilson to move into the office. "She's going to need a hand."

Wilson took one arm and Chase the other and between them, they got Elle to her feet. The respiratory therapist held the wheelchair steady as they eased Elle into it. Chase took her BP again once she was settled in the chair and it was holding at 105/70.

Elle looked up at the R.T. and said: "Thanks, Gloria. Could you please call Kirby, my boss, at extension 4655 and tell him what happened. He'll need to get someone up here to cover for me. He's not going to be happy."

I barked: "Tough shit. Your health comes first. Let's go."

Chase spun the wheelchair around and we headed for the elevator.

We barged into Alderman's office and her nurse directed us immediately into an exam room. Elle still looked a little pale so Chase took her BP again while she was still sitting in the wheelchair. It was 104/72. We helped her stand up and took it again. Her standing BP was a little lower, 98/66, and I didn't like the drop. We were just helping Elle up on the exam table when Alderman burst into the room.

Her eyes registered the presence of Wilson and Chase and then she addressed Elle: "Tell me what happened."

Elle explained what happened up to the part where the R.T. found her and then Chase took up the narrative. He gave a quick, but detailed summary and did not fail to mention every BP that had been taken.

Alderman thanked him and then said: "I need to do an exam; perhaps you guys could step out."

I growled at Chase, but my bark didn't have its usual bite: "You've done your good deed for the day; now get back to your real job and find a patient."

He nodded, told Elle that he hoped she felt better and headed for the door. Elle thanked him as he walked away.

Wilson gave her a kiss on the cheek and said he'd wait outside in case we needed anything. Elle asked him to call Lisa, explain what happened and ask her to try to run interference with Kirby for her.

I blew up: "Stop worrying about your damn job! You need to focus on yourself and the baby."

Alderman fumed: "House, stop yelling or I'll toss you out too. Dr. Wilson, if you would please step out so I can get on with this?"

Wilson nodded and left the room, closing the door behind him.

I managed to keep my mouth shut while Alderman examined Elle. Rug-rag's heartbeat was still strong so it seemed that this little episode didn't have any effect on her.

When the exam was over, Alderman motioned Elle to sit up. "You're 29 weeks now. I'm taking the baby at 36 weeks, so you only have 7 weeks to go. You're retaining fluid, your feet and hands are swelling and you are having dizzy spells from low blood pressure. You don't need to go on bed rest, yet, but."

Elle's mouth dropped at the mention of bed rest, but she didn't say anything.

Alderman continued: "But you need to slow down. You're working too hard and it's taking its toll on you physically. I don't want you working more than 4 hours a day and you need to stay off your feet as much as possible. Otherwise these symptoms could get worse. If your blood pressure drops too low, it will affect the blood flow to the baby. She won't get enough oxygen and I don't have to tell you what that means. Drink lots of water to stay hydrated and stay off your feet. I want to start seeing you every week now and if you have any more symptoms, I want you to call me immediately. I gave you my cell phone number for a reason and I don't give it out to every patient."

Elle look glum as she nodded in response.

Alderman gentled her tone a bit: "I'll give you a note for your boss. You have a medical reason for this and he will have to deal with it. Don't worry about your job. Let's get you through the next 7 weeks, OK?"

Elle nodded.

"I'm going to write that note and I'll be right back. I want you to take the rest of the week off and not come back to work until Monday."

Once she had left the room, I growled at Elle: "Why didn't you tell me about the dizzy spells?"

"I didn't want to worry you and they were so minor. Just a momentary room-spin and then it was over. I didn't think it was such a big deal and was going to tell Kelly about it today."

"You should have told me. I could have been monitoring your blood pressure and maybe this episode could have been prevented."

In a small voice, Elle said: "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

I opened my mouth to say something else, but Alderman walked back in and I didn't want to discuss it in front of her. She gave Elle her note and reminded her to take the rest of the week off and get lots of rest. Elle agreed and we stepped out of her office.

Wilson was waiting in the hall with the wheelchair and a bottle of water. "Your chariot and driver await you, madam."

Elle cracked a small smile and climbed in. She accepted the bottle of water and started drinking.

As we headed towards the elevator, Wilson asked: "Where to?"

I growled: "To get her coat and purse and then I'm taking her home."

Elle piped up: "Greg, I need to give this note to my boss and then we can go home."

"I'll give it to him."

"No. I need to do it. I need to tell him in person so he is not so pissed like he was the last time. I'll stay in the wheelchair; I won't walk around and I promise to leave right after that, OK?"

"Alright, fine. But we're leaving for home right afterwards and you are not driving. I don't want you having a dizzy spell and getting into an accident."

Elle nodded: "I'm going to see if Kirby is in his office."

Using her cell phone, she dialed his extension. After a brief conversation, she closed the phone. "It seems he's in Cuddy's office. Jimmy, did you call Lisa and tell her what's going on?"

He nodded: "I did and she said she would do whatever she could, but it is his department and she may not be able to override him."

Elle let out a deep breath: "Well, I guess that's where I need to go. To the Dean's office, James!"

_**Elle **_

Greg was pissed that I hadn't told him about the dizzy spells and I was sure that I hadn't heard the last of it. He was just waiting until we were alone to discuss it. I was glad of that; it was sure to be an unpleasant conversation and I didn't think I wanted any witnesses.

We barged past the secretary straight into Lisa's office. Kirby rose out of his seat when we entered. Before I had a chance to say anything, he started off: "I found someone to cover your position for the rest of the day. When will you be able to return to work?"

Greg snarled: "Your concern for her health is just so overwhelming. It's nice the way you ask how she's feeling."

With any luck, Greg would take some of his anger at me and direct it towards Kirby, although that probably wouldn't help me in the long run. I meekly handed Kirby the letter from Dr Alderman. "I need to take the rest of the week off. I can come back on Monday, but I can't work more than 4 hours a day for the rest of my pregnancy."

Kirby shook his head: "That won't do. I don't have anyone who can fill in for that half-time spot. If you can't work fulltime, I'll have to replace you. Plus after what happened today, you probably shouldn't be running around on the floors. I don't want you up there if you are not feeling 100% well. We can't take a chance that another one of these episodes could happen again. It opens the hospital up to liability if anything happens to you or the baby. You can keep your pain management slots; that will give you 4 hours a day, two days a week at least, but that's the best I can do. I think you can handle sitting in an office. If not, I expect to be informed immediately. I've already explained all of this to Dr Cuddy and she understands my staffing constraints."

"But,,"

"After the baby is born, and you're ready to return to full-time work, we'll find a position for you then. Perhaps you'll be able to return to oncology, as Sharon doesn't want to stay there for very long."

He gave me a very condescending look: "I don't know why you want to keep working any way. You certainly don't need the money. Just go out on FMLA until the baby is born and then you'll probably want to stay home with it anyway."

I protested: "I like my job."

Smugly he said: "It's not yours anymore."

He nodded at Lisa, gave Greg a superior look and walked out of the office.

I burst into tears.

Greg groaned: "Great. You're going to be all hormonal now, aren't you? Losing this job is the best thing that could happen. Now you _have_ to take it easy."

Jimmy passed me some tissues and I wiped my face.

I tried to explain: "I wanted to keep working as long as possible. I don't want to just sit around and be useless."

Greg bellowed: "Useless?! You think properly incubating our child is doing nothing? Do you want this baby or not?"

My tears started flowing again: "Of course I do."

"Well, then act like it. You have to take care of yourself for her to survive. Running around all day, getting overheated, and forgetting to stay hydrated isn't doing her any good."

Lisa hissed through her teeth: "House. Calm down. Getting upset isn't going to help matters any."

He turned his wrath towards Lisa: "It will if it makes her understand just how important it is for her to slow down. You need to start thinking about it yourself, forty-two-year-old first-time mother."

Lisa rolled her eyes. "I'll take that under advisement. Elle, look. I can't do anything about your job. Kirby didn't even have to throw you the 8 hours for pain management, but at least he gave you that. It's not a lot, but it's something."

"Lisa, if I don't work 20 hours a week, I lose my health insurance."

"I can use your vacation time to make up the difference or you'll just have to COBRA it."

Greg smirked: "Or you could marry me and just be covered under mine."

"You want me to marry you just for the insurance?"

"No, you silly twit. I want you to marry me because."

He looked around the room as if he just realized that we weren't alone.

The left side of his mouth curled up in an evil smile: "You should marry me because you will never find better sex than what you get with me. Better take advantage of this limited-time offer while you can."

What was he talking about? We were having a child and buying a house together. Was he going to withdraw the proposal if I didn't agree to it promptly? I asked timidly: "There's a time limit?"

This time it was Jimmy who exploded: "Oh for God's sake, go home! Obviously you two have a lot to talk about and not in front of witnesses."

Lisa nodded: "House, take the rest of the day off. I'll keep your team busy in the clinic. Just take Elle home."

Greg's eyes lit up. "Oh, the boss says I can play hookey. Let's get outta here before she changes her mind."

Jimmy said: "Call me if you need anything. Food, boxing gloves, a referee."

Greg reached into his pocket and tossed his keys to Jimmy. "Bring my car home for me. I'm driving Orca's home cuz she's too fat to get behind the wheel anymore."

He held out his hand. "Keys."

I reached into my pocket and dropped my car keys into his open palm. I wasn't going to argue with him about this minor issue.

Greg positioned himself behind my wheelchair and said: "Bring dinner when you drop off the car. I'm thinking Manicini's would be nice tonight. Get extra garlic rolls."

And with that last remark, he pushed me out of Lisa's office.

After a stop at my locker to get my coat and purse, we headed up to Greg's office so he could retrieve his things. Fortunately none of his team was around, so we got out of there without having to answer any more questions. As we swung through the clinic on our way out the door, Greg swiped a blood pressure cuff and stuffed it in his backpack.

He read me the riot act the whole way home. At 400 decibels and in two different languages, he reminded me that I should have told him about my symptoms right away. I just stared out the window and let him get it off his chest. He was right; I should have told him. But there was no point in reminding him that I thought it was too minor to mention since it turned out to be the exact opposite.

He parked my car in his usual spot since it was closer to our building and made me wait while he opened the door for me. He took my arm as we walked to the apartment and I was moved almost to tears at his loving concern despite the 20-minute tirade.

Once inside, he hung up my coat for me and I padded down the hall to the bedroom without a word. I just wanted to get out of my work clothes and take a nap. I didn't want to think about work or his proposal or anything else right now. I pulled out some stretchy yoga pants and a big tee shirt. I tried to kick off my shoes but they were laced too tightly. The inability to do this small task was so frustrating that I burst into tears.

In the midst of my crying jag, I sensed his presence. Without a word, he knelt down and removed my shoes. I guessed that he had noticed the clothes and figured out what I was planning to do, because he continued to undress me and then he helped me into my comfy clothes.

My tears had subsided to sniffles by the time he pulled the covers back. With his gentle direction, I lay down and he covered me with the blanket. His eyes were soft as he tucked me in and his thumb wiped away the last of my tears.

His hand rested on my belly as he whispered: "Sleep, my little Orca."

I nodded and rolled over on my side.

_**HOUSE**_

I sat on the bed until she fell asleep, then I headed back to the living room and switched on my soap.

That woman could be so damn stubborn sometimes. If she had just told me about her symptoms, I could have possibly prevented this episode from happening. How could I protect her and Rug-rat if she didn't tell me what was going on with her body?

This was the hard part, knowing everything that could possibly go wrong and perhaps being powerless to prevent it, just like the last time. I'd have to keep a closer eye on her for the next seven weeks. Well, at least her job was gone now. She wouldn't be running all over the hospital at such a frantic pace. Working a few hours a week would probably be OK and keep her from going stir-crazy being at home all the time. She was going to need something else to do to keep her busy when she wasn't at work.

By the end of my soap, I had an idea. I made a phone call to get the plan in motion.

Elle was still asleep when Wilson knocked on the door. I let him in and the smell of garlic from the bag he was carrying filled the room and made my stomach growl. I realized that in all the excitement, that I'd never had lunch.

I started pulling containers out of the bag. "Wow, Elle's eating a lot these days, but I think you might have overdone it."

He tossed me my keys and shrugged: "Thought maybe we'd eat with you. Lisa is right behind me in her car. Where is Elle?"

I stuffed a garlic roll in my mouth: "Napping like a good little incubator."

He rolled his eyes and started to say something but there was another knock at the door, so he went to answer it. Naturally, it was Cuddy. After coats were removed and hung up, Wilson got out the poker table and set it up. I handed Cuddy plates and utensils and she set the table. Elle wandered out in the midst of all the commotion. It was obvious that she had just woken up; she had that sleepy look on her face and her hair was all tousled.

In a small voice, she said 'hey' to Wilson and Cuddy and then she looked over at me.

I tried to maintain a stern façade but she had such a sad face that I just couldn't do it. "Hungry?"

She nodded.

"Wilson got you the baked spaghetti with meatballs that you like."

She turned to him: "Thanks, Jimmy."

He smiled: "I remembered the extra cheese. And there's lots of garlic rolls."

She acknowledged his statement with a smile and then turned back to me, a questioning look in her eyes. I knew what she needed but I couldn't say it, not even in front of my closest friends. Instead, I held my arm out and she came to my side.

I put one arm around her shoulders and the other hand on her belly. Her arm wrapped around my waist.

I kissed the top of her head: "Let's feed the rug-rat, shall we?"

She stared deeply into my eyes for a moment and then smiled. I didn't have to say a word but she knew that I was no longer mad at her.

"Yes. Let's eat. She seems to really be in the mood for garlic and cheese."

I smirked: "And there's nothing like those preggo cheesy farts."

She aimed a swat at my butt as we walked towards the table. I slowed down just a fraction so that she could hit her target. I grinned smugly at her. She stuck her tongue out at me. Wilson rolled his eyes and Cuddy let out a big sigh. Things were back to normal.

We settled in to eat. For a short while, the only dinner conversation was comments like 'pass the rolls'. Elle had missed lunch also and was eating two meals worth now. Besides the baked spaghetti, there was also lasagna, chicken parmigiana, manicotti and a tossed salad. Before long, the dishes were wiped clean and we all sat back sighing with contented fullness.

Wilson broke the silence: "Elle, I was talking to Chris Guskiewicz about what happened to you today. He agreed with me that we could use your services more than 8 hours a week."

Elle said: "I don't think Kirby would go for that."

Wilson waved his hand: "Leave Kirby out of this. We would pay you out of our budget, half from oncology and half from pain management."

I frowned: "How many hours are you talking about?"

"We budgeted for 3 days a week, 4 hours each day. With the hours out of the pharmacy department, Elle could work 5 days a week, 4 hours each day."

Elle brightened: "That would be 20 hours. I'd be working enough to qualify for insurance."

I groaned: "Elle, I don't know if I want you working 5 days a week."

"But it's only 4 hours a day and Kelly said I could do that. Plus I'm sitting down the whole time and there's a thermostat in my office so I can control the temperature and not get too hot."

"I think 5 days a week is too much for you."

"At least I can try it out and see how I feel. If it's too much, I can cut back."

I shook my head: "You're going to push yourself until you drop. You gotta put your health first."

Cuddy interrupted: "How about a compromise? Work four days a week and I'll make up the other 4 hours from your PTO. That way you will still have enough hours to qualify for the insurance."

Wilson put in his two cents: "Yeah, work Mondays and Tuesdays, take Wednesdays off to rest up in between and then work Thursdays and Fridays. What do you think?"

He seemed to be addressing that question more to me than to Elle. I thought that might not be too bad as long as I kept close tabs on her blood pressure. It would keep her from going completely stir-crazy at home, and yet shouldn't be too taxing on her health.

Grudgingly I said: "You could give that a try."

Elle smiled: "You're OK with it?"

I nodded.

She squeezed my hand. "Thank you."

Turning to Wilson, she said: "That sounds great, Jimmy. Thank you for working this out for me. I think I can handle 16 hours a week."

I growled: "And if not, I better be the first to know this time."

She stood and kissed my forehead. "You will. I promise. Be right back. Gotta pee."

I watched her waddle down the hall. When the bathroom door shut, I turned to Cuddy and asked: "You are always fussing about the hospital's funds. There's money in the budget for this?"

Cuddy casually waved her hand at me. "Eight hours a week for six weeks? It's not that much and I'm happy to do it for Elle."

I chuckled: "Lucky for Elle that her baby daddy's best friend is the dean of medicine's baby daddy."


	62. Chapter 62

Chapter 62

_**HOUSE**_

I checked my e-mail later on that evening and what I requested had arrived. Bonnie had gone over to our house, shot detailed photographs of each room and e-mailed them to me. I forwarded the file on to Elle's e-mail account.

When she waddled out from her 17th trip to the bathroom that evening, I patted the couch next to me. She sat down and snuggled up next to me.

She pointed to the laptop: "Whatcha doing?"

"I just sent you an e-mail."

"Another dirty joke? You could have just told it to me; I'm right here."

I snickered: "No, not a joke. Photos."

Her eyebrows went up: "Dirty pictures? Wow, you haven't done that before. Please tell me it's not anything really kinky."

"Not those kind of pictures, but if you're interested, I could."

Hastily, she said: "No, no, that's OK. What did you send me?"

"I had Bonnie take interior shots of the house. I thought, while you have your feet up the rest of the week, you could be decorating the house. You know, if you want to repaint some of the rooms, it would be easier to do it before we move in. We can stay here an extra month or so and then move in after the painting is done."

"Oh, that's a great idea. You know, I can upload the photos to the Behr paint website and actually see how the colors will look in our own rooms."

I smiled inwardly; this will keep her occupied for at least part of the week. "That's great, sweetheart. Just don't touch my room. I like it the way it is."

"You don't want it repainted?"

"Nope, I like the color."

"Not ever a fresh coat of the same?"

I acquiesced: "Well, I guess that would be OK.'"

Elle nodded: "Oh and I gotta plan the nursery. I don't know how to decorate it. Do you think she would like Winnie the Pooh or a big butterfly garden?"

"What about Dr Seuss? We could put a big Cat in the Hat in the corner."

Elle pondered my suggestion for a moment and then said: "I don't know. Maybe when she's older. I'm afraid those creatures might scare her at such a young age."

I kissed her temple. "I'll let you decide the theme. And while you're home, you can shop on-line for the crib and all the other stuff we need, OK?"

"That's good. I'll get it all picked out and order it to arrive in a few weeks. Then we'll be ready for her."

We looked through the photos together. Bonnie had done a good job; there were multiple angles of each room. We discussed some tentative colors; I told her that she could pretty much decide the final colors on her own as long as pink was not one of the colors, except perhaps in Rug-rat's room.

She teased: "What do you have against pink?"

I whined: "It's too girly. It will force me to live in my man cave 24/7 to counteract the estrogen levels."

Elle laughed: "OK. You win. No pink. I'm not really into pink myself. Our luck, we'll have a really girly girl who just adores pink and wants pink everything."

"And that will be OK, as long as it is in her room."

She snuggled closer to me and placed her hand on my chest: "Thanks for doing this. I was afraid I'd go stir crazy staying home. This will give me something to do besides being a human incubator."

"Do a little planning, take a nap, a little more planning and take another nap. Maybe I should just stay home and supervise you, make sure you get enough rest."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"It's a rough job, but I think I'm man enough to handle it."

Her hand slipped down below my belt and started toying with my zipper. "Oh, I think you are man enough to handle anything, even a bored, horny pregnant woman."

I closed the laptop and set it on the coffee table. "Bored and horny, huh? Let me see if I can help you out."

There was an annoying buzzing noise that I just couldn't place. I buried my face deeper into my pillow hoping to block out the sound. Then I felt a poke in my ribs and a sleepy voice said: "Hey, that's YOUR alarm. You have to get up first for a change. I can sleep in." She giggled and burrowed her face into my chest.

I reached behind me and slammed my hand down on the snooze alarm. Then I wrapped my arms tightly around her, pulled her closer and rubbed my morning wood against her leg.

"Uh, uh, cowboy. Don't think about that. You gotta get up."

I whined: "It's only 8:30. That's way too early to get out of bed."

"It's Wednesday. It's your day to go swimming before work, so get up."

She poked me in the shoulder this time.

I grabbed her wrists and held them securely in my hand. "Stop poking me. I'm the one who should be doing all the poking."

I pushed Mt. Gregory against her leg again to prove my point.

"And you're very good at poking. You had me screaming last night. But now, you gotta get up."

"_He's _up."

She laughed: "I see that, but _you_ need to get out of bed and start your day."

"Don't wanna. Rather stay here with you. You're all nice and warm and tasty." I nibbled on her shoulder to prove my point.

"Ummm, that feels nice."

Elle sighed and her body sagged against me. For a moment, I thought I was going to win this battle, but then my damn alarm clock went off again. As I reached around to slap it off, Elle wiggled out of my embrace and stood up. Frustrated, I threw myself back against the pillow and cursed.

As she reached for her robe, Elle said: "I'll make you some coffee."

"NO!"

She tilted her head in surprise: "You don't want coffee?"

"Coffee, yes. Robe, no. Will you make me naked coffee? If I can't poke you before I go, at least let me soak up the view of your glorious nakedness before I leave to do battle with the world." I followed that comment with a dramatic sigh.

Elle laughed heartily: "OK, I can do that. I'll go make naked coffee while you get ready."

She dropped her robe back on the chair, shoved her feet into slippers and waddled down the hall. I dressed and joined her in the kitchen a few minutes later. I stared at her beautiful body as she moved around the kitchen.

"You really did it? You made me naked coffee."

She shrugged: "Sure, why not? I like making you happy."

My mind went temporarily blank like it often did when she tossed me those little endearments. After all this time, I was still stunned by the depths of her love for me. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed the top of her head. She leaned against my chest and placed one of my hands on her belly.

"See, the baby's swimming too. She's practicing her laps in the small pond for now until she gets out and Daddy takes her into the big pool."

I squeezed my eyes tightly shut as I pictured that in my mind. The idea of teaching Rug-rat to swim, play the piano and a myriad of other things stirred so many feelings inside of me. It frightened me that I would somehow screw it all up and yet I yearned to show her so many things.

Elle murmured against my chest: "It will be fun, won't it? Teaching her how to do stuff."

I looking into her eyes and they were shining with happiness. I merely nodded; my tongue seemed unable to form words at that moment.

The coffee had finished brewing and Elle prepared a travel mug for me. As she handed it to me, she said: "All ready to go? Got your swim stuff?"

"Yeah, but first I'm going to give you your shot and take your blood pressure. Get your Lovenox while I find the BP cuff."

By the time she returned with the syringe, I had the machine ready. I quickly gave her the shot and then I took her pressure standing and sitting. The numbers were practically identical today, 112/72 and 109/70. I was pleased.

"Your BP is good today. Let's keep it that way. I'm taking your car cuz your heater works better than mine. So you are staying put today. No calling a taxi and sneaking out, understand? Stay home and rest."

She saluted me: "Aye-aye, Captain."

"Don't be a smart-ass. This is for your own good. Don't worry about making dinner; we'll get some take-out. Just rest, play on the laptop, watch TV, OK?"

There was too much of a pleading tone with my last word than I would have liked. Elle picked up on it right away and sought to reassure me. "I'll follow doctor's orders. No cleaning, no cooking. I'll be a couch potato with my feet up."

"You do that. And call me if you have any symptoms at all. I don't care how minor they seem. Any dizziness, nausea, whatever, call me. I made sure that I charged my phone last night. If you can't get me, call Alderman, Wilson or Cuddy. If you can't get any of us, call Chase."

She squinted her eyes at me: "Chase?"

I shrugged: "He's the best one of the kids, but don't tell him I said that. He is an intensivist and he has worked a lot in NICU, so for you, he would be the best of the ducklings to call. You got his cell number?"

"I don't think so."

Elle retrieved her phone from her purse and I added Chase's number to her directory. While I was at it, I added Cameron's and Foreman's just in case.

I handed the phone back to her: "Here you go. I'll call you later and check on you. Remember, no swinging from the chandeliers."

I cupped her face with both of my hands. I really didn't want to leave her and I supposed the expression on my face betrayed my internal struggle.

As usual, she sought to reassure me. "I'll be fine, cowboy. I promise. I'll call if there's anything at all to report."

Finally I managed to nod my head. I placed a gentle kiss on her lips, grabbed my backpack and headed out the door.

**_ELLE_**

After Greg left, I took a shower and got dressed. By then I was starving, so I made a big breakfast of cheesy eggs, bacon and toast. I ate it in front of the TV, watching 'Ellen', feeling so incredibly lazy and decadent about it. I wasn't used to being home on a weekday morning with nothing to do. I piled the dishes in the sink, intending to do them later, and plopped back on the couch with the laptop, determined to accomplish something with my day.

I was staring at a vast array of cribs when the phone rang. Glancing at the clock, I saw that it was only 10:30. Trying to contain my smirk, I answered it. "What would look better in the baby's room, white furniture or a light wood?"

Greg groaned: "You're asking me for decorating hints? Call Wilson; he's girly and much better at that. Better yet, call Ricky. He's been itching to decorate our nursery for a while. If you are shopping for furniture, I take it that you are feeling OK."

"Yup, feel fine. Had a nice breakfast. Did you have a nice swim?"

"Yeah, it was OK. Swam for an hour."

"That's good, cowboy. You got a case, yet?"

"Yeah, Cameron found one in the ER yesterday. They started working him up yesterday while we were busy. Foreman wrote on my whiteboard without permission, so I'm sending him to do the colonoscopy."

"How dare he touch your markers! What was he thinking?"

"Obviously he wasn't. Crap, they are back already. Gotta go."

And just like that he ended the call. I was used to his abrupt endings; he hated to have personal conversations when the ducklings were around. I went back to browsing for cribs.

Fifteen minutes later, Lisa called to see how I was feeling. I queried her to see if Greg had put her up to it and she denied it, claiming that she just wanted to make sure I was OK. We chatted about nursery décor for a while. Lisa had already started decorating her nursery in a jungle animal motif suitable for either sex. When she had her last ultrasound, the baby never turned in the right direction so they couldn't tell if it was a boy or girl. There was a huge betting pool going on at the hospital about the sex of her baby; the last I'd heard it was running 7 to 5 in favor of a boy. We started discussing the pros and cons of Winnie the Pooh versus a butterfly garden, but her secretary buzzed her, reminding her of a meeting and she had to run.

I found the furniture that I wanted for the baby's room but I couldn't decide between white and honey oak finish. If I knew how I was going to decorate the nursery it would help that decision, but I still hadn't decided what I wanted. Greg was no help; he didn't care either way. So I decided to call someone who would.

Ricky answered on the third ring: "Hey, what are you doing calling me in the middle of the day? Aren't you at work?"

"Naw, I'm home. I had a dizzy spell yesterday and I'm off work for the rest of the week."

The concern was evident in his voice: "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm just having some low blood pressure. A common enough problem but my doctor wants me to take the rest of the week off and just work part-time after that."

"So you're home alone and already bored?"

"Well, I've been shopping on-line for nursery furniture and I found the set I want, but I can't decide between white or honey oak finish. And since I don't have a decorating theme for the nursery, that makes my decision tougher. I do have it narrowed down to either Winnie-the-Pooh or a butterfly garden."

"Hmmm, regular or classic Pooh?"

"I like the classic better."

"Well, honey oak would work fabulously for that. What is the butterfly garden idea?"

"I was thinking of painting the whole room as a garden. There would be green grass along the lower parts of the wall, and flowers and trees growing up the sides and the ceiling would be light blue with puffy white clouds. Butterflies and birds would fly around the scenery. The only problem is that by the time we close on the house, I'll be too big to paint the ceiling and with my blood pressure problems, I don't think Greg is going to let me climb a ladder any time soon."

"Oh, sweetie, you don't need to be climbing any ladders _now_. You just let Uncle Ricky take care of all that nasty painting. Besides, you shouldn't be inhaling paint fumes in your delicate condition anyway."

Despite the fact that he couldn't see me, I rolled my eyes. "So you think the garden theme sounds better than Pooh?"

"Well, I love Pooh, but it is so overdone. The garden would be an original work of art and we can design it anyway you want."

"White or honey oak with the garden theme?"

"I'd go with the honey oak."

Good, that was decided. Now I could order my furniture.

"Sweetie, it's kinda slow around here today. How 'bout I pick up some lunch and come over? We can start planning the room."

"Oh, that sounds great. I can show you the furniture that I picked out."

"Does one o'clock work for you?"

I laughed: "It's not like I'm going anywhere. Greg even has my car. I'm stranded."

"Well, that's one way to get you to rest. How does a sub from Hogan's Heroes sound?"

My mouth watered despite the fact that I just had breakfast a short time ago. "Good. Turkey, provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo, black olives and pickles."

"You got it. See you at one."

I closed the phone, thrilled that I was going to have company for lunch. I ordered the crib, with matching changing table and dresser in the honey oak finish. It would be delivered in 2-3 weeks. I figured if it arrived before we got the house, we could just store it in my apartment temporarily. I was starting to get anxious about getting our new home set up before the baby arrived. I wanted to have everything ready for her. Was the 'nesting' instinct kicking in already?

At twelve o'clock on the dot, my phone rang again.

"Hi, Jimmy."

"Hey, Elle, how are you feeling?"

"I feel fine. Greg put you up to this, didn't he? I bet you guys are at lunch and he told you to call me so he wouldn't seem so worried, right?"

He chuckled and I knew I had hit the nail on the head. Away from the phone, I could hear him saying: "House, she's fine."

"Tell him that I ordered the furniture for the nursery and I put it on his credit card."

Jimmy repeated what I said, and I could hear Greg sputter in the background: "Hey, you're the one rolling in the dough and you're putting it on MY credit card? The baby daddy gets no respect. Ask her how much she spent."

Jimmy snickered into the phone: "He wants to know how much you spent. Did you really put it on his card?"

"No. I just wanted to aggravate him a little. Tell him that Ricky is coming over to bring me lunch and keep me company for a while."

He gave an exasperated sigh: "Oy, no more messenger boy. House, here, talk to your wife."

Greg's snarky voice came on: "So just how much did you put on my credit card?"

"Oh, relax. I was just teasing. I put it on my card. I got the crib, a dresser and a changing table. And Ricky's coming over at one to bring me lunch and help me plan the nursery."

He switched to French and said in a soft voice: _"You could have put it on my card."_

I smiled, my heart warm with love for him. "I know, but it's in your wallet and I don't have the number memorized yet. Next time."

He chuckled: "I hope Ricky is bringing you a big lunch. I'm sure you worked up an appetite with all that shopping."

"I did, and I need to do more. We need a car seat, a stroller, clothes, diapers. I want a rocking chair for when I nurse her. It's amazing how much stuff we need for such a tiny little person."

"She may be tiny, but she is a whole person, so she needs her own stuff. Did you check Consumer Reports for the best car seat?"

"No, not yet."

"I'll do that after lunch and before my soap. The kids are still running tests so they are out of my hair. Wilson's trying to steal my fries. Gotta go."

"Later, cowboy."

Ricky showed up right after one, bringing two huge subs and a big bag of Fritos. While we ate, I showed him the furniture that I had picked out and described how I wanted the room to look. He took out his sketchpad and starting drawing some designs. The ceiling and the upper half of the walls would be a pale sky blue and the bottom half of the wall would be grassy green. There would be sunflowers, tulips, daffodils and other types of flowers growing in her garden. Ladybugs would be crawling on leaves and butterflies, dragonflies and birds would be flying around the room. Ricky decided he would paint a large tree right behind the crib and the branches would extend up to the ceiling so it would seem like the tree was sheltering her bed. I went on-line and ordered some crib sheets decorated with flowers and butterflies.

His office buzzed him around three and he had to go back to work. After he left, I decided to take a nap. We had planned the nursery and that gave me a feeling of accomplishment for the day. As I waddled down the hall, I dialed Greg's number.

"How's my little Orca?"

"Fabulous. Ricky brought me a sub and we planned the nursery. He is going to paint it for me. I'm going to take a nap now. I wanted to tell you in case you called and I was asleep and didn't answer the phone. Didn't want you to worry."

There was a pause and then he said softly: "Thank you."

I smiled: "I love you too. Wake me when you get home."

I set the phone down on the bedside table, shucked my shoes and pants and crawled under the covers. I wrapped my arms around Greg's pillow and inhaled deeply. As always, I felt comforted by his scent and quickly fell asleep.

I spent the next 2 days doing just about the same thing. I would get up with Greg and make him coffee. He'd give me my shot, check my BP, and then head out to PPTH. I'd shower, have breakfast and get to 'work'. I studied the photos of all the rooms of our house and planned the paint and the furniture arrangement. I still didn't know what to do with the basement room, but I figured that could wait for a while.

I did more on-line shopping. I found a dining room table and 8 chairs that I loved and ordered the set. After conferring with Adam and reading Consumer Reports, I ordered 2 plasma TV's that could be wall-mounted. One would hang over the fireplace in the living room and the other would be right behind it in the dining room. That way we could watch TV no matter what room we ate in. I wanted to get Greg a new TV for his man cave, but decided that he would probably prefer to pick it out himself. One of our old TV's could go in our bedroom and we could stick the other one in the basement for now.

We would still use Greg's bedroom furniture in the new house and my IKEA bedroom suite would work in the guest room. Greg wanted to put his leather couch in his room so we needed a new couch for the living room. I looked on-line but it was too hard to shop for a couch that way. You needed to sit on it and see how it felt before you bought it. So that would have to wait until I was allowed out of the house. I felt fairly satisfied with my 'work' and still found time to take a nap every day.

Someone called and checked on me every couple of hours. I suspected Greg was enlisting all of our friends as the caller varied every time. When Billy called me on Friday afternoon, I was positive that I was right. Billy never called to chat; he wasn't that type. So I asked him point-blank and he confessed that Greg had called the whole gang and assigned everyone a time slot to call and check up on me. I just had to laugh; it was a strange way to show he cared and yet totally him.

I was feeling well enough on Friday night that Greg declared I could leave the apartment for dinner out. He had arranged for us to meet Lisa and Jimmy at the Alchemist and Barrister. We arrived first, were seated and began perusing the familiar menu as we waited for them. When they had not arrived 30 minutes later, I started to worry. They were not the type to be late, especially without calling. Greg frowned when I mentioned it to him and checked his watch. "We'll give them five more minutes."

Four minutes later, they rushed in. Breathing hard and giggling like schoolgirls, they sat down.

Jimmy panted out: "Sorry we'll late. We were unavoidably detained."

Greg exclaimed loudly: "You kept us waiting while you had sex?"

I giggled and the two of them blushed a deep red. Lisa growled: "NO! That's not why we were late."

Greg and I stared at them, questioningly, waiting for an explanation.

Jimmy sighed: "We were waiting for exam room six to be free."

Simultaneously, Greg and I said: "Ohhhhh."

I went on eagerly: "So? Did you find out?"

Lisa nodded excitedly: "Oh yes, you can see it so clearly. It's a boy."

She pulled a few ultrasound photos out of her bag and passed them around. One of the pictures was a close-up of the little guy's crotch and a penis and testicles could be clearly seen dangling between his legs.

Greg's eyes popped out of his head: "Wow, it's huge. Wilson, are you sure this is YOUR kid?"

Lisa reached across the table and smacked him on the arm. Greg whined: "Cripple abuse!"

Jimmy and I just laughed at their antics.

I grinned: "You'll be throwing a bris. Better start looking for a mohel."

Lisa responded: "I heard that Dr Goldblatt does them. I'll speak to him next week."

Greg chuckled: "Great. We get to have a party and watch Goldblatt snip the end off of your baby's winky. How fun! Let's order. I'm starving. Wonder if the beef tips are good tonight."

On Saturday, the shit hit the fan again. It was our weekend to play at Satchel's and I had planned on performing. I wanted to have a 'swan song', play one last time before quitting for the rest of my pregnancy. Naturally, Greg was adamantly opposed to it.

He didn't yell, but the anger in his voice was quite evident. "Do you think running around on the stage is good for you? It's hot up there under those lights and you end up sweating like a pig. You never drink enough water when you perform."

I promised to drink tons of water, but he shook his head. "You want to pass out in front of the audience? You want that to be your swan song? I thought you wanted this baby. Now, when you are so close to the end, you're acting like your job and this gig are more important than your health."

"They are not more important. I just want to play one set, so I can say good-bye to everyone."

He snarled: "And I'll just carry a bag of Ringers Lactate and an IV set with me so that I can rehydrate you when you pass out. Hopefully our child won't be deprived of oxygen long enough to cause brain-damage until I can get your blood pressure up again."

I was tired of fighting with him so I hurried down the hall to the bedroom and slammed the door shut, effectively letting him know that I wanted to be left alone. I cried into my pillow for a bit and then picked up the phone to call Avi for some sympathy. But it was not to be; he agreed with Greg.

"Elle, sweetie, it's not worth the risk."

"One set, Avi! Just one set, 45 minutes, that's it. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is what if House is right? What if the heat is too much for you?"

I started crying again: "I just wanted to say good-bye to everyone. I didn't get to say good-bye the last time that I was gone for a while."

There was a silence and then he said: "Oh. That's what's bothering you. I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't think of that."

"It's OK. It's not like I want to remember it, really. I just want to let everyone know that I'm OK, but I need a break for now. I know you could say something, but I just wanted to do it personally."

I heard him blowing out a deep breath and I knew he was thinking, so I waited him out. After a few minutes, he said: "Two songs. We'll play the first set, you come up for the start of the second set, sing two songs, make your little announcement and that's it. You know Adam will back me on this, so take it or leave it."

I really wanted to sing the full second set like I usually did, but I knew it was time to cave, or I wouldn't be playing at all.

"Alright. I'll take it. Two songs."

"Let me talk to House."

"Why?"

"Because he is not going to agree to it coming from you, but I can talk him into it."

Puzzled, I asked: "What are you going to say?"

"Never mind. Just put him on the phone."

Carrying my phone, I walked back out into the living room. Greg was sitting on the couch, channel surfing, and he frowned at me when I walked into the room. I didn't give him a chance to say anything; I just extended my hand and offered him the phone. "It's Avi. He wants to talk to you."

He snarled: "Getting your bestest friend on your side?"

Greg grabbed the phone from me and growled into it: "What?"

I don't know what Avi said to him; all I heard on Greg's end was a couple of yeah's and uh huh's. Finally Greg said: "Fine. But that's it. No more."

He closed the phone and looked at me. "Seems your bestest friend agrees with me. Two songs and that's it. Ricky will escort you on and off the stage and I want you to drink a lot of water before you go on and when you get off. Do we have a deal?"

I smiled: "Deal. Thank you. What did he say to you to make you change your mind?"

"Not important. But don't even try to sing more than two songs, or Ricky is going to bodily carry you off the stage, got it?"

I saluted him for the second time this week: "Aye-aye, captain."

"Don't be such a smart ass. Christ, Elle, I don't want anything to happen to you or Rug-rat. Don't you get it?"

Beneath his anger, I suddenly felt the depth of his concern and I sank down on the couch next to him. "You're worried. You're afraid something is going to go wrong. Just like what happened to my mother."

My lip trembled and I could feel tears forming. I turned my head so that he wouldn't see them, but he did.

He cried out: "Oh, no! No waterworks."

He quickly pulled me onto his lap and wrapped his arms protectively around me. "You're not your mother. Yes, things could go wrong, but we know what to watch for. That's why you have to let me check your blood pressure and tell me any symptom you have. That's why you have to take it easy and not work so hard. You should sleep as much as you can now, cuz when the kid gets here, she'll be keeping us up nights wanting drinks from the milk bar and needing her poopy butt wiped."

I buried my face in his shoulder: "You're right. I'm being stupid. I'll call Avi back and tell him that I won't sing."

He gently kissed my lips: "You can sing, but only two songs and no doing cartwheels across the stage. Skip the big dance number, OK? Just sit at the piano or on the stool and take it easy. I know you want to do it; you should be fine as long as you don't go nuts."

I stroked his face: "Are you really OK with me doing this?"

He nodded: "As long as you adhere to my conditions."

"I will. To the letter."

We sealed the deal with a kiss.

We arrived around 9:30 and slipped into the back room. I didn't want to feel hot and crowded in the audience before I sang. Theresa brought a Grolsch for Greg and a couple of bottles of water for me.

I giggled: "I'll be peeing every 5 minutes if I drink all that."

Greg said: "Just drink some now and take a bottle on stage with you. Take a few sips between songs."

The guys took their break at 9:45 and strolled into the back room with their drinks. I told Adam that I wanted to start off with _"It's My Life"_ and I'd let him know on stage what the second song would be. Actually it was something that I wanted to sing especially for Greg and I didn't want to take a chance that he would overhear us talking about it.

Lisa and Jimmy arrived just before 10. Greg and Gen joined them at our usual table while Ricky escorted me to the steps. The guys went on stage and played _'Camellia'_, my usual intro. They played it for about two minutes and then Adam gave Ricky the nod and we walked up the steps together. The crowd cheered when I hit the stage. Ricky escorted me right to the center where a mike and two tall stools were waiting for me. I set the water bottle on one stool and parked my butt on the other one. Once I was settled, Ricky walked off the stage and I gave Adam the nod to start.

We went right into _"It's My Life"._ It felt strange to be singing that song while sitting down. I missed dancing around and doing my little hip swings with the drumbeat, but I still enjoyed singing it.

While the crowd was applauding at the end of the song, I took several sips of water and glanced at Greg. He gave me an approving nod and seemed satisfied that I was behaving myself. I motioned to Danny and Adam to tell them what I wanted to sing. Adam stepped back into his spot while Danny went to grab my guitar.

I stood up to address the crowd.

"I just wanted to let you know that this is my last night here for a while. Doctor's orders that I take some time off."

Groans filled the room.

"But I'll be back after I finish growing this baby."

I gave them a right profile view, and then turned to give a left profile shot, proudly showing off my big belly. Cheers erupted and I had to grin. I loved singing for these people and I would truly miss it. But it was time to take a break for a while.

Danny had returned with my guitar and I took it from him and hung it across my shoulders. I propped my butt back on the stool and adjusted the mike.

"This is my last song for a while and I want to dedicate it to the man I love."

I gave Adam the nod and we strummed out the first chords to the Troggs' _'Wild Thing'_. The crowd cheered and I could see Jimmy and Lisa cracking up at my choice of song. Greg grinned before he realized what he was doing and then he covered his mouth with his hand, but I could see that his eyes were smiling. It made me happy, knowing that he was enjoying my choice of song.

Danny whistled the flute part and before I knew it, the song was over. It went by too quickly, but Ricky was already on the stage waiting for me. I handed the guitar back to Danny and then spoke into the mike. "That's it for now. I'll see you when I get back. Take care and thank you."

I blew them a big kiss and walked towards Ricky. The crowd roared and then someone started to chant: "Rose, Rose, Rose." The rest of the crowd picked it up and the noise became deafening.

I knew they wanted an encore, but Greg had told me only 2 songs and I wasn't going to override him on this. I turned away from the audience and headed towards Ricky, taking his proffered arm once I reached him.

He gave me a grin: "I think they want an encore."

"I can't. Greg said only two songs. I don't want to piss him off."

Ricky looked off into the crowd: "I don't think that will be a problem. Look."

He pointed over to our table.

Greg was standing up with the rest of the crowd, which was something he never did. When our eyes met, he gave me a nod and held up one finger. I gave him a questioningly look; he nodded again and waved his pointer finger in a side-to-side motion.

I looked back at Ricky: "I think he's saying I can do one more song."

Ricky walked me over to the piano and I sat down. I took a couple of sips of water, adjusted the mike and said: "My doctor says I can play one more song."

I waited for the applause to die down and then I started playing the intro to _"The Rose"._ I poured my heart into the song, thinking of Greg and our soon-to-be-born baby. Tears came to my eyes as I thought of how much I loved them both. As I got to the last verse, someone in the crowd stood up with his lighter aflame. Others followed and soon the whole crowd was on their feet. Tears were streaming down my face by the time I finished the song. Ricky helped me to my feet; I thanked the applauding crowd and blew them one last kiss. Ricky escorted me to the edge of the stage and with one final wave; I walked off that stage knowing that I wouldn't be back for several months but happy that I got to say good-bye this time.

By the time we got to the backroom, Greg was already there. I sat down and accepted a bottle of water from him. I took a few sips under his watchful eye.

"You're a little flushed."

I nodded: "It was hot up there. But I'm OK. I don't feel dizzy or anything."

He put his fingers on my wrist and checked my pulse. Satisfied, he nodded: "Theresa's bringing you some potato skins in a few minutes."

"That sounds good. My neck's hot and I wanna pull my hair up. Do you see a hair tie over on the makeup table?"

He snagged it for me and I pulled my hair up into a ponytail. "Ah, that feels so much better."

Greg grabbed some tissues from the box on the makeup table and dabbed at the sweat on the back of my neck. Then he gently blew on my neck to cool it off. It was such a sweet gesture that I found myself tearing up. With these damn pregnancy hormones, I could cry at the drop of a hat, but I managed to control myself this time. After a few more cooling breaths, Greg kissed the back of my neck.

He didn't like it when I made a big deal when he did nice things for me so I simply said: "That felt nice. Thank you."

He gave me a small smile and kissed my temple.

Theresa walked in a moment later with the skins and cold drinks for both of us. We ate and drank and then talked quietly, waiting for the set to end. When it did, the guys poured into the backroom, congratulating me on my performance and expressing how much they would miss me singing with them.

Then Avi said as he rubbed my belly: "We'll miss you, but you'll be back before you know it. Just take good care of our newest tribe member."

I grinned: "Don't worry, I will."

When it was time for them to go back on stage, we said our good-byes and headed for home. It was only 11PM but I was tired and ready for sleep. Later that night as we cuddled in bed, I wondered what had made Greg change his mind about my singing tonight.

"What did Avi say to you that convinced you to let me sing?"

"Nothing much."

He started nibbling on my neck and I knew he was deflecting.

"C'mon, tell me. You were dead set against it and he must have said something rather convincing to get you to change your mind."

He let out a big sigh. "He said you needed to say your own good-byes. You didn't want to just disappear like the last time you had to stop singing for a while."

I waited for him to go on and when he didn't, I asked: "And that convinced you?"

He flopped on his back and let out a big sigh. "I don't want anything to remind you of that time. This is different. You're taking a break for a happy occasion. You needed to leave on your own terms, which you didn't get to do last time. When it was pointed out to me like that, I got it. So it's over, you got to say good-bye, can we put this behind us now?"

He just hated getting caught doing something nice. Greg preferred sneak sweetness, when his chances of getting caught were small. I had applied too much pressure to get him to explain himself and now he was uncomfortable.

I smiled at him: "Yes, cowboy, _that's_ over, but this night is far from over."

I slid under the covers and as I wrapped my lips around Mt. Gregory, I could swear I heard him murmur: "Oh, yeah, baby. Far from over."


	63. Chapter 63

Chapter 63

_**HOUSE**_

We slept late on Sunday. Elle's bladder didn't wake her up until 11AM, which was decent in my book. She made French toast for breakfast and then we showered together. This tub was really too small for us with the current size of Elle's belly but we managed. I was really looking forward to the new place and that huge shower.

I spent the early part of the afternoon watching TV while Elle fussed around, straightening up the apartment. After Elle's near syncopal episode, I decided that I didn't want her to do any more heavy cleaning so I hired Wilson's cleaning lady. She was due to start on Monday, but Elle deemed it necessary to straighten up before she got here.

I was just getting sucked into a _Doctor Who_ marathon when Elle returned to the living room carrying her shoes. She sat down next to me and plopped her shoes in my lap.

I frowned: "What's with the shoes?"

"We need groceries. I can't go to the store barefoot. I need you to put my shoes on for me, like you always do."

I frowned: "You're not going to the store."

"I am, if you want coffee in the morning. We are out of everything. And I have to swing by Mike's and get some ice cream. The baby really needs chocolate ice cream. So put my shoes on so I can get going."

I shook my head: "You're not driving anywhere."

She let out an exasperated sigh: "Greg, what are you saying? Now you don't want me to drive at all? I'm fine. I'm perfectly capable of driving myself to the store."

"No, it's not safe for you to drive."

"Greg, I'm not going to pass out at the wheel. I'll be sitting down; it won't be hot. My blood pressure has been fine. There's no reason that I can't drive."

"You wanna know why I don't want you to drive? C'mon, I'll show you."

I put her shoes on and then we both slipped on jackets and walked out to her car. I motioned to the driver's side: "Go on, get in."

She got into the car and I seated myself on the passenger side.

I asked: "Do you see the problem?"

She shook her head: "No, what are you talking about?"

"Your belly is right up against the steering wheel."

"I know it is, but I can still turn it. It only rubs a little and it doesn't hurt or anything."

"Can you move the seat back so that you are not right up against the wheel?

She shook her head: "No, then I won't be able to reach the pedals."

"Elle, what if you have an accident and the air bag goes off? It's going to blow up right against your belly. It could really hurt you and Rug-rat. Between that problem and your blood pressure, it's not safe for you to keep driving."

The realization hit her hard. Tears starting leaking out of her eyes and her jaw trembled. She placed her hand over it to try to contain her sobs. For once, I didn't bemoan her crying. Driving was independence and I knew how I would feel if someone told me that I couldn't drive any more.

I stroked her hair and let her get her emotions more under control. Then I continued: "I know you pride yourself on being self-sufficient. You've basically been taking care of yourself since you were 10 years old. That stubborn independent streak of yours enabled you to survive all those horrible families that you had to live with in foster care. But you don't have to do everything all on your own any more. I can."

I paused, unsure how to express myself. I really didn't know what to say; I just knew what I needed to do. Correction, what I wanted to do.

"I've never taken care of anyone before. I wouldn't even heat up a can of chicken soup for Stacy when she was sick. I'm basically a selfish bastard that wants everyone to take care of _me_. But now."

I stroked her cheek with my thumb. I paused for so long that Elle gently prodded me: "But now what?"

I shrugged: "It's different now. I have you and Rug-rat. I want to."

I couldn't finish the sentence.

Lip trembling, she finished it for me: "You want to take care of us?"

I looked into her eyes and simply nodded.

She grinned through her tears: "You gonna whip out your lightsaber, my Jedi Knight, and fight off Darth Vader for me?"

"That sounds more manly than just insisting that I drive you to the store."

"In my book, driving me to the store is very manly. And when we get back, I'm sure there's some other macho stuff you can do to show off your alpha maleness to your pregnant mate."

I engulfed her lips with mine. After a long satisfying kiss, I said: "Swap seats and let's get going. I have some ideas about that ice cream that you're craving."

_Monday March 3, 2008_

_**ELLE**_

Wilson's cleaning lady showed up Monday morning just before Greg left for work. Strangely enough, her name was actually Lady. She had cleaned the apartment once before so she was somewhat familiar with the place. After checking out her car and deeming it reliable, Greg arranged for her to drive me to work at 12:30. It was agreed that she would do this every Monday. I supposed Greg and I would figure out the other 3 days as the week went on.

Lady went right to work and I spent a productive morning calling moving companies to get estimates. I had a sandwich around noon and then Lady drove me to work. I felt like such a lady of leisure, having a cleaning lady slash chauffer and only working half days. I told myself to enjoy it while it lasted because life would be considerably more hectic once the baby arrived.

I had almost a full caseload today. On Mondays, I mostly saw Jimmy's patients and that usually meant a packed schedule. There was one half-hour gap at 3PM and I actually took a short nap during that break. When I closed the door on the last patient at 5PM, I was ready to go home. Amazing how tired I got just sitting behind my desk and talking to patients. I was actually glad that I was only working part-time and not running around on the floors right now. I wrote my notes on the last patient and then gathered all the files to return to Jimmy's office.

Greg was tossing his things into his backpack when I passed by. I gave him a smile and continued on to Jimmy's office. He was on the phone when I walked in, so I just set the files on his desk, waved and let myself out. Greg was packed and ready to go when I got to his office. As we walked towards the car, I found it strange seeing my car parked in his handicapped spot, but I shrugged it off and climbed into the passenger side.

I had thrown a pot roast into the crockpot this morning and the delicious smell overwhelmed us when we walked inside our apartment. Greg's stomach growled loudly and I giggled. He gave my earlobe a nip and snarled: "Feed me."

I told him to give me 20 minutes and headed to the bedroom to change clothes. I kicked off my shoes and got out of my work clothes, pulling on my comfy stretch pants and big tee shirt. I checked out the apartment on the way back to the kitchen. Lady had done a good job; the apartment was spotless.

Greg was pulling a beer out of the refrigerator as I entered the kitchen. He popped the top, took a swallow and said: "Bonnie called. The closing is set for Friday morning."

"Wow. That was fast."

He nodded: "Yep. She said it's probably the fastest closing she's ever done. And paying cash helped, no waiting for a mortgage to get approved and all that."

"That's true. I called some movers today and set up some appointments to get estimates. One company is coming tomorrow morning and the other two are coming on Wednesday. The piano mover is coming tomorrow evening so that you'll be home to talk to him."

He smirked: "You're supposed to be resting, and you're still working your ass off."

"Yeah, I was working really hard, sitting on my ass making phone calls."

He frowned: "Seems like a lot to me."

I changed the subject: "You want me to feed you?"

He nodded.

"Then go sit down and let me finish dinner. Oh, wait. Get the big platter down for me first. It's hard for me to reach it; my belly gets in the way."

He smirked, opened the cabinet and set the platter on the counter for me. "Does my serene highness need anything else before I sit down?"

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Not right now. I'll call you when dinner's ready and you can help me carry it out to the table."

He stroked my hair away from my face and tilted my chin up. I saw the tender look in his eyes, the crinkling of his laugh lines, which meant he was suppressing a smile. He bent and kissed me gently. Stroking my belly, he whispered: "My little orca."

Greg gave me one more kiss and then said: "Now feed me, woman! I'm starving. Your man needs sustenance."

I laughed: "Go sit down; it's almost ready."

We had dinner in front of the TV as usual and after we ate, Greg helped me clean up the kitchen. He didn't do that every night, but he was definitely doing it more often than he used to. We spend a nice quiet evening listening to music and talking about the new house. We decided to go couch shopping on Saturday as long as I was feeling up to it.

The rest of the week passed smoothly. The piano mover came on Tuesday evening and Greg seemed satisfied with him. I interviewed the other movers and selected one of them. Greg left the hospital at lunchtime on Tuesday and Thursday to run home and drive me to work. When he picked me up on Tuesday, he grumbled that he was missing out on Wilson buying him lunch. I gently reminded him that this was his idea and if he didn't want to pick me up, I could just take a cab. He mumbled that he didn't want me to do that, so we dropped the subject.

On Thursday, my first patient wasn't scheduled until 2:00, but I didn't tell Greg that little tidbit of information. When he arrived at noon, I asked: "Since you're missing out on lunch with Jimmy, I thought you might like to eat with me."

His eyebrows shot up: "You made lunch? What are we having?"

"Well, I didn't exactly make anything. But I'm in the mood for a big sausage and I was hoping you'd like a pink taco."

His mouth fell open: "I'm getting a pink taco for lunch?"

I shrugged casually: "If that's what you want. I don't have my first appointment until 2:00, so we can have a nice long lunch. Course, if you'd rather have a Reuben, we can hit the sandwich shop on the way back to the hospital."

He grabbed my hand and started down the hall. "The hell with the Reuben. If you're in the mood for sausage, I gotta satisfy your cravings. And you know how much I like pink taco. I can never get enough of it."

I giggled as he quickly pulled my clothes off. I helped him with his and we stretched out on the bed together. He nibbled at my earlobe and then moved down my body, kissing, licking and rubbing his scruff against my skin. He affectionately kissed my huge belly and tongued my now outie belly button before disappearing out of my sight. As he nuzzled my hair with his nose, his hands pushed my thighs further apart.

That very first lick sent a shiver through my body. He chuckled and slowly licked all around my labia, then lapped my slit from top to bottom. His tongue entered me while his nose gave my clit a gentle nuzzle. He tongued-fucked me a few times and then focused on my swollen nub. I was on the edge of the cliff in no time, rocking up against his face, seeking even more contact.

He looked up, lower half of his face wet with my juices, "Delicious. My sausage wants your taco, babe. Flip over."

I got on my hands and knees and he entered me from behind. At first, he pumped me slowly while he reached forward and squeezed my swinging breasts. "You are so hot, sweetheart, so hot and tight. Damn, you feel good."

I smiled as I pushed back against him. "So do you. Play with my clit."

His hand wandered south and tangled in my hair. He'd give my clit a little tease and then play with my hair again. After the third time, I growled: "More!"

He laughed and then really got down to business. With one hand on my hip, he started slamming his dick into me, pulling me back onto him with a hard ferociousness. I could feel his balls slapping against my thighs. His other hand got busy with my clit. The faster he stabbed into me, the harder he rubbed until he drove me over the edge. I screamed when my orgasm hit and he pumped harder, climaxing with a loud moan just a few moments later.

I heard him hiss through his teeth as he slowed his thrusts, riding out our orgasms. "Damn, baby, that was good."

He pulled out and flopped down next to me, a very satisfied grin on his face. "This certainly makes the chore of coming to pick you up worth my while."

I snuggled into his shoulder: "So I have to give you a nooner every day so that you'll drive me to work?"

He gave me a big sloppy kiss. "Sure puts a whole new spin on lunch."

Greg skipped his swim on Friday morning since we had to be in Bonnie's office at 10AM. We signed so many papers that my hand got tired. By 11AM, we had the keys in our pocket and were driving over to our new home.

He parked in the driveway and we just stared at it for a moment. Then Greg chuckled: "It's really ours, isn't it? We own a house."

I turned to face him: "Kinda hard to believe, isn't it?"

Greg put his hand on my belly. "Yes. I never thought I'd be here."

"Here, as in owning a house and about to become a dad?"

He nodded: "That and, well, you."

"Me?"

"I never thought I'd."

He paused and seemed unsure of what he wanted to say.

As he stared at my belly, the words came out slowly: "I never thought I'd be able to convince a hot young babe like you to think this old gimp was worth taking a chance with."

Suddenly he pulled me closer and buried his face in my hair. "You're mine, aren't you? All mine."

I heard the catch in his voice and tears pooled in my eyes. Did he really feel after all our time together that he still didn't deserve happiness?

I rubbed my lips against his and whispered into his mouth: _"Je suis le votre."_

He gripped me tighter and his mouth took possession of mine. He kissed me with a deep hunger. As his tongue tangled with mine, I felt wetness between my legs and the longing to be filled with more just than his tongue in my mouth.

When we finally broke for air, I could see those little crinkles around his eyes. "Let's go inside. It's ours now and we can be alone in it for the first time."

I nodded eagerly and we walked up to front door. As he fumbled with the keys, he said: "Is it really sappy that I want to carry you over the threshold?"

My heart swelled: "Not at all."

Hesitantly, he said: "I don't want to drop you."

I shook my head: "You won't."

He gave me an appraising look: "Your faith in me is unwavering."

"That's right."

He looked away. "It's a silly tradition. Supposedly it comes from the Germanic Goths who kidnapped brides from other villages and carried them home to be their wives."

He slipped the key in the lock and opened the door, and then he glanced back at me. I just smiled and waited him out while he deliberated about it.

He looked over his shoulder, as if to see if anyone was watching us. Then he said: "Oh, fuck it. Put your arms around my neck."

I did as he asked and he scooped me up. Three careful steps and we were inside. He set me back on my feet and I immediately leaned up to plant a kiss on his lips.

"Welcome home, cowboy."

He gave me one of his small shy smiles. "Welcome home sweetheart."

He put his hands on my shoulders and stroked my arms. Suddenly a look passed over his face and his left eyebrow slowly rose. A smirk appeared next and he reached behind him to shut and lock the door.

His hands slid down to my hips and he pulled me against his body. I could feel Mt Gregory beginning to rise.

Greg leaned down and whispered in my ear: "What do you say? Time to christen our new house?"

His words alone made me wet, but I wondered about the logistics. "Greg, how are we going to do that? There's not a stitch of furniture in here. And I'm afraid that if I get down on the floor, I won't be able to get back up again."

He muttered: "There's gotta be something here."

He dragged me from room to room. There was nothing in the house, no bed, no sofa, not even a chair. He eyed the washing machine but it wasn't the right height. The last room that we checked was our bathroom.

Greg hissed: "Jackpot."

He scooped me up and set me on the vanity between the two sinks. Pushing my knees apart and stepping between my thighs, his hands cupped my face and he bent down for a long slow kiss. His tongue danced slowly in my mouth, stroking up and down each side of my own tongue. I moaned into his mouth and felt myself get wetter. My fingers fumbled as I unbuttoned his shirt but I managed. His belt and zipper were next and I slipped my hand inside his pants to stroke his dick. He was already hard and a sound came out of his mouth that started out as a moan and turned into a growl.

"You gotta lose these clothes. They are in my way."

He quickly undressed me as I sat on the vanity. I was able to lift my ass enough for him to pull my pants and undies off. My clothes were tossed to the side and he ran his eyes up and down my body as he removed his shirt. He sat on the edge of the tub to remove his shoes and then he dropped his pants and boxers.

He stood naked in front of me; his eyes drinking in his fill of my body as his hands stroked my inner thighs. In a voice filled with emotion, he said: "You're so beautiful." He knelt in front of me and licked at my sex. "Oh, you're already wet for me, aren't you sweetheart?" His tongue rubbed hard against my clit.

I let out a loud moan. "Yes. I started getting wet when you kissed me in the car. _Ohhhhh_. And then when you said you wanted to, _ohhhhh_, christen the house, _ohhhh_, I got wetter."

The things he was doing to me felt so good I could hardly speak, but I kept it up. "And I knew you wanted it too, dragging me from room to room, looking for the, _AHHH_, right spot. _Ohh,_ right there, right there_. Ohh_, Gawd, yes!"

He chuckled: "Right spot, huh?"

I wiggled against his face: "Yes! Don't stop, don't stop."

When he stood up, he had a big grin and a lot of my juices on his face. He rubbed my clit for a moment and then starting fucking me with two fingers. "You want more, don't you? Tell me what you want."

"Fuck me. I want to feel you inside me."

He rubbed the head of his dick against my opening. "Is this what you want?"

I pushed against him, trying to get him to slide in. "Yes. I want your big hard cock inside my hot wet pussy."

He hissed between his teeth: "Oh, I love it when you talk dirty. It's so hot hearing those naughty words coming out of a woman who looks like a Madonna."

Greg grabbed his jacket, folded it and stuck it behind my head. "I don't want you to bang your head, but I'm going to fuck you into the middle of next week."

The vanity wasn't quite the right height; it was a little too short for Greg's long legs, but we managed. I moaned with pure pleasure as he slid Mt. Gregory inside of me. He held my hips with both hands and lifted me slightly off the vanity to pump fully inside of me.

He slowed for a moment and then said: "Oh, Christ, this is hot. Can you see the mirror?"

I glanced to the right and I could see the lower half of my body and Greg's reflected in the mirror. Without it, I couldn't see the action because my belly blocked the view, but now I could see his cock sliding in and out of me. He was right; it was hot.

"Maybe we should install mirrors on our ceiling."

He panted: "Don't tempt me. I just might. Oh Gawd, I'm not going to last. Play with your clit."

I reached down and starting stroking myself. Greg's excitement reached its apex moments later and he called out my name as he climaxed inside of me. He gently set me down on the vanity and continued to pump at a slower pace; riding out his orgasm while his hand took over clit duties. He knew just what I liked and sent me over the edge moments later. There was a look of smug satisfaction on his face as I writhed and cried out my orgasm.

He wiggled his eyebrows: "I'm good, aren't I?"

I sat up and wrapped my arms around him, pressing my cheek right over his heart. "You're my stud muffin. How am I going to go to work now that you've fucked me into next week?"

He laughed: "That's your problem. I'm going to drive us to work and then head to my office for a post-coital nap while you see your patients."

I stuck my tongue out at him. He just laughed and kissed me again.

_**HOUSE  
**_

After breakfast on Saturday, we headed out to look for a new couch. Since the living room was large, we decided to go with a sectional to provide plenty of seating that would face the TV and the fireplace. I also wanted to get a recliner, but hadn't decided whether I wanted it in the living room or my room yet. Elle was leaving that one up to me. I wanted both pieces in leather and Elle readily agreed. So we drove over to one of the nicer furniture stores in Princeton.

Luxe Home Company had a large selection of leather sectionals. We sat on all of them. Once we decided on the most comfortable one to sit on, we both lay down on it to make sure it was comfortable enough, and for me, long enough for naps. Elle especially liked the curved center piece. She thought it would be a cozy place to nestle while she nursed the baby.

That decided, I headed into another room to look at recliners while Elle strolled off to check out coffee tables. She decided that a square shaped one would work better with our new couch than the rectangular shaped ones that we already owned.

I found the perfect chair. It fit my tall frame just right and was extremely comfortable. It had clean lines, looked elegant and I knew it would work in whichever room I decided for its home. I leaned back and closed my eyes, figuring this was a good place to wait while Elle finished looking at coffee tables.

I must have dozed off. Other than a nightmare, why else would I be hearing Stacy's voice? I shook myself awake. When I opened my eyes, I realized that it hadn't been a dream. She was standing right in front of me.

Her hand covered her mouth: "Oh my God. What are you doing here?"

I shrugged: "What do most people do in furniture stores?"

"They shop for new furniture, but you haven't replaced anything in years. You hate change."

I shrugged: "I've changed. I _embrace_ change now."

She smirked: "Yeah, right. A leopard doesn't change his spots. You'll be living in that apartment with that same ratty furniture until they haul your ass off to the grumpy doctors retirement home."

I narrowed my eyes at her: "Wanna make a little friendly wager on that?"

Before she could answer, Mark strolled up. I immediately noticed he was sans cane and walking with just a slight limp. Lucky bastard.

"House! How the hell are you? Strange running into you here."

"Hmm, I live in Princeton and I'm in a Princeton store, whereas you live in Short Hills, quite a distance away and yet you are shopping here. It seems stranger that you are here. Are you stalking me?"

He actually chuckled: "No. We heard this place has a great selection of leather recliners so we thought we would drive down and check it out."

Stacy said in a smug tone: "We're also having dinner with James and Lisa tonight."

"Really? Have you seen them lately?"

She shook her head: "No, it's been over a year. She said she had big news for me. Care to give me a little hint?"

"And spoil the surprise? Oh no, that would be a mean thing to do to Cuddy. I couldn't do that. Besides I don't even know what the big news is."

"Yeah, right. You know everything that goes on at that hospital. You're just playing me."

"Nope. I honestly don't know anything _new_ with Cuddy." After all, her pregnancy was old news to me. I wondered where they were having dinner. It would be fun to be a fly on the wall, or a bum at the bar and see the look on Stacy's face when she first saw Cuddy's protruding belly.

And speaking of surprises, Elle waddled back into the room just then. Stacy and Mark had their backs in her direction so they didn't see her approach. As she walked towards me, she said: "Greg, I found a coffee table that I like. I want you to see it. Did you find a recliner?"

She was completely focused on me and seemed not to notice them at all until Stacy practically screamed: "Oh my God! She's pregnant."

Her eyes went wide and she clamped her hand over her mouth as if to prevent any more outbursts.

I had never seen Stacy lose her composure quite like that and it was a sight to behold. I longed for some popcorn and wished that someone were taping this for later viewing on YouTube.

Elle swung her head around and looked at Stacy. Then she pretended to smack herself in the forehead and said: "Oh, that explains why my stomach got so big. I just thought I was fat. Thanks for clearing that up for me."

In contrast to Stacy's shock at seeing Elle, Mark was smiling and laughing. "House, you dog, you knocked her up. Congratulations! Elle, you look fantastic. How far along are you?"

She gave him a smile and answered: "Thank you and I'll be at thirty-one weeks this Tuesday."

He had a huge grin on his face: "Do you know what you're having?"

Elle rubbed her belly with her left hand, her ring, barely fitting on her swollen fingers, in plain sight. "It's a girl."

"A daughter? That's great, but poor kid. Her daddy probably won't let her date until she's 21."

He shot me a wink. Mark Warner winking at me? I was back in the Twilight Zone.

I stood up and wrapped an arm possessively around Elle's shoulders. "Twenty-one? No way. No dating until she's 30."

Elle giggled, Mark laughed and Stacy just shook her head. "Looks like you have a few surprises yourself. Did you two get married?"

Elle leaned into me and I took that as a sign that I should answer. "Not yet. We thought we would wait until the Rug-rat is old enough to be our flower girl and then do the deed."

Again there was a positive response to my little joke from Elle and Mark and a negative headshake from Stacy. I stared at her and wondered what was going through her brain? Had she been hoping that I was alone again, so perhaps she might be able to indulge in some _curry_ from time to time? It was interesting that her husband was able to express joy about our news and that she couldn't or wouldn't.

Elle broke the silence: "Mark, I see you've lost your chick magnet."

He nodded: "Yup, I'm into hands-free walking again. It took a little getting used to, but I'm OK with it now. I wasn't getting the babes with that plain brown cane anyway."

"Told ya to get one with flames. Worked for this guy." She patted me on the chest.

He smirked: "I see that. So you're out buying furniture. I guess with the new addition, you'll be moving to a bigger place."

Elle answered: "We bought a house. Just closed on it Friday."

"And we christened it an hour later."

Mark pointed at Elle's belly: "In her condition?"

I whispered conspiratorially: "Those pregnancy hormones make 'em really horny."

Elle blushed: "Greggggg."

I rubbed her belly: "C'mon Elle. You knew we'd have to tell the kids where babies come from one day."

She smirked at me: "Well, I just didn't think it would be so soon."

Stacy snarled: "You two are just meant for each other. C'mon Mark, let's get out of here."

I interjected: "But I thought you were looking for a recliner. This one is really nice." I pointed to the one next to where I had been sitting.

Mark's eyes followed Stacy as she stalked away. Shaking his head, he turned back to us. "Guess we're leaving. Congratulations again. _I'm_ happy for you." He turned and followed his wife out of the store.

Elle and I looked at each other. She smirked: "Well, that was interesting."

She tugged on my hand: "I want to show you the coffee table."

I kissed the top of her head: "If you like it, we'll get it. I want this recliner. It sleeps well."

We placed our order and were told that the furniture would be delivered in 6 weeks. We could make do until then. My old couch could go in the living room until the new one arrived.

Later that evening, Wilson called to tell me about their dinner with the Warners. He had answered the door while Cuddy was in the bathroom. Stacy had immediately started going off about 'House's knocked-up girlfriend' and before Wilson could say anything, Cuddy walked back into the room.

Stacy had exclaimed: "Oh my God, you're both knocked up! What the hell is going on?"

Cuddy had frowned: "Both who? What are you talking about?"

Wilson had explained: "They ran into House and Elle at the furniture store today."

Stacy had gone on: "Can you believe it? Greg never wanted kids. The little slut trapped him."

Wilson sounded proud as he told me how Cuddy went off on Stacy. "How dare you call Elle a slut when she's the best thing that ever happened to House. He's happy now and he wants this baby. _You_ left him, met someone else and got married. _You_ went on with your life and finally he has too. You should be happy for him, not carrying on this way. What the hell is wrong with you?"

Mark finally opened his mouth and stated calmly: "Stacy may love me but she just never really got over him, did you, dear?"

Wilson laughed as he described the look on Stacy's face as the three of them stared at her waiting for an answer. Apparently she resembled a pale fish, opening and closing her mouth with no sound coming out. Finally, she managed to say: "I think we should go."

Mark had nodded: "Thanks for the invite, sorry we can't stay for dinner. Oh, and congratulations by the way. Do you know what you're having?"

Wilson had replied that it was a boy.

Mark had smirked: "And they're having a girl. It's a match made in heaven."

Wilson laughed when he relayed that last remark to me. I growled: "When they hit the teenage years, your kid is not coming within a mile of my daughter."

He laughed again: "We'll see, House. We'll see."


	64. Chapter 64

Chapter 64

_**ELLE**_

I don't know how I would have gotten through the next week without Ricky. He freed up his mornings for the week so that he could help me with the house. We got estimates from painters on Monday and Tuesday, did further planning on the nursery and then he drove me to work. On Wednesday, he took the whole day off. We went and bought all the paint and supplies we needed to start the nursery and I got one last painting estimate. That night, I discussed the painters with Greg and he told me to pick the one I thought was best. I did just that on Thursday morning and they put us on their schedule to start the following week. We already had the movers scheduled for the 29th and they promised to have the house painted by then.

Ricky spent the weekend working on the nursery. Both he and Greg did not want me breathing the paint fumes so I stayed away. Ricky called on Sunday evening, saying to come and take a look. I couldn't believe that he had finished the entire room in just one weekend, but he had. I couldn't wait to see it so Greg drove us right over.

It was amazing. Fluffy white clouds dotted the sky blue ceiling. All sorts of colorful flowers 'grew' in the garden. There were daisies, tulips, roses, daffodils and sunflowers. Butterflies and dragonflies flitted around the room. Ladybugs crawled on big green leaves. The most spectacular part was the tree. Ricky had painted a large tree in the spot between the windows, where I had planned to put the crib. The tree was so large that the branches 'grew' up to and spread across part of the ceiling as if to shade her crib. And next to the tree was Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet, pointing up at a large yellow butterfly flying overhead.

Ricky said: "I hope you don't mind me adding a little extra touch there."

I exclaimed: "Oh, no, I love it. In fact, maybe you could put Eeyore in the middle of that patch of daisies. I think he would look cute there."

Ricky laughed: "Sure, no problem."

Greg didn't say anything, but I could tell by the light in his eyes that he approved. Our Rug-rat had a really pretty, colorful room. I couldn't wait to get the furniture here and have it all set up before she arrived. I only had one more month left.

The painters started on Monday. They had made decent progress by Wednesday when Greg and I drove over to check on them. It seemed like they would have no problem finishing by our move-in date.

I still hated the fact that I couldn't drive any more, but I was coping with it. Lady took me grocery shopping on Mondays and then she would drive me to work before returning to the apartment to finish cleaning. On the other days, if Greg couldn't pick me up, he arranged for someone to come and get me. Usually it was Ricky or Gen, but one time it was poor Jimmy. He said he didn't mind, but I hated to put him out this way. Oh well, it was only for a few more weeks and no one seemed to mind.

Gen and Theresa threw me a baby shower at Gen's house on Saturday afternoon. They invited Susan, Bonnie, Miriam and Sharon from PPTH and a few of the waitresses from Satchel's. Avi, Ricky, Lisa and Jimmy were there, of course, and so were Tony's wife Nancy and his Mom who was Theresa's aunt. It was a little strange seeing Tony's Mom again, but she gave me a big hug and seemed so happy for us that the feeling quickly passed. Audra was wearing her favorite Tigger shirt for the occasion and bouncing like Tigger all over the room.

Greg let out a low groan when we entered the room. I wasn't sure if it was due to the crowd of people or the decorations. This type of event was definitely not his thing. Everything was decorated with Pooh. There were Pooh plates, cups, napkins and matching tablecloth. There were yellow and black balloons that resembled honeybees. Of course, the cake was decorated with Pooh and his friends. Greg's eyes crinkled in amusement when he saw the centerpiece: a large stuffed Pooh that was wearing leather biker gear. Scattered around the table were small honey pots filled with Bit O'Honey candy. Greg immediately grabbed a couple of pieces and stuffed them in his mouth.

I whispered in his ear: "The Italian coalition is here, which means there will be tons of food. Save room."

He smirked: "Like _that_ is ever a problem for me."

It was quite an impressive spread. There were mini-quiches, stuffed mushrooms, and pigs-in-a-blanket. There was a large veggie tray with ranch dressing for dipping. Gen made a big tray of finger sandwiches: pimento cheese, egg, tuna and chicken salad. Bonnie had made her famous sausage braid and Miriam had brought hot Mexican seven-layer dip with tortilla chips. Tony's Mom made mini-meatballs and Nancy had brought lasagna. With Tony's family, there seemed to be an unwritten law that there had to be lasagna at every party.

Greg was not in his comfort zone with this big crowd of people and he actually seemed quite relieved when Audra claimed the chair next to him. While we ate, she rehashed, in great detail, the Pooh movie that she had recently seen. It was enthralling, watching Greg converse so intently with her. He even admitted that Eeyore was his favorite character. I smiled inwardly; I couldn't wait to see him interact with our baby.

Greg piled some of everything on his plate and proceeded to shovel it in his mouth with gusto while Audra daintily nibbled on a pig-in-a-blanket.

She made gagging noises as she watched Greg gobble a pimento cheese sandwich. "Gross."

"What's gross about it? Tastes good."

She poked at the one on his plate with her pinkie finger. "It's orange and squishy."

He shrugged: "You don't have to eat it. Tigger will eat the leftovers. Squishy food makes him bounce better."

"If I eat it, will I bounce better?"

Greg nodded solemnly: "It is entirely possible."

Audra swiped his sandwich and took a couple of tentative bites. Then she smiled and started bouncing in her chair. "Hey, House, I feel bouncy already."

"I bet if you ate a meatball, it would make you even more bouncy."

Her eyes got big: "Yeah, it's a ball and balls bounce, right? Will you put one on my plate?"

"Please," prompted Gen.

Audra said: "Please put one on my plate."

Greg scooped up several with the serving spoon, dropped one on her plate and the rest on his. He picked up his fork and was about to resume eating when Audra tugged on his sleeve. "Could you cut it for me, please?"

He leaned over and cut her meatball into 4 pieces. She happily speared one and stuck it in her mouth.

Greg watched her eat. "They're good, right?"

Audra nodded enthusiastically: "Yeah, they are."

She swallowed the first bite and stuck another one on her fork. She bounced in her seat as she chewed: "I'm really feeling bouncy now!"

Greg chuckled softly and turned his attention back to his own plate.

Avi got in on the action. "Hey I wonder if the olives would make you feel bouncy. They are round like a ball too."

Audra made a face: "Ewwww, no. They look like green eyeballs."

Avi said: "Humph, really?"

He palmed two of them, ducked his head and when he poked his head back up, the green olives were stuck between his eyelids with the red pimento displayed right in the middle. They really did look like grotesque eyeballs.

Audra squealed. Lisa, Gen and Tony's Mom rolled their eyes while the rest of the table laughed at his antics.

Not to be outdone, Ricky stuck two olives in his eyes and inserted two carrot sticks under his upper lip so they stuck out like tusks. Then Avi grabbed two celery sticks and did the same. They leaned their heads against each other and resembled some sort of alien beings. They looked so silly that this time everyone laughed. Theresa snapped a quick photo with her cell phone.

We all ate until we were stuffed. Greg outdid himself, eating three platefuls. Tony's Mom smiled in approval as he loaded with plate with her meatballs for the third time. She really enjoyed watching people eat her food.

After we finished eating, Gen announced it was time to play a few baby shower games and then we would open the gifts. A look of sheer horror flashed across Greg's face at the word 'games', but he quickly disguised it. Fortunately he was saved from participating when Adam stood up and announced that he had cigars for smoking out on the back porch if any of the men wanted to join him. Greg, Jimmy and Avi stood up and made a hasty exit with him.

Ricky and all the ladies adjourned to the living room to play. Theresa bought out a shoebox full of rice and explained that there were safety pins mixed in with the rice. We had to close our eyes and pick out as many as we could. It's harder than it sounds. Without sight, it was difficult to discern the safety pins from the rice. I failed miserably, finding only six. Joyce, one of the waitresses at Satchel's, won this game; she managed to dig out eighteen. She received a small stuffed Piglet for her prize.

The next game was 'guess my tummy size'. Everyone took turns cutting a piece of yarn that they thought was the exact size of my belly. Then each piece was wrapped around my middle to see who came the closest. Sharon from PPTH came amazingly close; she was only off by about an inch. She won a small stuffed Pooh bear.

There was a big poster of Eeyore on the wall and we played Pin the Tail on Eeyore. Each contestant was blindfolded, spun around and then tried to walk to the poster and get the tail in the correct spot while the rest of us shouted encouragement or false directions. I passed on playing this game; I got dizzy too easily these days. Bonnie ended up sticking the tail on poor Eeyore's eye and Susan pinned the tail completely off the picture. We let Audra took several turns until she finally managed to pin it in the right place. Her prize was a cute stuffed Eeyore.

The next game involved tossing teething rings into a big honey pot. I didn't do too badly; I got three out of six. Surprisingly, Tony's Mom got six out of six. We were all rather impressed with her hand-eye coordination. Gen gave her a stuffed Rabbit for a prize, which she promptly gave to Audra.

The last game was by far the funniest. It was blindfold diapering. Six large dolls were placed on the table with a disposable diaper next to it. Theresa asked for volunteers who stood in front of their doll and put on the blindfolds. The one who did the best job the fastest would be the winner. Nancy's diaper came out looking completely professional and she claimed it was all those years of changing diapers while still half asleep. Ricky was only seconds behind her and he claimed that having five younger siblings had given him a lot of practice. There was only one prize left, a stuffed Owl, so they jointly decided to give it to Audra.

Gen had taken photos while we played the games so we passed around the digital camera and laughed at the shots. Ricky got a good laugh of his photo during the diaper game, black blindfold across his face, his tongue sticking out between his lips in concentration. After we all had a look at the pictures, Gen sent Audra out back to get the guys. It was time to open the presents.

We laughed as we hear her high-pitched voice say: "Daddy, you gotta come in now. It's time to open the presents. And don't bring that yucky cigar inside. You know, Mama doesn't like it. Come on, Uncle Avi. House, don't you want to see the presents? They are for _your_ baby!"

A few minutes later, they all trooped inside. Audra was holding Adam and Avi's hands and seemed to be dragging the two of them as they pretended reluctance about joining the group.

I patted the spot next to me on the couch and Greg plopped his butt down. He seemed ill at ease.

I whispered in his ear: "This is the fun part. Presents! Free stuff!"

He smirked and relaxed a little bit.

Nancy and Theresa took charge of handing the presents to us to open, with a little assistance from Audra. Gen pulled out a small notebook to keep track of the gifts so that I could properly thank people later, since cards often got separated from the gifts. And there were so many gifts. I was touched by the generosity of our friends.

The first two boxes were rather large. I took one and Greg tackled the other. When the paper was ripped off, his revealed a large box of diapers and mine was a Boppy 'Cradle in Comfort' bouncer. The two boxes were a joint present from Susan, Bonnie and Miriam. The bouncer was great. It had a detachable toy bar with a little dragonfly and a little sunflower. The bouncer vibrated and played melodies too.

Greg muttered: "You got to open the good present. I got the diapers."

I snickered: "Diapers are a good present. We'll be going through a lot of them."

When Theresa handed us the next two boxes, I took the one that looked like a box of diapers and gave the other one to Greg. Sure enough, mine was diapers and his was a Diaper Genie. This was a very thoughtful gift from Adam and Gen. Greg muttered under his breath: "Great. Diapers and a place to put the shitty ones. Didn't anyone give us toys?"

Sharon gave me a Hooter Hider nursing cover and a Boppy nursing pillow. She said those items were indispensable for nursing mothers. Greg and Jimmy both got a good laugh out of the name. Lisa elbowed Jimmy reminding him that she would need one of those soon too. Greg smirked: "Yeah, hope they make that cover in extra large." Lisa shot him one of her death glares.

Next was a big box that we opened together. It was a joint gift from the girls at Satchel's, Joyce, Lexi, Michelle and Barb. It was a baby bathtub filled with baby shampoo, body wash, lotion, wipes, washcloths, a hooded towel, and a toy duck that doubled as a bath thermometer. The bottom of the duck will light up if the water is too hot for the baby. I had everything I needed to bathe the baby. Greg mumbled something about testing the duck out right away to make sure it worked.

Tony's Mom gave us a pink frilly dress, with matching bonnet, ruffled lace bloomers, lace-trimmed socks and teeny little Mary Jane shoes. She will look like a little doll in that outfit. I could tell by the one raised eyebrow that my baby daddy thought it was way too girly for his taste, but he kept his mouth shut. The box also contained a soft stuffed pink bunny, which Greg pronounced 'cute'.

Jimmy and Lisa gave us a Fisher Price Rainforest 1-2-3 Musical Gym. It was a soft gym that had three modes. You could lay the baby on her back so that she could look up at the suspended toys. Then when she was old enough to hold her head up, she could lie on her tummy to play with the different toys. Later on she could sit on the mat to play. It was a great present and very colorful. It would blend well with her garden room. They also got us a car seat, which Greg inspected closely. It was a Graco SafeSeat, which I knew was one of the highly rated ones. It was also rather expensive.

I was overwhelmed with emotion. "You all have been so generous. I can't believe you got us all this stuff. It is so sweet of you."

Theresa gave Nancy a look. "Geez, Elle, hope you're not too overwhelmed. There is still a little more to come."

I wiped my eyes. "Oomigod, really?"

Theresa nodded: "Yeah, one more big one and then a few smaller ones. Nancy, bring over the big box. Elle, House, this one is from the two of us."

I couldn't believe it. They had gotten us a stroller. It was a Graco Quattro Tour Sport Stroller. It came with a detachable infant seat that could double as a car seat, which meant we now had one for each car.

I was blown away by their generosity. "This is amazing. You guys have been so wonderful. I can't thank you enough."

I could feel the tears coming, something that happened easily to me in this hormonal late stage pregnancy time.

Avi shouted out: "Oh, don't start the waterworks. You haven't opened our gifts yet."

Ricky grabbed the remaining boxes and set them on the coffee table. Two boxes were wrapped in butterfly paper and the other was wrapped in teddy bear paper. Ricky pointed to the dissimilar box: "There's no card on this one, but these other two are from Avi and myself."

I handed one to Greg to open and then started ripping the paper off the other one. I started laughing when I saw the contents. My box was full of bibs and not the girly pink kind either. Greg leaned over, took a look and let out a soft chuckle. I pulled them out of the box one by one to show them off.

The first bib was white and in red letters were the words: "Got Milk?"

The next one was denim blue with a green alligator on it with the words: "Caution: might bite when hungry." The third bib was green with a large yellow sheriff's star on it that said: "I'm the boss around here." And the last one got the biggest laugh: "Feed me or nobody sleeps." Nancy moaned: "Oomigawd, that is so true."

When the laughter died down, I nudged Greg to open his box. He ripped off the paper and tilted the lid so that only he could see the contents. Smirking, he said: "Oh, if you liked the bibs, you're going to love these."

The box was full of little onesies. These were not the frilly girly type either.

The first one was yellow with brown letters that said: "Spoiled Rotten (or is that my diaper?). The men laughed and women groaned at that one.

The next one that Greg held up was blue with black letters that said: "I only cry when ugly people hold me." Greg mumbled under his breath: "This one should be a lot of fun."

The third one had a picture of a crib and the words: "Party at my crib, 2 AM." Nancy nodded: "Oh yeah, that's their favorite time to party."

Greg started chuckling softly at the next one. When he held it up, he directed it right at Lisa, and said: "Did you have one of these when you were a baby?" She shot daggers at him with her eyes. It was the only pink onesie in the box and the message printed on it said: "Does this diaper make my butt look big?"

There was a brown one with a picture of a guitar that said: "It's OK. I'm with the band." That got a cheer from Adam. Another one had a picture of a baby bottle with the message: "I like to hit the bottle."

Ricky laughed: "Once we got started buying these, we couldn't stop."

And the last one made Greg groan. He tried to close the box so we couldn't see it, but I yanked the lid away. I grinned when I saw it and proudly displayed it to the others. The onesie was white with pink letters: "My fingers may be small, but I've already got Daddy wrapped around them." Greg rolled his eyes and everyone else cracked up. Greg mumbled under his breath: "I'm sure that one is going to get lost in the wash."

I muttered back: "Don't even think about it. I like this one."

"You would."

He reached over to the coffee table and grabbed the last box. "So should we open this one? There's no card, what if it's anthrax or something?"

I gave him an indulgent smile: "I'm sure when we open it the giver will identify themselves."

"Not if it's something deadly like anthrax."

"Oh, give me that. I'll open it."

He clutched it to his chest: "I saw it first. I'll do the dirty work and open the gift. You can have the good jobs like changing the poopy diapers."

It was my turn to roll my eyes. He ripped the paper off and removed the lid.

He smirked and said in a low voice: "Oh, yeah." He glanced over at Wilson and then said: "It's safe, no anthrax."

He held up a lime green onesie with a picture of Gravedigger on it and the words 'Digger Dungeon'. It was completely obnoxious and I couldn't imagine my daughter wearing it. Naturally, Greg loved it.

"Now we are talking fashion. Let's see what else is in here."

There was another onesie that was designed to look like the Grave Diggers' driver's race suit. Then he pulled out a black bib that had a picture of the monster truck on it and the words: 'Daddy's little monster'. There was a matching onesie with the same design on it.

He looked at me and said: "We are going to have the coolest dressed kid in town."

After we had cake, people starting drifting out. I stared at the huge pile of gifts and wondered out loud: "How are we going to get all of this home?"

Avi overheard me: "Don't worry, we'll help."

Jimmy said: "We can take some of it in our car too. We may as well take it right to your new home. No sense in taking it to the apartment and having to move it again next week."

Lisa piped in: "Yeah, then you can give us the grand tour of your new place."

Everyone helped load the gifts. We managed to fit everything into the three cars and then we took off for our new home. I felt a thrill when Greg punched the garage door opener and we drove right into the garage.

I sighed: "This is so great. Having a garage like this is going to be so wonderful in inclement weather. We won't have to struggle to get the baby in out of the rain or snow."

Greg nodded: "Yeah, it will be nice."

I smiled at him: "You found us a great house, cowboy. It's just perfect for us."

He smiled at the complement. I threw my arms around his neck and planted a big kiss on his lips. Greg let out a small moan and then his tongue started playing with mine. His hands wandered down my back to cup my ass and pull me closer to him. We were completely lost in each other when there was a loud rapping on the car window. We both jumped in surprise.

Naturally, it was Jimmy. "Can't you two keep your hands off of each other for five minutes?"

Greg snarked: "We did on the drive over. We need to make up for lost time now."

Jimmy just rolled his eyes.

We unloaded the cars and then took them on a tour of the house. Lisa was completely amazed by the nursery and complemented Ricky profusely on his artwork. Wilson loved the kitchen. Naturally the men all loved Greg's room and they thought the basement would make a good game room. Avi suggested we get a big screen TV, pool table and foosball table for down there.

I patted my belly. "We'll see. Right now we need to concentrate on the other rooms of the house."

Greg interjected: "Yeah, we need to make sure the cable is connected before we move in. Gotta have the TV all set up."

I had to laugh at his set of priorities. "I'll make sure that gets taken care of next week."

I asked Lady to come over every day this week. There was just so much that had to be done. We started packing the personal items that Greg and I didn't want the movers to pack. He wanted to personally transport the guitars, computers and a few other things. The painters finished on Wednesday and I scheduled the cable guys to come over on Thursday morning. Lady took me over there on Thursday so I could meet with the cable people and show them what we wanted. While I was busy with them, Lady started a thorough cleaning of the house. They finished hooking up the cable and Internet services by 12:15 and Lady drove me to work. I had given her a key so that she could return and finish cleaning. I had already decided that I wanted to have her two days a week now. This house was so much bigger than the apartment and with the baby, I decided that I needed the extra help, and Greg immediately agreed. Lisa and Jimmy had also decided that they wanted her two days a week after their baby was born, so we worked out a schedule that she would come to our place on Mondays and Thursdays and to Lisa's on Tuesdays and Fridays.

I took Friday off from work to supervise the packing. The movers swarmed in and packed up the books, kitchen items and various other things in our two apartments. That took all day, but everything was set for them to move the furniture and the boxes on Saturday.

The movers were rapping on our door at 8AM. Greg groaned at the earliness of the hour, but let them in. Jimmy, Avi, Ricky and Adam showed up right afterwards to help us move the more personal items. They also brought coffee and bagels, which were a welcome sight since the kitchen was already packed up. The guys loaded stuff in the back of my Honda and Jimmy's Volvo. Adam stayed behind to supervise the movers on that end and to deal with the piano mover who was due to arrive around noon. The apartment would be empty by then and it would be easier for him to maneuver the piano with all the other furniture out of the way. Ricky drove my car while Greg and Jimmy each drove their own. I rode over with Greg while Avi rode with Ricky.

We really got busy when the movers arrived at our new house. Greg, of course, would not let me pick up anything. I was relegated to the kitchen to unpack boxes and put things away. That was all right as I wanted to set up the kitchen to my liking anyway. The guys unloaded the cars and directed the movers where to put everything.

By 6PM, everything had been moved into our new house. The piano was in its designated corner and the couch was in its temporary home in the living room. Our bedroom had all its familiar furniture in it and the guest room contained my IKEA bedroom suite. Avi and Adam hooked up the flat screen TV's. While Greg ordered pizza, I flopped on the couch and closed my eyes. There was still so much to do, but I was exhausted. We could do more unpacking tomorrow. The nursery furniture wasn't arriving for another two weeks, so I didn't have to worry about her room just yet. I was a little worried that the furniture delivery was timed so close to my delivery date, and hoped that the furniture would get here first. It was cutting it a little close. I decided to call the company next week and double check on the delivery. I only had one more week to work and it would be nice if I could get the baby's room all set up during the week that I was off before the delivery. Maybe I could just pay for express delivery and get it here sooner. My nesting instinct had really kicked in and I wanted everything all set up now.

We sat around eating pizza and enjoying the new TV. After dinner, the guys took off with our profuse thanks for helping out. Greg helped me make the bed and then we collapsed into it. It was our first night in our new home and we were just too tired to christen the bedroom. Greg spooned up against my back and we fell asleep almost immediately. We slept until 10 and woke refreshed enough to christen the room. We lazed around in bed for another hour and then finally wandered out to the kitchen. I made coffee and warmed up some leftover pizza for breakfast. We needed groceries; we needed to do some more unpacking and I was just exhausted thinking about it.

Greg picked up on my mood. "Elle, most of what's left can wait. You got the kitchen all set up. Let's finish our room and our bathroom and go out and get groceries. That is enough for one day. I don't want you to wear yourself out. It's simply going to take us a week or so to finish, so don't get all OCD about it."

It only took us an hour to finish those rooms and then we took a long relaxing shower. Our new shower was so big compared to our old tub and there was plenty of room for the two of us plus my big belly. Greg soaped me all over and then washed my hair. I felt blissfully relaxed and almost nodded off as he toweled me dry. He chuckled and steered me to the bed. "C'mon, little Mama, let's take a nap."

I mumbled: "But we need groceries."

"We'll get them when we wake up. Sleep now."

I didn't need to be told a second time. I snuggled into his embrace and fell asleep with his nice clean manly scent in my nose.

We woke around 4 and then went out for groceries. I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner. The dining room set wasn't due to arrive for another two weeks, so we ate on the couch as usual. After we finished eating, I snuggled up to Greg and he draped his arm around my shoulders. I sighed with contentment. The house was only half-furnished and there were still a ton of boxes to be unpacked, but we were home. In two weeks and two days, there would be three of us. Greg was right; I had plenty of time to get ready.


	65. Chapter 65

Chapter 65

_Monday March 31, 2008_

_**Elle**_

I couldn't believe it was my last week of work. It seemed like my pregnancy had just flown by. Of course, under normal circumstances I would have 6 more weeks to go instead of just two, but it still seemed like it went quickly.

Lady had dropped me off at 12:30 and I saw patients right up until 5PM. I had a full schedule today and no vacant slot for a quick nap. I was certainly happy to see the last patient leave. I finished my notes and gathered the files to take them down to Jimmy's office.

I locked my office door and turned towards the elevator. Just as I reached it, the doors opened and Greg stepped off.

"I was just heading down. Were you coming to pick me up?"

He shook his head: "Gotta go see Gus, get my prescription."

"Oh, I forgot you had your appointment today."

He glanced around. There was no one in the hall so he gave me a quick kiss and a belly rub. "I won't be long. 15 minutes tops."

"That's fine. Don't rush. I'm going to take these files to Jimmy and then I'll wait in your office."

He nodded, gave me another kiss and headed down to Chris' office. I boarded the elevator and punched the button for '4'.

_**Wilson**_

I glanced at the clock and realized that I still had 10 minutes until my next appointment. It was my last appointment of the day and I couldn't wait for it to be over. I hated giving people bad news and I especially hated giving parents bad news about their children. This was a really sad case. The Pollards had been married for 5 years before they decided that they were ready to have a child and then found they couldn't get pregnant. After 3 years of fertility treatments and 2 miscarriages, Mrs. Pollard had finally been lucky enough to carry the child to term. Bobby was the apple of their eyes and he was going to die in a very short period of time. Bobby had a very aggressive type of cancer known as malignant rhabdoid tumor of the kidney. It is probably the most lethal of all childhood cancers; there is only a 23% survival rate and for some reason, girls survive longer than boys. Bobby was only 16 months old, but he had already got through surgery to remove the tumor, five rounds of chemo and radiation, but still the cancer had spread. There was nothing else that I could do. I dreaded giving them this sad news.

They finally arrived, five minutes late, for the appointment. Mrs. Pollard, a short, thin woman, looked tired and haggard as if she had spent too many sleepless nights. Mr. Pollard was a big beefy guy who looked like he could bulldoze his way through a wall. Today his jaw was clenched and his chin jutted out defiantly as if to say: hit me with your best shot, I can take it. I wasn't sure how he wasn't going to take this.

I greeted them and had them sit down on the couch. Instead of returning to sit behind my desk, I just leaned against the front of it, remaining in close proximity to extend a physical comfort if needed.

I took a deep breath and began: "Mr. and Mrs. Pollard, I checked Bobby's scans earlier this afternoon. It's not good news. I'm sorry to say that the metastases have now spread into his brain. Like I explained to you when we first met, this type of cancer initially responds to chemo but then quickly becomes refractory to treatment. Bobby had the tumor removed, he's had radiation and five courses of chemo and the cancer has still spread."

Mrs. Pollard started weeping silently as if she knew what was coming next. Mr. Pollard continued to sit silently; his jaw working was the only evidence of his suppressed emotions.

I continued: "I'm sorry to say this, but there really isn't anything else we can do. Giving him more chemo won't help prolong his life and it will make his remaining days more miserable. We have done everything we can. You should take him home, love him and enjoy the time you have left."

Mrs. Pollard buried her face in her hands and sobbed openly. Mr. Pollard stood up, fisting his large hands. "There must be something else. A different chemo combination, something?"

His tone was pleading, almost begging, but I had no hope to offer. "I'm sorry but there isn't. Bobby's tumor was Stage IV when it was discovered; it had already spread from the tumor of origin. We hit him with the most current treatment, vincristine-doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide alternating with cyclophosphamide-carboplatin-etoposide. But it wasn't enough to stop this aggressive cancer. Giving him more chemo will not prolong his life."

His voice shook as he said these next words: "But he's our only child."

My heart ached for him. I thought of my baby growing in Lisa's womb and wondered how I would handle this type of news if it were my own child. I didn't think I would handle it very well.

Softly I said: "I know. And I'm so sorry. I wish I could do more."

He just stared at me for a moment; the only sound in the room was his wife's sobbing. Then the tough façade cracked and a sob escaped. He took two quick steps, yanked the door open and rushed out into the hall. A few seconds later, I heard two bodies collide and there was a cry of pain. A heavy thud followed and then another cry of pain, louder than the first. I hurried into the hall to find the cause. What I saw sent my heart sinking straight to my gut.

**_House_**

I felt like whistling as I walked into Gus' office. The move was accomplished and Elle had not worn herself out in the process. She just had this last week to work and then she could rest until the baby arrived. I was pleased that she was listening to me and taking it easy.

And I was feeling good. I paced myself over the weekend so I wouldn't strain my leg and thought I had done pretty well. Two extra oxy's on Saturday night had been all I needed to keep myself comfortable. I considered that a major accomplishment.

My appointments with Gus had gotten more relaxed over the past months. Once I had gotten stabilized on my new med regimen, we spend most of our time talking about sports and very little on the actual reason for my visit. Married with three kids, he had spent the last few appointments teasing me about my upcoming sleepless nights and today was no different.

"So the baby will be here before our next appointment, huh? You'll have bags under your eyes so big that you'll be able to put $100 worth of groceries in them."

"At today's prices, that's not that much food. And Elle is going to breastfeed, so since the 'bottles' are attached to her body, she'll be the one getting up in the middle of the night."

"Ha, you think you won't be getting up? She'll want you to bring her a glass of water and put the kid back to bed when she has finished nursing. The baby will need to be changed. Trust me, you'll be losing sleep too."

We went on like that for a while and then we spent 5 minutes discussing my pain levels and exercise tolerance. He handed me my prescriptions for my Oxycontin and oxycodone and wished us an easy delivery. As I headed towards the elevators, my pager went off. I pulled the pager out of my pocket as I hit the 'down' button. When I read the message, I felt my blood pressure go through the roof and I jabbed the elevator button several times with my cane, willing it to arrive faster.

**_ELLE_**

I was surprised to see the team in the conference room. I figured that they would be gone by now, but I could tell they were on their way out. Cameron was washing the coffeepot, Foreman was shrugging into his jacket and Chase was shoving a journal into his messenger bag. Chase smiled and waved at me; I turned my head and smiled back. I didn't wave since my arms were full of patient files. Wilson's door burst open and a very large man rushed out. He was sobbing, one hand covering the left side of his face. Jimmy must have given him some bad news. He barreled down the hall, straight towards me. I tried to sidestep him, but my skewed center of gravity prevented quick movement on my part. He saw me at the last minute and shifted to his left while I twisted to my right. These actions prevented a full body slam, but his right shoulder hit my left with enough force that the files went flying and I couldn't stay on my feet.

My only thought was to protect my belly. I threw out my arms but the angle of my fall was such that I ended up landing on my right elbow and the right side of my belly. And I landed hard; it hurt and I cried out. The man didn't even pause; he just kept on barreling down the hall as if he was hoping to outrun death.

_**CHASE**_

I couldn't believe my eyes. One minute, Elle was giving me a friendly smile, and the next a behemoth had knocked her down. She landed with a loud thud and cried out in pain. We stood in shocked silence for a moment, then Foreman cursed and the three of us ran out to her.

Elle was laying on her right side. Tears were pooling in her eyes; she was moaning and holding her belly.

We knelt down next to her. I asked: "Elle, did you hit your head? Did you lose consciousness at all, even for a split second?"

"No, I landed on my elbow and my belly. I didn't hit my head. I didn't lose consciousness. That guy hit me and just took off. What kind of man hits a pregnant woman and runs?"

"The kind of guy who just got the worse news possible."

I turned my head; Wilson had emerged from his office, his arm around a short woman who had tears running down her face. She looked up at Wilson, mumbled an apology, and then rushed towards the elevator.

Wilson knelt down on Elle's left side. "I just told that couple that their son was going to die and there was nothing else that could be done. The husband just stormed out of my office. He's overwrought with grief and I'm sure he didn't realize that he had hit you."

Foreman interjected: "OK, so he has a legitimate reason for blindly running people down. Let's get Elle checked out and _you_ better page House. He said he had an appointment and took off about 15 minutes ago."

Wilson shook his head: "He's going to kill me."

While Wilson pulled out his phone to page House, I sent Cameron to get a BP cuff and checked Elle's pulse. Foreman pulled out his penlight and checked her eyes. He asked her: "And you're sure you didn't hit your head?"

"Positive. The elbow and the belly took it all."

Foreman took off his jacket, folded it and put it under Elle's head. We eased her onto her back and Cameron took her BP. It was actually a little high, 140/85, but that could easily be explained by the traumatic event. I touched her elbow and she cried out in pain.

"Elle, I know it hurts, but can you move your arm?"

She nodded through her tears and flexed her elbow a little.

"We should get it X-rayed, make sure nothing broken. The bone could be chipped; you landed really hard."

"Tell me about it. And my belly hurts right here." She touched the right side of her stomach.

I pressed gently and she winced. "It really hurts. Could I have hurt the baby?"

"I doubt it. It was a hard fall, but not like a car crash. The baby's pretty safe in there, protected by the amniotic fluid and all your muscles. We'll page your OB, probably get an ultrasound and put you on the fetal monitor to check everything out."

She nodded. Cameron took her BP again and it had dropped slightly which I took to be a good sign.

Wilson let out a sigh: "Brace yourself. House is here."

_**House**_

The page simply said: _"Elle, conference room, 911."_ What the fuck? I had just seen her. What could have happened in 10 minutes?

The elevator finally came and I jabbed the button for the fourth floor. The ride from the sixth floor to the fourth seemed to take an hour before the doors finally opened and I rushed towards the conference room as fast as I could.

As I came around the corner, I realized that the conference room was empty and I was momentarily puzzled. But after two more hurried steps, the mystery was solved. The action was in the hall outside the conference room.

Wilson and my team were kneeling on the floor next to a prone person. I couldn't see the face, but I recognized those shoes as I put them on her feet every day. My Elle was lying on the floor surrounded by four doctors. This didn't look good. I steeled myself for the worst.

Barely keeping my anger under control, I barked out: "What the hell happened?"

Everyone tried to answer at once. I couldn't hear the one voice that I wanted to hear the most.

I bellowed: "SHUT UP!"

I gave Foreman a shove and he moved aside so that I could kneel down next to Elle. In a quieter voice, I asked: "What happened?"

She had been crying and looked so sad. Her lip trembled as she said: "A man knocked me down. I landed on my belly and my elbow and they really hurt."

Her left hand was protecting a spot on the right side of her belly while she had her right arm close to her side. I put my hand over hers and said: "Let me see." She winced as I palpated, but didn't cry out. She'd probably have a huge bruise there later, but my main concern was getting the baby checked out. I needed to get Elle up to L & D right away.

"Have you felt the baby move since you fell?"

She shook her head.

I kept my face as blank as possible. That didn't necessarily mean anything bad. The Rug-rat could just be sleeping right now.

"Did you hit your head? Did you lose consciousness?"

"No on both."

"What else? You said your elbow hurts."

She nodded. I tried to examine her elbow as gently as possible, but she whimpered so I stopped. Bluntly, I said: "We are going to need to X-ray that. But first you're going up to L & D and get checked over. Someone grab a wheelchair."

Wilson rose and ran off for one.

I turned and looked at my team. "Did you see the guy who did this? Would you recognize him again?"

No one spoke at first and then Cameron said hesitantly: "It happened so fast."

Angrily I said: "This happened right outside the conference room. Are you going to tell me that none of you saw the guy who did this?"

Finally Chase spoke up: "Yeah, we saw the guy. We know who he is, well, Wilson knows who he is. He's the dad of one of Wilson's patients."

Through clenched teeth, I hissed: "What?"

I heard the squeak of the wheelchair as Wilson returned. My eyes narrowed and my nostrils flared. He saw the look on my face and stopped in his tracks.

I stabbed my finger in his direction: "You've got some 'splaining to do."

He held up in hands in a 'stop' motion. "I will tell you all about it. But let's get Elle examined first."

I glared at him as I pulled out my cell phone and punched Alderman's number. She answered on the third ring and I quickly surmised the situation. She urged me to get Elle right over to L & D and I said we'd be there in 5 minutes.

Elle was reluctant to use her right arm, and she was unable to push herself into a seated position with just her left, so Chase helped her to a seated position, and then he and Foreman picked her up in a chair-carry and set her in the wheelchair.

Cameron asked in a hesitant voice: "House, do you want us to?"

My head spun in her direction and I was about to unleash my pent-up anger on her, but Elle answered before I could open my mouth.

In a polite manner, Elle said: "Dr. Cameron, if you don't mind, would you please pick up my files and put them on Dr. Wilson's desk for me? That would be a big help."

Cameron answered: "Sure, no problem."

Foreman said: "I'll give Cameron a hand if you guys don't need me for anything else."

Elle gave Foreman a smile and then said: "Thank you. I appreciate you all coming to my rescue."

I barked: "Chase, you drive. Wilson, you can explain what the hell happened on the way."

We started moving towards the elevator. As we walked, I put my left hand on Elle's shoulder to try to give her a measure of comfort. It was surprising the emotions that welled up in me when I felt when her left hand cover mine. I was angry at what had happened and scared that the baby might be affected. Damn it, she only had 2 weeks left to go.

After the elevator doors had closed, Wilson stammered out an apology and an explanation. I barely heard him as I pondered all the ramifications of Elle's fall. I tried to convince myself that I was worrying for nothing. The baby was well protected inside of Elle. She'd probably have a big bruise there later and nothing else. The elbow needed to be X-rayed as it could be chipped. I didn't think it was broken since she could move it a little.

Suddenly I felt Elle's hand squeeze mine. In a voice, just above a whisper, she said: "I just felt her move."

I squeezed her shoulder and she leaned her head against my arm. With one finger, I stroked her collarbone as I silently let out a breath that I hadn't known I was holding. Then the elevator opened to L & D and we headed out to Alderman's office.

_**ELLE**_

I knew that Greg was masking his fear by lashing out in anger. I was afraid too, that somehow the fall had hurt the baby. When she finally moved in my belly, I felt an enormous feeling of relief. I reasoned that if she was moving, she must be OK. When I informed Greg what had happened, he squeezed my shoulder and I thought that I could sense some of the tension leaving him.

When we arrived on L & D, we were steered immediately into an exam room. With just a little assistance, I managed to rise out of the wheelchair and climb on the exam table. Greg looked around and I was sure that he was going to start playing with the machines, but fortunately Kelly walked in just then.

"What happened?"

"A big guy knocked me down. I landed hard on my right elbow and the right side of my belly. It really hurt."

She motioned me to pull my shirt up as she grabbed the Doppler. "And you didn't hit your head or lose consciousness?"

I was getting really tired of that question, but I responded appropriately. "No, I didn't hit my head or lose consciousness. Chase witnessed it; he can tell you."

Kelly glanced at Chase and he said: "Like Elle said. This big guy slammed into her. His right shoulder connected with her left and she landed on her right side. I didn't see her hit her head and she didn't seem to black out at all. She cried out in pain when she hit and we ran right out to her. Foreman checked her eyes and pupils were normal and reactive. Her BP was 140/90 the first time and dropped to 134/83 the second time."

Kelly nodded her thanks as she squirted the ultrasound gel on my belly. She guided the Doppler over my belly and we heard the heart beat right away. After a few minutes, she said: "130 beats per minute. Right on target."

I let out a deep sigh of relief. Greg took my hand and gave it a squeeze. I looked up at him, surprised at the show of affection in front of Chase. He gave me a small smile and rubbed his thumb across the back of my hand.

Kelly pulled the ultrasound machine over to the exam table. She squirted some more cold gel on my belly and started the exam. I thought the baby looked great; she was so much bigger than the last ultrasound and I was excited to think that I would be seeing her in only two weeks. I got a little unnerved as I observed Kelly, Greg and Chase staring very closely at the monitor.

Kelly murmured: "This might hurt a little", as she ran the probe right over my sore spot.

After a few minutes, I couldn't take the suspense any more. "What exactly are you looking for?"

Kelly answered: "I'm looking for any signs of intrauterine bleeding or sloughing of the placenta. You actually landed right on the placenta."

Alarmed, I cried out: "Is that bad?"

"Any type of trauma to your abdomen could put you at risk for placental abruption, but I don't think you fell hard enough to cause that problem."

I was near tears again, but I managed to blink them away. "But I'm prone to that anyway because of the APS. That's why you're taking the baby early, to lower the risk of that happening."

Kelly nodded: "I know. That's why we are looking carefully for any signs of a problem. I don't see any blood in the amniotic fluid. I don't see any tears or any signs of trauma. The baby looks fine. She is moving her arms and legs and her chest is expanding well. Her heartbeat is normal. You guys see anything strange?"

Chase replied: "Nope."

Greg just shook his head.

Kelly went on: "I need you guys to step out so that I can give Elle a quick internal."

Greg looked at Chase: "Stick around. I want you to X-ray the elbow."

Chase nodded, and then he and Jimmy slipped quietly out of the room.

Between Kelly and Greg, they got my lower half stripped and my feet positioned in the stirrups. It only took Kelly a minute to pronounce: "Everything looks fine. There is no bleeding. Your cervix is completely closed which is what I would expect at 34 weeks. You can sit back up."

I sat up, pulling the little drape across my lap.

Kelly pulled off her exam gloves, tossed them in the trash and then turned back to face me. "Everything looks fine right now. I want to see you back here on Thursday so I can reexamine you and make sure nothing's going on. Elle, I think you should stop working _now_. I'm not going to put you on bed rest, but I want you to relax as much as possible, and you can't do that if you're working. I don't think your fall was that bad, but I don't want you to take any chances. So I want you to stay home and rest, OK?"

I was suddenly gripped by fear. My mother's face floated into my mind and I remembered how she had lost the last baby so late in the pregnancy. I didn't want that to happen to us. I only had two weeks left and I just couldn't lose our Rug-rat now. My lip was trembling and I couldn't speak, so I merely nodded my head in answer to Kelly's question.

Greg looked concerned: "Elle, are you OK?"

I shook my head and I could feel the tears pooling in my eyes. My shoulders shook and Greg wrapped his long arms protectively around me. "What is it, Elle?"

I sniffed: "I'm scared. My Mom."

I couldn't go on; I just burst into tears. He pulled me into his chest and I sobbed all over his shirt. Greg held me and let me cry, making soft, soothing sounds in my ear.

When I finally stopped crying, I was surprised that we were alone in the room and a blanket was wrapped around me. When had that happened?

Greg saw my look of surprise and explained: "Alderman wrapped that around you. She thought we needed some privacy so she stepped out. She's OK."

He looked deeply into my eyes: "Are you?"

I leaned against him: "I'm exhausted."

He kissed the top of my head. "I know and we still need to go X-ray your elbow."

He continued to hold me, rocking us just a little bit. "Are you still scared?"

"Yes."

He gently stroked my hair. "Don't be. Even if she needed to come out today, at 34 weeks, her chances of survival are excellent. She probably weighs close to 5 pounds and she should have sufficient surfactant in her lungs at this point. You just need to take it easy and let her keep incubating. No more stressing about work or getting unpacked or if the nursery furniture will arrive in time. It will all work out."

That made me giggle. "You are being uncharacteristically optimistic. Did you take happy pills today?"

He shook his head: "No. But maybe if I can keep you calm, my blood pressure will go down too."

I clutched him tighter: "Are you scared too?"

He didn't answer me for a moment and then I heard his soft reply: "Shitless."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

We were still holding each other a few minutes later when there was a soft knock at the door. Kelly poked her head in and asked: "You doing OK?"

I nodded: "Yeah, I'm all right."

She handed Elle a card: "I made you an appointment for Thursday at 11. Call me if you have any problems at all, no matter how minor you think they are. Don't do anything strenuous, no lifting anything heavier than 5 pounds and no intercourse."

She glanced at Greg when she said that last bit; he merely nodded as if he had expected that directive.

Kelly went on: "It's probably unnecessary, but I don't want to take any chances. Let's see how you are on Thursday and I may amend that. Go home and rest. I'll see you on Thursday."

I thanked her and she walked out. Greg helped me get dressed and then we wandered out to the reception area to find Jimmy and Chase waiting for us. I obediently climbed into the wheelchair and they whisked me down to X-ray. They wrapped the lead shields all over me before Chase snapped several views of my elbow. Greg and Chase examined them closely but didn't see any breaks or bone chips. My elbow was swollen and already started to bruise, but Jimmy got me an ice pack from the clinic and that helped a little. We headed back to the fourth floor so the guys could collect their things and we could get out of here. Greg told Chase that he was not coming in tomorrow and that Chase should instruct the team to catch up on their charting and do their clinic hours. Chase nodded and said they would call only if a new case popped up.

I thanked him for all of his help and he gave me a smile. "Just glad that I could help. Call me if you guys need anything."

Right after Chase left, Lisa walked in. At 24 weeks, she was now waddling as she struggled with balancing that bulky belly on her thin frame. "How are you feeling, Elle?"

"I'm sore, but I'm doing better. My elbow's not broken and the ice is helping. But I think I'm going to have some ugly bruises tomorrow. Did Jimmy tell you that I can't work anymore?"

She nodded: "Yes, he told me. I'll have my secretary take care of your appointments tomorrow and I'll file all the necessary paperwork. Do you need anything? Want us to get you some dinner?"

Greg shook his head and said solemnly: "No, thank you, Cuddy. We're just going to grab some take-out on the way home."

Her eyes widened at his polite statement of gratitude, but she didn't comment on it. She just said to call them if we needed anything and she headed over to Jimmy's office.

Greg threw his belongings into his backpack and then slung it over his shoulder. "Ready to go, sweetheart?"

I nodded. "KFC?"

He smiled for the first time since our chance meeting in the hall outside my office. "Yeah, a bucket of chicken, finger-licking good. Let's go see the Colonel, babe. I'll drive."

He grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and propelled me towards the elevator.

After a couple of pieces of chicken, a biscuit and some mashed potatoes, I was ready for bed. My elbow was stiff as I brushed my teeth and I knew it would be sore in the morning. The bruises had already reared their purple heads.

We crawled into bed together, but I couldn't lie on my right side like I usually did. Both the elbow and the bruised belly hurt too much for me to lie on that side. I had to turn over, away from Greg and I didn't like that. I started getting weepy again and I berated myself for crying over something so silly.

A long arm wrapped around me. Greg gently pulled me closer until my back was pressed up against his chest. I could feel his soft cock between the cheeks of my tush and I sighed remembering that we weren't supposed to have sex. I rubbed against him, smiling to myself when I felt him start to rise to the occasion.

He whispered: "Naughty girl. I'm trying to sleep and you're trying to entice me into having sex and you know we're not supposed to."

I made a feeble attempt at a joke. "I just needed to know if a black and blue fat lady could make you hot."

He kissed my neck while his hand stroked my lower belly and tangled in my short curlies. "You're not fat. You're just hugely pregnant with my child. And you have to _ask_ if I still find you sexy?"

He pressed his erection firmly against my backside. "You know I do. Pregnant or not, you're the sexiest woman I've ever known."

I rolled on my back to look at him. "Really? But you've been with some really beautiful."

He silenced me with a finger on my lips. "None of them hold a candle to you."

I searched his face; he seemed completely sincere. Perhaps he really meant it and wasn't just trying to placate his overly emotional hugely pregnant girlfriend.

He chuckled as he stroked my cheek: "You looked surprised. Believe me, my little Orca, you are so."

He paused as if searching for the right word. "You are so exuberant in the sack. You act like my dick is the eighth wonder of the world. And the sounds you make. I can just about get off from merely thinking about the groans, moans, squeaks and whimpers that come out of your mouth during my ministrations. Did you know when I enter you slowly, you spread your thighs even wider and let out a long sigh as if our joining is the event you've been waiting for your whole life. And when I enter you fast and hard, you buck up against me and let out a cry that seems to straddle the line between pain and pleasure. When I tease you and bring you just to the edge and then pull back, you wail in frustration wanting more and I give it to you harder and faster until you scream my name in your ecstasy. Your walls clamp me so hard that it takes my breath away and sometimes I can barely let out a moan as I come deep inside you. And I don't want to pull out when we're finished. I want to stay joined because I just can't bear to let you go."

My heart thudded hard in my chest; I never wanted him more in my life and yet we couldn't physically make love tonight. His words alone had made me wet and I was sure that it would take just one touch for me to fall over the edge.

I leaned up and gave him a gentle kiss on his lips. "I love you."

He gave me that smile, the one that lights up his eyes and makes them look even bluer. Then he traced my lips with his finger and said: "I know."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

The next morning Greg actually made me breakfast and brought it to me in bed. OK, it was just a toasted bagel with cream cheese and a glass of orange juice, but it counted in my book.

After breakfast, he gave me an exam. He took my blood pressure and listened to my chest with his stethoscope. I had to take a lot of deep breaths while he moved the stethoscope from spot to spot on my back. I figured he was listening for any signs of congestion, which could be indicative of a possible pulmonary embolism, yet another thing to be concerned about in my precarious condition. Then he had me lay on my back while he moved the stethoscope around my belly until he found her heartbeat. He listened for a few minutes and I watched as a small smile appeared on his face.

Suddenly, he handed the earpieces to me while keeping the bell in place. "Have a listen."

I stuck them in my ears and did just that. The steady thump-thump of her heartbeat was soothing in a way that I could have never imagined. I smiled up at Greg: "She's OK, huh?"

"Heartbeat sounds fine, rate within normal limits. Can't detect any murmurs. How's your boo-boos today?"

He placed his hand gently over the bruise on my belly.

Even that amount of pressure causes me to wince and he moved his hand away.

"They are sore, but I can move my elbow better, see?" I flexed my elbow for him a few times.

He nodded. "Is anything else hurting? Anything bothering you?"

I did a quick body scan and then shook my head. "I just feel tired. The bruised areas are sore and Rug-rat is now kicking my bladder so let me up so I can go pee."

He laughed and got out of my way.

We spent a very relaxing day at home. We showered together and then got dressed. I found that I couldn't stand any pressure on my bruised abdomen so I just slipped on a huge tee shirt and some panties. We spent most of the day on the couch. We watched some TV for a while. Jimmy and Lisa each called to check up on me and we reassured them that I was fine. I spoke to Avi, Ricky and Gen and told them what had happened.

When TV got completely boring, Greg started playing video games while I started reading a book that Lisa had loaned me called _"Outlander"._ I don't usually read this type of fiction, but this one had me hooked from the beginning and I found that I didn't want to put it down. I read straight through Greg's soap and the constant noise of his video games. Finally around 6PM, I felt a finger under my chin and he tilted my face up towards his.

"Hey, bookworm, what's for dinner?"

"Don't know. What are you ordering?"

He chuckled: "Chinese? Thai? What would our Rug-rat like to eat?"

I thought for a minute and then said: "Ravioli and some meatballs. And some garlic bread. And maybe a cannoli."

He chuckled and reached for the phone.


	66. Chapter 66

Chapter 66

**_ELLE_**

On Wednesday morning, I watched as he shook out the last Oxycontin tablet out of the vial. "Crap! I never did get my prescription filled. I'll get Wilson to swing by and pick up the prescription and have it filled for me."

I frowned: "Aren't you going to work today? Why don't you just fill it when you get to the hospital?"

He looked away from me: "I was thinking I'd stay home again today."

"Oh, yeah? Does Lisa know this? What are you doing? You gonna stay home with me until I deliver?"

"Maybe" came the soft reply.

I put my hand on his cheek and gently turned his face so that he was looking at me. "Greg, I'm fine. Give me another check-up if you want, but I'm fine. You don't have to stay home with me."

"Your belly still hurt?"

I nodded: "Yes, it's still sore and so is my elbow. But that's not so surprising, right? These are big bruises. I'm fine. You can go to work."

He squinted at me: "How do I know you're not going to start unpacking or something when I leave?"

I let out a big sigh: "Because I'm not stupid. I may have done some things in the past that you thought were a little reckless, but those days are over. Did you hear me argue with Kelly at all when she told me to stop working?"

In a grudging tone, he answered: "No."

"Were you surprised by that?"

He nodded.

"I want this baby, Greg. I am not going to do anything to mess this up. I'm not going to unpack, do laundry or anything other than spend the day, just like I did yesterday, on the couch with the TV and that book."

He smirked: "You really like that book, huh?"

"Yeah, it's really good."

He ran his hand lightly over my belly for a moment. I knew he was thinking and I waited him out. Finally he said: "Are you sure you feel OK?"

I looked him right in the eye and said: "I swear to you, that I feel fine. If I had any symptoms at all, I'd tell you right away. Besides, you'd go stir-crazy staying home with me until I deliver."

He smirked: "Why? I can nap, watch TV and play games here as well as at work. At least here, I can do it in my boxers and with much more pleasant company."

"Well, if nothing else, you need your prescription filled. Just go in for a little while. You told the team to do the charting and that means you'll need to sign them all. Stay for half a day, sign the charts, get your prescription and come home."

Finally he nodded. "OK. As long as you promise not to swing from the chandeliers and call me if you have any symptoms at all."

I raised my right hand and promised.

Greg and I showered together. I still couldn't stand any pressure on that bruise so I slipped on a tee shirt dress and some panties. Greg got dressed and then he took my blood pressure and listened to my chest again. I assured him that Rug-rat was swimming around nicely, but he had to listen to her heartbeat anyway. While my dress was pulled up, he carefully examined the bruise. "How does it feel?"

"It feels sore. I can't stand any pressure on it, which is why I'm wearing a dress. You know I can't lie on that side. But it doesn't feel any different today than it did yesterday."

He nodded and seemed reassured. He lowered the dress back over my belly and said: "Keep the phone handy. I want you to be able to reach it if something happens."

"And you are going to call and check up on me, aren't you?"

He smirked: "Whaddoya think?"

I walked him to the garage and watched him climb into his car. I waved, blew him a kiss and then went back inside. My cell phone was in the pocket of my dress so it was handy, as he had requested. I had to smile at his overprotectiveness. For a man who had trouble verbally expressing his feelings, his actions spoke volumes. I didn't need him to constantly tell me that he loved me as he showed me in so many ways. As I walked into the kitchen, I rubbed my belly and told the baby: "You really will have Daddy wrapped around your little finger. He is gonna spoil you."

I toasted a bagel and spread some cream cheese on it. I took it to the living room and then went back to the kitchen for some orange juice. Just as I was reaching for a glass, I felt a tightening in my abdomen and then the room spun. I grabbed the edge of the counter to steady myself and wait for the dizziness to pass. It eased up just a bit and I wondered if I could make it all the way to the couch to lie down. I knew if I ended up on the floor, that I wouldn't be able to get myself back up again. I slowly moved across the kitchen, my hand using the wall and the refrigerator to help me keep my balance. Once I crossed the threshold into the living room, the couch seemed a million miles away. I had to cross an open space to get to the couch and I wasn't sure if I could make it with no wall to hold onto.

Maybe it would be better to try for the bedroom. It was further away, but I could hold onto the wall as I made my way down the hall. I took two steps and then realized that my effort was futile. The room was spinning badly now and black was creeping into the edges of my vision. I needed to get my head down now. It was going to have to be the floor. I used the wall to help ease myself down as I pulled my phone out of my pocket. My vision was blurring and I had difficulty finding Greg's cell number amongst all of his listings in my directory. The blackness was closing in and I quickly picked a number, hoping it was the right one, and pressed 'send'.

_**HOUSE**_

I felt edgy as I drove towards PPTH. Elle was right; I did want to stay home with her, or at least, I didn't want her staying home alone. If someone was there, the housekeeper, Ricky, Gen, anyone, I would feel better about leaving her. I knew I was being overprotective, but I feared that something would happen while Elle was alone and not being able to call for help. I felt somewhat reassured that her cell phone was in her pocket and within easy reach.

Then it dawned on me. I should have just called the housekeeper to come over for an extra day. She could keep Elle company and start unpacking the books under Elle's directions. I pulled out my cell phone and groaned when I saw the display. I only had one bar. How had I forgotten to charge it? _Idiot!_ I fumbled in the glove box for the car charger and plugged it in. I glanced up just in time to see that there was an accident up ahead and that the traffic was being rerouted. Great. I negotiated those turns and ended up on Route 27 heading south towards the hospital. I grabbed the phone again and started to punch in the housekeeper's number when smoke started billowing out from under my hood. The car started sputtering and I knew I'd better get off the road fast. I managed to pull over just before the car let out one last loud shudder and died. I waited a moment and then turned the key. Nothing.

Great! I smacked the steering wheel in frustration. Since the battery was now dead, it wouldn't charge the phone so I yanked it out of the car charger and again rummaged around in the glove box. Elle had stashed a couple of emergency phone chargers in both of our cars and that's what I now sought. After a minute of digging through the junk, I found it. The package said it would give me an hour and a half of talk time. I ripped open the package and plugged it in.

_**CHASE**_

I was drinking a cup of coffee and working on the crossword puzzle when the phone rang. Foreman had just walked in and was still taking his coat off. Cameron was by the coffee pot pouring herself a cup. Since I was the closest one to the phone, I hit the speaker button to answer it.

"Diagnostics Department. This is Chase."

A soft voice said: "Greg? Are you there?"

I leaned closer to the phone: "Elle? It's Chase. Are you OK?"

"No, I'm not. I got dizzy again. It was really bad this time. I couldn't make it to the couch. I'm on the floor. There was blackness in my field of vision. I was trying to call Greg's cell, but I couldn't see which number I was pushing. Is he there?"

"He hasn't come in yet."

I could hear the panic in her voice: "He hasn't? But he left 30 minutes ago. He should be there by now."

I motioned to Cameron: "Call House on his cell. See where he is."

Foreman said: "I'll check Wilson's office." He hurried out the door.

I hear her plaintive voice say: "Chase, I'm scared."

"Tell me what happened."

"I felt fine this morning and even insisted that Greg go to work. I came into the kitchen for some juice. I was reaching for a glass when I felt a tightness in my abdomen and suddenly got dizzy. I had to grab the counter; the room was spinning so badly. I tried to make it to the couch but realized that I couldn't do it. So I lay down on the floor and called. I came really close to blacking out though. My vision was blurry and I had a hard time seeing the numbers. I was trying to call Greg's cell. Guess I was a little off."

I looked at Cameron and she shook her head. "I'm not getting him."

In a calm voice, I said: "Cameron is trying to get him now. Are you having any other symptoms?"

"Well I'm on the floor now so I'm not dizzy at the moment. My belly is sore and it feels tight. It's a weird feeling."

"Does it feel like cramps?"

"You mean, like labor pain? I don't think so. Those would be intermittent, right, and this is a constant ache. And it doesn't feel like period cramps or Braxton-Hicks either."

"Does your back hurt? Are you having any spotting?"

"My back hurts a little, but then the floor is hard. I don't think I'm having any spotting, but I can't really check from this angle."

Foreman walked back in with Wilson. The look on his face told me that he had not seen House this morning. He leaned close to the phone's speaker.

"Elle, it's Jimmy. Did House say if he was going to stop anywhere on his way to work?"

"He needed to get his prescription filled. Maybe he stopped at the pharmacy."

Foreman said: "I'm on it." He dashed out of the room and headed towards the stairs.

Elle started to cry. "Jimmy, I'm scared. Please find Greg and come and get me."

"Look, Chase and I will come get you. Cameron and Foreman will hunt House down, OK? Are you near a wall or a chair?"

"I'm right by the wall."

"OK. Try to prop your feet up on the wall if you can. Keep your feet higher than your heart."

Foreman reappeared with Cuddy in tow. He shook his head to our unasked question. House was not at the pharmacy. Foreman had informed Cuddy on his sweep through the clinic and she came back up to the office with him. Just like a good administrator, she took charge.

"Wilson, you and Chase just go get Elle. Grab a couple of bags of Lactated Ringers and an IV set from the clinic and hook her up when you get there. Then get her back here STAT if you think you can safely transport her. Otherwise, call an ambulance. Foreman, you."

Suddenly Cameron screamed: "I've got him."

Wilson snatched the phone out of her hand: "House? Where the bloody hell are you?"

_**HOUSE**_

I growled at Wilson: "I'm in Tahiti sipping a Mai Tai, you moron. I fucking broke down on Route 27. What the fuck is wrong?"

"Elle's on the conference room phone. She's had a bad dizzy spell and is currently lying down on your living room floor. She tried to call you, but her vision was blurry and she got the conference room by mistake."

Lucky mistake since my phone was almost dead but I wasn't going to tell him that. I tried to keep the frantic tone out of my voice as I said: "You gotta come pick me up and get me home. My car is toast, it won't start."

"Chase and I were just about to head over to get Elle."

"No, you need to come get me. Put Chase on the phone."

In a moment, I heard his voice: "Chase."

"Listen to me. Wilson is coming to pick me up. Take Foreman and get over to my place. Hook Elle up to an IV of Lactated Ringers and check the baby's heartbeat. If she's bleeding or otherwise looks bad, don't wait for me; call an ambulance. Otherwise we'll be right behind you. Tell Cameron to call Alderman and apprise her of the situation. Now, tell Elle that you are coming over and that Wilson is coming to get me and then we'll be there. Don't mention ambulance to her; don't say anything to scare her. Then tell her to hang up so I can call her and talk to her until I get there, got it?"

"Got it."

I heard him repeat my instructions and then he said: "Are you ready for Elle to hang up?"

"Yeah. Tell Wilson I'm on Route 27, just south of Locust Lane. Tell him to hurry."

I heard him repeat the instructions to Wilson and then tell Elle to hang up. I heard her little voice say: "Tell him to hurry." I thought my heart would break. I heard the click of her phone disconnecting and I ended this call.

I should have listened to my instincts and stayed home today. _Fuck!_ What kind of man was I that I was never there when she needed me? I slammed my fist against the dashboard of my traitorous car a few times, screaming, _"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"_

Then I took a few deep breaths to calm down, flipped my phone open and dialed her cell.

_**ELLE**_

I hated to hang up. I felt better knowing that I wasn't alone, that someone was on the other end of the phone, but I wanted to talk to Greg so I hung up and waited for him to call back. It seemed to take forever, but I'm sure it was only a minute before my phone rang again.

"Greg?"

"Sweetheart, are you OK?"

I started crying; I couldn't help it. This was all my fault. If I hadn't insisted that he go to work, he would have been home with me when this happened.

"Sweetheart, no, don't cry. What's wrong? Are you in pain?"

I blubbered out: "I'm sorry. Please don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you."

"Yes you are. I can tell by your voice. You're clenching your fist right now."

There was a pause and then Greg said in a calm voice: "I'm not clenching my fist now. I'm upset that I'm not there with you and my car is broke down on Route 27 and I can't get to you as fast as I want to, but I am not mad at you. I'm mad at myself for leaving in the first place. I'm mad at myself for not calling the housekeeper to come and stay with you while I went to work. I'm mad that my goddamn car picked this particular moment to break down. But I'm not mad at you, sweetheart."

I sniffled: "Really? I thought you would be mad at me for insisting that you go to work. I really did feel fine this morning before you left. I would have told you otherwise."

He seemed to really be making an effort to keep his voice even. "I know you would have, sweetheart. And you did the right thing. You kept the phone handy and you got yourself on the floor before you passed out and you managed to call for help. You did good. Now, tell me exactly what happened after I left."

"I toasted a bagel, put some cream cheese on it and took it into the living room. I was planning on eating breakfast and reading my book but I had forgotten the orange juice so I went back in the kitchen for that. When I opened the cabinet to get the glass, I felt this sudden tightness in my abdomen, right under the bruise."

He interrupted me: "What kind of tightness?"

"It's hard to describe. It's not like stomach cramps or period cramps. It doesn't feel like Braxton-Hicks. And it's not my whole belly, it is just that one spot."

"Under the bruise?"

"Right. That's where the placenta is, right?"

He hesitated for a moment, and then said: "Right."

"Could that be a sign of placental abruption?"

I heard him take a deep breath and then he said: "It could be, but you're not having any bleeding, right?"

"I don't think so, but I can't check my panties from this angle."

"Do you feel any wetness?"

I didn't want to tell him, I knew he was already so worried. But I couldn't lie to him. "I feel a little wet, but I wasn't sure if I had peed myself a little when I dropped to the floor. Should I try to check?"

"No, sweetheart. Don't bother. What happened after you felt the tightness?"

"The room spun right when it happened. I grabbed the counter until it eased up a little. Then I tried to make it to the couch, but I had to hold onto the wall just to get into the living room. And I didn't think I could make it to the couch cuz there was no wall to hold onto. So I eased myself to the floor and tried to call you. My field of vision was getting black around the edges and I couldn't see clearly. That's how I ended up dialing the conference room instead of your cell phone."

"That's just as well that you did, sweetheart. If you hadn't gotten me, you might have been too weak to try again or you could have dropped the phone. How do you feel now?"

"OK, I'm not dizzy since I'm lying down, but I still have the tightness. Jimmy told me to put my feet on the wall to keep them higher than my heart, so I'm doing that."

"That's good, sweetheart and speaking of the devil, here he is. Let me grab my stuff and get in his car. Don't hang up, just hold on, OK?"

"OK."

I listened to the sounds of Greg getting out of the car, slamming the door and climbing into Jimmy's car. I heard Greg mutter: "What took you so long, moron?" but I couldn't quite make out Jimmy's reply.

Suddenly the tightness intensified and I moaned. Immediately I heard Greg's voice: "Elle, Elle, what's wrong?"

"Hurts."

"What hurts? The spot on your belly?"

"Yes, hurts more now."

"It suddenly got worse?"

I found myself unable to string together too many words. "Yes."

I heard a soft _'shit'_ and then in a louder voice, he said: "Hang it there, sweetheart. We're on our way. The boys will be there shortly. They should be there any minute, OK? Just hang in there."

Holding the phone to my ear was suddenly a big effort. "I'm tired."

"Elle, don't go to sleep. Stay awake for me. Talk to me sweetheart."

"Too tired."

I heard him scream: "Elle! Elle! Wake up! Fuck! Drive faster, moron!"

Then the blackness overtook me.

_**HOUSE**_

I screamed her name into the phone but there was no reply. Christ, she passed out while lying down; this was really bad. She probably had a complete placental abruption and even if she wasn't bleeding vaginally, she could still be bleeding into the uterus and the placenta itself could be blocking it from flowing out.

Wilson, to his credit, was driving as quickly as he could. He ran a few red lights and barely paused at stop signs. While he was playing Drag Street Racer, he pulled out his cell phone to make a call. "Foreman? Where are you?"

He listened for a moment and then said to me: "They are pulling into your driveway right now."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Tell them to hurry, she's passed out again."

He repeated that message to Foreman, informed him that our ETA was about 8 minutes and hung up. I called to Elle on the phone again but there was still no answer. A minute later, I could hear the boys rushing into the room, calling her name.

_**Chase**_

It took us a long 20 minutes to get there. Just as we were pulling in the driveway, Wilson called to inform us that Elle had passed out while talking to House on the phone. I could only imagine how ape-shit House was going and sent up a silent prayer for Elle's well-being.

Wilson had given us his key and we let ourselves in the front door. We spotted Elle right away. She was up against the living room wall, just a few steps from the kitchen. She was unconscious, but still clutching her cell phone and I could hear House's voice calling to her.

I shouted into the phone: "House, we're here. I'm going to start the IV now."

Foreman said: "Wait. Let me try this first."

He broke an ammonia ampule under her nose and it had the desired effect. Elle woke with a moan and slapped at his hand to push the offending smell away.

I said: "Good work."

Foreman patted her cheek: "Elle, open your eyes. Chase and I are here."

After another minute of encouragement, Elle managed to open her eyes. She stared at Foreman for a moment, blinking slowly as if registering his presence. Finally she said: "Hey. You break in, gangsta boy?"

He chuckled and shook his head: "You are SO the woman for House. We used Wilson's key."

She smiled: "I figured."

Foreman slipped the blood pressure cuff over her right arm, taking care around her sore elbow, while I prepped her left arm to start the IV. Elle's phone was lying on her chest and we could hear House's voice calling to her, but we had both of Elle's arms occupied so she couldn't pick it up.

"Foreman, could you please hit the speaker button so I can talk to Greg?"

He did as she asked and suddenly House's voice filled the room. "Elle? Elle? Can you hear me, sweetheart?"

"Yes. Greg, the guys are here. Foreman's taking my blood pressure and Chase is hooking up an IV."

"Elle, you passed out."

"I know. Foreman woke me up with an ammonia ampule. They're nasty. I hate those things."

He chuckled in spite of the situation. "Stop passing out and we won't have to use them on you."

"Deal."

Foreman called out: "House, her BP is 80/50."

"Christ and that's lying down. Chase got the IV in yet?"

I answered: "IV's in. Starting the drip now."

"Bolus the first bag. Squeeze it to get a good rate going. Elle, how do you feel? Any more pain? Any other symptoms?"

She looked embarrassed. "Hmm, I feel wet."

I tried to be reassuring: "Oh, don't worry about that."

In his most snarky voice, House commented: "She doesn't mean that she peed herself, Goldilocks."

_Oh, crap_. "Elle, do you mean, you think you're bleeding?"

She looked really scared now. "I don't know. I feel wet, but I'm not sure and I can't exactly check in this position."

Bleeding was not good. That could mean placental abruption. I shouted into the phone: "House, shall we call an ambulance?"

"Our ETA is two minutes. Hold on."

In a whisper, Elle said: "You could check for me."

My eyes flew open in alarm and I almost dropped the IV bag. Foreman snickered and took the bag from me, squeezing harder to increase the rate.

"I can't do that, Elle."

"Chase, you're a doctor, not a perv. I trust you. Just check my panties."

I tried to keep my voice down as I said: "House would kill me."

House heard me. "Yeah, I'd kill you if you looked at my wife's hoo hoo, but she's wearing white panties, you moron. Just look at the outside of them. You'll be able to tell if there's any bleeding."

Elle came me a nudge and mouthed: "Go on, it's OK."

I could feel myself blushing as I pushed her dress up. To distract myself from what I was doing, I yelled to the phone: "So, when did you guys get married?"

House snorted: "What? Upset that we didn't invite you? Like that's important now. Do you see any blood or not?"

I gulped. The blood was clearly visible on the outside of her white cotton panties. She had bled enough to cover the entire crotch area.

I pushed her dress back down and took her hand before I answered. "Yes, there's blood."

Elle bit her lip; I squeezed her hand in reassurance. There was silence on the phone and I wondered for a moment if we had lost the connection.

"House?"

He answered tersely: "How much?"

"Probably 60 cc or so."

We heard tires squealing in the driveway. House announced unnecessarily: "We're here". Then he broke the connection.

_**House**_

It was frustrating being on the other end of the phone and listening to my ducklings work on my wife. Foreman had been smart with that ammonia ampule. They were doing a damn decent job and Elle was awake again, but I wanted to be there. When Chase told me that Elle was bleeding, I could hardly keep my emotions under control. Fortunately we pulled into our driveway right after he told me the bad news. Wilson had barely stopped the car when I opened the door and hopped out.

I rushed into the house. Elle turned her head in my direction and broke into a relieved smile. She reached her hand out to me and I hurried to her, dropping on my knees next to her. Her face was damp with sweat and her hair was sticking to her skin. I brushed it off of her face, as I stared into her big blue eyes. I tried to cover my fear with a snark: "What did I tell you about taking naps on the floor?"

She shrugged: "I tried to make it to the couch, but I couldn't help it."

"Show me where it hurts and describe the pain again."

She placed her hand on the right side of her belly. I had to make sure it was right over the bruise so I pulled her dress up and exposed her belly. The guys gasped at the size of her bruise.

"Show me."

She placed her hand directly on it. "Right here, on the bruise."

"Describe the pain for me."

"I can't describe it very well. It's localized right here under the bruise and it feels tight."

"Like a muscle cramp?"

She looked thoughtful. "Kind of. It's like, you know how the muscle cramp is so intense and then after it passes, you can still feel the residual cramp in that spot. It's like that."

I nodded in understanding and then I checked between her legs. I could see the blood stains on the crotch of her panties and I wondered just how much she had bled. I figured that could wait until we got to the hospital. I didn't want to pull down her panties in front of the kids.

As I pulled her dress back down over her belly, Elle asked: "Greg, you think the fall did this?"

I nodded: "You're more susceptible to placental abruption anyway because of the APS. It could have happened anyway, but I think the fall set it in motion."

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck. I knew he was feeling responsible. "House, shall we call an ambulance or try to transport her ourselves?"

I hated to ask, but I knew I couldn't do it myself. I gritted my teeth, looked at Chase and said: "Can you carry Elle out to the car?"

He looked me square in the eye and said: "Sure. I may need some help juggling the IV bag especially when getting her into the car."

I heaved myself to my feet. Wilson took the IV bag from Foreman. Chase got on Elle's left side and knelt down and Foreman did the same on her right. Together, they lifted her from the floor and then Foreman helped Chase get Elle situated in his arms. When Chase had a secure grip on Elle, they started towards the door, Wilson trailing right behind holding the IV bag aloft. Foreman rushed ahead and opened all the doors.

Chase gently set Elle down on the back seat of Wilson's car. He instructed her to lie down and she did. Wilson handed him the IV bag and Chase hung it on the little hook above the left rear door.

He looked over his shoulder and called out: "Foreman, the bag's almost empty. Grab the other one and I'll switch it out before we go."

Foreman jogged back inside and was back in a flash with the other bag. While Chase switched it out, Wilson pulled out his cell phone. I could hear him giving Cuddy an update and instructing her to have someone meet us with a stretcher at the L & D entrance. Realizing that I had yet to speak to Alderman, I whipped out my phone and called her. She answered right away and I filled her in. She said she already had a room waiting for us up in L & D and we were to come right to Room 342. Elle had pre-admitted weeks ago for her intended delivery date so we just had to sign the admit papers and stick one of those damn hospital bracelets on Elle's wrist.

By the time, I had finished the call, Elle was settled and we were ready to roll. Chase and Foreman said they would lock up and be right behind us. I told Chase to come right to Room 342. I was concerned that we would need someone with NICU experience and I knew I could trust Chase.

I climbed in the back seat with Elle, placing her legs in my lap to keep them elevated. As soon as I shut the door, Wilson drove off.


	67. Chapter 67

Chapter 67

**_HOUSE_**

I took Elle's hand and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "Elle, you need to know, there's a good chance that you will deliver the baby today."

She teared up immediately. "I was worried about that, but I'm only 34 weeks."

"The survival rate at 34 weeks is excellent, it's 98%."

She squeezed my hand hard. "I'm scared."

"I know. I am too. But remember what Madame Gina said. It's a bumpy road but it's going to be alright in the end."

She looked at me skeptically: "You don't really believe in her, do you?"

I looked her straight in the eye and lied as convincingly as I could: "Yes."

She studied my face for a moment and then nodded. Her hand relaxed in mine and she closed her eyes.

I started to panic again: "Elle. Elle. Open your eyes."

Without opening her eyes, she said: "What is it, Greg? I'm just tired."

"I need you to keep your eyes open. Please, sweetheart. I need to know right away if you pass out again."

She opened her eyes immediately. "I didn't realize that. I'm sorry."

Reassured by her big blue eyes, I replied: "It's OK."

Wilson piped in: "Guys, I feel so bad about all this."

Elle let out a big sigh: "Oh, Jimmy, shut up. This isn't your fault. You didn't tell that guy to run into me. So can the pity party already! That's my party and I'll cry if I want to. Geez, I'm going to the hospital to have my baby and I don't have any of my stuff with me. I don't have my I-POD or that whole suitcase of stuff that I packed for the hospital. It's sitting in our bedroom."

I squeezed Elle's legs: "That's OK. I'll send someone to come back to the house and pick up anything we need. Let's just get you settled and see if we're having this baby today or not."

"Oh! You should call your Mom. She's going to want to come out earlier."

"I'll call her after we get to the hospital and see what's what, OK?"

She nodded.

Just then my phone rang. It would be ironic if Mom's radar extended this far east and she knew something was wrong. I didn't recognize the number, but I took the chance and answered it anyway.

"House."

"What the hell is your car doing on the side of Route 27? You want it stolen?"

I chuckled in spite of myself. "You keeping tabs on me, Bill?"

Bill Arnello let out a laugh. "Not on you, specifically. But your girlfriend is my client and I like to make sure she's OK. How is the little mother-to-be anyway?"

I glanced at Elle who was watching me intently. "Not so good at the moment. We're on our way to the hospital as we speak. We may be having the baby a little early."

He replied gravely: "Ah. Well, keep me posted. You sound like you have your hands full at the moment. I'll take care of the car for you. I'll have it towed to my mechanic and we'll see what's wrong with it."

In all my worry about Elle, I had forgotten about the car. I hadn't even called AAA for assistance. I was sure that Bill was only being nice to me because of Elle, but who cared as long as he took care of my car for me?

I spoke politely to him; after all, he was mob. "Thanks, Bill. That is very nice of you. Elle and I appreciate it."

"I'll be in touch. Give my best to Elle."

He hung up and I slowly replaced my phone into my pocket.

I looked at Elle and said: "That was Bill Arnello. He sends his best. He is going to have my car towed to his mechanic for me."

"Oh, that's really nice of him."

I glanced at Wilson who was giving me a puzzled look in the rear view mirror. I shrugged and shook my head. At this point, I didn't care if the car was stolen or not, I just wanted to take care of Elle.

Finally we pulled up to the L & D entrance of PPTH. As promised, Cameron, Cuddy and two nurses were waiting with a stretcher for our arrival. We maneuvered Elle out of the back seat and Wilson lifted her onto the gurney. He hooked her IV bag onto the attached pole and we headed up to her room. Cuddy alerted Alderman that Elle had arrived and she met us at the room. The nurses pushed the gurney into the room and Alderman asked everyone else to wait outside.

Things happened quickly after that. One of the nurses thrust a bunch of papers at Elle and indicated that she needed to sign them. Looked dazed, Elle quickly signed them and then another nurse slapped a hospital ID bracelet on her left wrist.

All that took less than 5 minutes. Meanwhile Alderman got the ultrasound and fetal monitor ready. I helped Elle slip out of her dress and into a hospital gown. The nurses helped Elle transfer from the gurney into her hospital bed. A lab technician came in and drew Elle's blood. I checked the sheet to make sure all the proper labs were ordered. Alderman was on the ball; she had ordered every test that I would have ordered including a thrombomodulin test which was a relatively new test to help diagnosis placental abruption.

Alderman said: "I'm going to check the baby's heart rate with the Doppler first and then do an ultrasound."

She lifted up the gown and her eyes grew wide at the size of Elle's bruise. "Wow! That's some bruise. Still tender?"

Elle nodded.

"I'll try not to press too hard on it."

Elle replied in a soft voice: "Do whatever you need to do." She lay back with a worried look on her face. I took her hand and she squeezed it.

"_Don't be scared."_ I whispered to her in French. _"Remember what Madame Gina said."_

She nodded but didn't reply.

Alderman ran the Doppler over Elle's belly until she picked up the heartbeat. It was running at 150 beats per minute, which was faster than it usually was, but still within normal limits. Alderman reiterated the point: "Heartbeat is nice and strong, a little faster than before, but still OK."

She was preparing the ultrasound machine when there was a knock at the door. Chase poked his head in without waiting for a reply. "You still want me here?"

I waved my hand and he entered the room, taking a spot where he could see the ultrasound monitor clearly. Alderman squirted more gel on Elle's belly and began the exam. Our Rug-rat still looked good; she was moving her arms and legs and breathing normally. We examined the placenta closely. It wasn't always possible to diagnosis an abruption by ultrasound as it was often difficult to distinguish between the placenta and blood clots. After a few minutes, Alderman noticed what seemed to be a small clear space between the placenta and the uterine wall and measured the distance. The placenta seemed to be perhaps 15% sheared off from the uterine wall. We could also see some blood floating in the amniotic fluid. There was no doubt that Elle had a partial placental abruption.

Alderman explained all of this to Elle, who didn't say a word throughout the explanation. The only indication of her reaction was the tears pooling in her eyes and the slight trembling of her lower lip. Elle was scared and fighting hard to maintain her composure. I squeezed her hand and rubbed her shoulder; she just stared at me with a frightened look in her eyes.

Alderman draped a blanket over Elle's lower half and asked Elle to bend her knees. Chase respectfully stepped back so as to not take in the view of Elle's hoo hoo. Elle's panties were pulled off and examined; I took a peek over the blanket. Chase's estimate of 60cc wasn't too far off; it looked closer to 90 cc now but Elle could have bled more on the way here. The nurse brought sanitary pads and a pair of regulation granny panties and helped Elle into them. Alderman ordered a pad count for the duration of Elle's stay.

Elle's belly was exposed again and this time Alderman strapped on an electronic fetal monitor while the nurse placed a small pillow under Elle's right hip. She explained: "We are going to watch her heart beat for a while. You need to stay in bed and keep your pelvis tilted towards the left. I'll check the read-out in 30 minutes and see how she is doing."

Elle merely nodded.

Alderman frowned. "Elle, are you OK? You are usually much more verbal than this."

Elle's voice broke as she asked: "Am I going to have the baby today?"

"I don't know yet. So far, the baby doesn't seem to be in any distress, but I need to check this read-out to be sure."

"If she is not in distress, then what?"

"I keep you here on bed rest and monitoring. You can be off the monitor to walk the halls and shower, but when you're in bed, I want the monitor on."

"You mean, I might have to stay here two weeks until it's time to deliver?"

"It's possible. It just depends on how the baby is doing. If she appears to be in distress, you'll deliver her right away. Depending on the level of distress, I may want to do a C-Section."

Elle gasped: "I thought I was going to get induced and have a natural birth."

"That was the initial plan, but the abruption throws a monkey wrench in that. We have to deliver the baby in the safest possible way, and that just may be a C-Section."

Tears were flowing down her cheeks. In a small voice, Elle replied: "I just want the baby to be OK."

Alderman squeezed her hand: "Everything looks fine at the moment. Try not to be so anxious. I'll be back in 30 minutes and look at the strip. In the meantime, I don't want you to eat or drink anything in case we need to go ahead with the C-Section. Ice chips are fine, but nothing else. OK?"

Elle nodded and Alderman exited the room.

Chase sidled towards the door. "If you don't need me, I'll just step out."

Elle cried out: "Wait, Chase. You've worked a lot in NICU, right?"

He glanced at me and I gave him a nod. "That's right, Elle."

"I'm 34 weeks as of yesterday. If the baby needs to be born today, how bad is, hmm, is that what you, I mean, have you seen?"

She didn't seem to be able to articulate her thoughts very well, but I knew she was looking for additional confirmation of the baby's chances. I squeezed her hand: "Elle, remember what I told you in the car. At 34 weeks, she has a 98% chance of survival. That's excellent. You would only be delivering two weeks earlier than originally planned. That's not so bad."

Elle looked like the dam was going to burst again: "Not so bad?"

_Crap!_ I wasn't never good at the handholding part of medicine. Where the hell was Wilson when I needed him?

I waved my hand at Chase: "Tell her."

"House is right. A baby of that gestational age has an excellent chance. If you were 32 weeks or earlier, we would give you two shots of betamethasone to induce fetal lung maturation. But at 34 weeks, you won't need it, as the lungs are mature enough. Thirty-four weeks is considered only mildly immature and most likely won't need any interventions. She may need to stay in the hospital for a week or so, to be monitored and make sure she is feeding properly before you take her home. She is at a slightly higher risk of jaundice, but that can be managed. She'll have a bit harder time regulating her body temperature because the fat stores really build up between 34 and 36 weeks, but again that can be managed."

Timidly, she asked: "So you think she'll be OK?"

"Like House said, ninety-eight percent. And this is medicine, you know there is no 100% surety."

"Thanks, Chase."

"No problem."

I looked at Elle and said: "Do you believe me now? Or do you need to hear it from a third doctor? I'm sure Alderman will tell you the same thing."

Elle sighed and turned away from me. "It's not that I didn't believe you. Chase works in NICU and he has dealt with babies of this size before. So I just wanted to ask him. It's not a matter of believing or not believing you."

I mentally kicked myself for making Elle feel worse. I was taking my anger at the situation out on the wrong person.

Chase shifted uncomfortably. "Look, is there anything I can do for you? Foreman and I could run back to the house and get your things. Wilson said you were concerned because you had to get admitted so quickly and didn't have your suitcase with you."

Elle replied slowly: "I'd like to have my things."

She glanced at me and I said: "Send Foreman and Cameron. I want you here when Alderman comes back to read the strip."

He nodded: "Fair enough. Shall I get them? They are right outside."

Elle said: "Wait. Before you get them, could someone pull the blanket up a little? I can't reach it."

I hiked the blanket up a bit to preserve her modesty. Part of her belly had to remain exposed for the monitor but at least her panties were covered.

Chase opened the door and beckoned to the others. Wilson, Cuddy, Cameron and Foreman trooped into the room. Cuddy gasped when she saw the bruise on Elle's belly and that brought on the waterworks again. She turned her face away from everyone and put her hands over her eyes. I shot Cuddy a harsh _'thanks a lot'_ look and she mouthed an apology to me.

Surprisingly, it was Cameron who broke the tension in the room. She sat on the bed and lightly rubbed Elle's shoulder. In a soft voice, she said: "Hey, Foreman and I are going to swing by your house and pick up some of your things. You know, House is not going to tell me the girly stuff you need and Foreman won't know what it is."

Foreman smirked and shook his head, but Cameron ignored him and went on: "So just tell me what you need. I've got a piece of paper and I'll write it down to make sure we get it all."

Elle uncovered her eyes; they were red from crying. "You don't mind?"

Cameron shook her head: "Not at all. And Foreman still has the key. We won't even have to break in like we do when we go snooping in the patients' houses."

Elle gave her a small smile and turned slightly to face her. "In the living room, on the coffee table, there's a book, _'Outlander'_."

Cameron wrote that down. "I read that book too. It's really good."

Elle nodded: "Yeah, I really like it. Um, in our closet there is a brown suitcase on the floor. It's already packed and it has most of the stuff I need. I think my I-Pod is on the nightstand. The charger for my phone is in the kitchen. Oh, and my laptop is also on the coffee table."

She blinked a couple of times, lost in thought, and then said: "I guess that will do for now. I don't know how long I'll be here, so I'll just have to play it by ear."

When Cameron finished writing all that down, I said: "And I need the charger for my phone which is also in the kitchen. Pack a few changes of clothes for me. Throw in a couple of extra tee shirts and some sweats. There's another suitcase on the top shelf of the walk-in closet, you can use that for my clothes."

Cameron looked up: "What, no Gameboy? No I-Pod?"

"Already got those in my backpack which Wilson has in his hand."

Right on cue, Wilson walked over and handed me the backpack.

Foreman said: "Can we bring you back some lunch?"

I shook my head: "No, Elle can't eat just yet."

In a soft voice, Elle said: "They could bring you something."

There was no way I was going to eat in front of her when she couldn't. "I'll wait."

Elle didn't argue the point any further. Cameron and Foreman took off to get our stuff. Cuddy took the spot on the bed that Cameron had just vacated. "Is there anything we can do?"

"Not right now. I don't mean to be rude, but can you leave us alone for a bit?"

Cuddy stood up and said: "Sure. Just let us know if you need anything. We'll check back later, OK?"

Chase said: "I'll be back in 30 minutes when Alderman returns."

Elle called to their retreating backs: "Please draw the blinds on your way out."

Once the blinds were drawn and the door was shut behind them, Elle turned to me and sobbed. "I knew you won't do this with them around, but I need you to hold me, and tell me everything is going to be OK whether you believe it or not. I need to hear it, OK?"

I climbed into the bed as best I could, trying to avoid the IV line and the monitor leads. I folded her into my arms and she wept on my shoulder. I stroked her hair and did as she asked without argument. I told her everything would be OK, and I could only hope that I was right.

By the time Alderman and Chase returned, Elle had had a good cry and had her emotions somewhat under control. Her eyes were red, it was obvious that she had been crying, but she seemed much calmer, listening to some music on my I-Pod with the earphones. I was sitting in a chair next to the bed, holding her hand when they walked back in. Alderman's eyes swept over Elle's face and I'm sure she knew that Elle had been crying, but Alderman didn't comment on that.

Elle pulled the earphones out as Alderman started speaking: "How are you feeling, Elle? Any pain or discomfort?"

"I still have that tight feeling under the bruise, but it's not any worse."

"Good. I'm just going to check the pad and see if you're still bleeding."

Alderman lifted the blanket and peeked at the pad. "Only a few drops. That's good. Hopefully that means the bleeding has slowed and no more tearing has occurred. Now let's check the strip."

The strip was so long it had hit the floor. Alderman and Chase started examining the distal end and passed it on to me as they continued reading down the length.

After a few minutes of perusing the strip, Alderman spoke up: "Elle, her heart rate is in the upper 140's to lower 150's. That's higher than it has been in the past but still within normal limits. Did she move a lot during this time?"

Elle nodded: "She was fairly active."

"That could account for the spikes in her heart rate. And if you were upset, that could have an effect on her heart rate as well."

Elle bit her lip and nodded.

"I think it's clear that you've had a partial abruption. So you have a choice: we can deliver the baby now or you can stay in the hospital on bed rest and we'll monitor you closely. You're at 34 weeks, which is two weeks earlier than I wanted to take the baby, but her chances of survival are excellent if you want to go ahead and deliver now. The other option is to remain on bed rest for the remainder of your pregnancy. I'll keep you on the monitor and we'll know immediately if the baby goes into stress or if the abruption gets worse and we can act accordingly."

Elle glanced at me and then back at Alderman. Her lip was trembling and I was sure that tears were about to follow. "I'm scared. I don't know what to do. I don't want anything to happen to her."

I wasn't sure I could make a rational decision. That's what happens with you are emotionally involved with the patient, especially when the patient is the woman you love who happens to be carrying your child. Part of me wanted this kid out now. Then there wouldn't be any more risk of Elle hemorrhaging and the baby dying in utero. On the other hand, if the baby wasn't in any distress and the bleeding had slowed, it made sense to let her keep incubating for as long as possible.

I rubbed my thumb over the back of her hand: "The baby's not in any danger at the moment. Why don't we give it 24 hours and see where we are? Her heart rate is higher than it was on Monday, but that's probably from the stress of everything that has happened today. If it is not any higher tomorrow, then I think we could conclude that things have stabilized for now and you could continue on bed rest. If there are any signs of stress or the bleeding gets worse, you can deliver right away."

Alderman jumped in: "And if you're stable, you could continue the pregnancy past 36 weeks. After all, I was planning for you to deliver at 36 weeks to prevent this from happening. Since it already has, as long as you are stable, the baby can continue to grow inside of you until the 38th week and then we'll deliver."

Elle gulped: "Bed rest for a month?"

Alderman shrugged: "It's a possibility."

There was silence in the room except for the noise from the monitors. Elle bit her lip and glanced from face to face as if seeking some assurance on making the right decision.

Chase cleared his throat and said: "If I could just add my opinion."

He paused, waiting.

Elle nodded: "Please do."

"I agree with House and Alderman. I think you should give it 24 hours and see what happens. Since you're right here in the hospital, if anything changes suddenly, we'll be able to immediately deal with it. No worries about getting you transported first before we can start care. The only thing I would add is perhaps you might want to consider putting Elle on oxygen via nasal cannula, just as an extra precaution."

Alderman nodded: "Good idea. We could definitely do that for at least the next 24 hours and then see how we stand."

She turned to Elle: "So, what do you think?"

Elle turned to look at me and squeezed my hand tighter. "I guess it makes sense to wait, doesn't it?"

I nodded.

She said slowly: "OK, I'm game for the bed rest idea. Will I be able to get up at all?"

Alderman said: "I'd like to keep you on strict bed rest and constant monitoring for the next 24 hours and then if everything seems stable, I think you could have bathroom privileges and maybe walk the halls a little bit. When you get up, we'll have to disconnect you from the monitor and I'd like you to stay on it as much as possible. We'll have to take it day by day."

Elle nodded: "Well, bathroom privileges would be nice. I'm not looking forward to trying to use a bedpan. Ugh."

Alderman gave her a small smile: "Hopefully in 24 hours, you'll be able to advance to getting out of bed for the bathroom and for a shower. In the meantime, strict bed rest. But you can eat and drink anything you want now. I'm going to order the oxygen, finish my rounds and I'll check back around 4:00. Call me immediately if anything changes."

Elle said: "I will. Thanks."

As Alderman walked out of the door, Chase asked: "Is there anything I can get you? Do you want something to eat?"

I glanced at Elle. She shrugged: "Well, I never got to eat my bagel. It's probably still on the coffee table. But right now, all I can think about is my bladder. You guys pumped 2 bags of fluid in me, and now I really gotta pee."

Chase grinned: "How about if I get the nurse to bring the bedpan and then I'll go on to the cafeteria. What would you like?"

"A honey-mustard chicken sandwich, some fries and a lemonade would be nice."

"Dry Reuben and fries for me. And a Coke. Here."

I pulled out my wallet and handed him a twenty. The shocked look on his face was almost worth the price of paying for our own lunches. He left on his errand and moments later, a nurse walked in. She was a petite redhead and introduced herself as Jenny.

"I'm Elle Kaplan, but you probably already know that."

"Think I've heard of you. I used to work on the oncology floor, but I got burned out. This is a much happier floor. You're the pharmacist who told off Dr. Rivera, aren't you?"

Elle nodded: "Guilty as charged."

"He's such a jerk. I'm sure he deserved whatever you said to him."

I sat there, amused at this conversation, and wondered what she thought of me. The plaque for 'crankiest doctor' at this hospital still hung on my wall.

Jenny went on: "So Dr. Chase tells me you need a bedpan. You are probably picturing a cold metal dish that you have to stick under your butt, right? Well, you only have to use those for number two and they are plastic now, so they are not so cold. If you just need to pee, we have these female urinals, much better, less messy. You need to stay on your back, so I'll help you. Umm."

She glanced at me: "Would you like to step out, Dr House, while I help your wife?"

I waved my hand: "I've seen her pee before. It's not a mystery. In fact, I want to see how much she's bleeding."

In a strangled voice, Elle said: "Can I pee first before you examine my panties?"

"Well, it's a pad, but sure, OK."

Jenny shook her head: "Are you OK with him staying?"

Elle groaned: "The Princeton University marching band could be in here for all I care, just stick that urinal in place before we need to change the sheets."

Jenny lifted the blanket, pulled Elle's panties down and positioned the urinal. "Go for it."

Immediately I could hear the urine hitting the plastic jug. Elle sighed: "Oh, yeah."

I smirked: "That feel good?"

Elle moaned: "Gawd, yes. It's right up there with chocolate ice cream and a great orgasm."

Jenny snickered. "It's no fun waiting to pee when you're this pregnant. Dr Alderman told me to turn down the rate on your IV as long as your BP is normal, and I'll check that just as soon as you're finished."

When Elle finished peeing, I checked her pad. There were just a few spots of blood. Elle smiled when I told her. The nurse checked Elle's temperature, BP and pulse. Her BP was 100/72, which was a little low, but not too bad since it was taken in a prone position. She adjusted the rate on Elle's IV to 80 cc/hr. After she finished her duties, Jenny pointed out the call button to Elle and told her to push it whenever she needed anything. She would be back in an hour to check her BP again. After flushing the urine down the toilet, Jenny left us alone.

The next 24 hours were going to be rough. Elle's not the type to relax and let others take care of her but that's exactly what she needed to do now. Staying in bed for everything including bodily functions was going to drive her nuts. I wondered how I was going to keep her from going completely berserk. Maybe when Cameron and Foreman got back with her stuff, she could unwind with her book. My head and leg were throbbing from the events of the day. The pain in my leg reminded me why I had left the house in the first place; was it really only 3 hours ago? I still needed to get my prescriptions filled, but I didn't want to leave Elle alone even for the short time that it would take to run down to the pharmacy.

For the moment, she lay quietly listening to my I-Pod while I tried to concentrate on playing Grand Theft Auto on my Gameboy. So many thoughts were revolving around in my brain that for once, I found that I was having a hard time focusing on the game, finally tossing the device back into my bag. I flipped on the TV and channel surfed until Chase returned with our food. He helped me adjust the bed so that Elle could sit up enough to eat while keeping her pelvis tilted to the left for the monitor. Once Elle was positioned, I handed him my prescriptions and sent him off to the pharmacy.

Elle inhaled her food like a starving pregnant woman; I ate half my sandwich and let her steal some of my fries.

She cocked one eyebrow at me: "Not hungry?"

I just shook my head. I didn't want to tell her that my anxiety about her condition was throwing off my appetite. I wanted to keep her as calm as possible.

We sat in silence for a few minutes and I watched her munch some more of my fries. Finally she broke the silence: "So what happened to the car?"

Glad to have a new topic, I told her all about my aborted trip to the hospital, embellishing a little bit to make it sound that much more dramatic.

"You think Bill's mechanic will be able to fix it?"

I shrugged: "I don't see why not. Probably just threw a rod or something, I'm sure it's not fatal. The car only has 257,000 miles on it. It could easily go another 100,000."

Elle giggled: "You know, you could splurge and get a newer car. One with better heat and air conditioning."

I clutched my chest in faux shock. "Get rid of the car now? Right when I finally have a nice garage to park her in? I can't be that cruel to her."

She teased: "Oh, it's a 'her', huh?"

"Cars are always girls. That's one of the rules, didn't you know that?"

She stroked the back of my hand: "But you like to break the rules."

The smile she gave me was positively stunning. I felt a twitch in my jeans. If we were at home, I'd be climbing into that bed with her. But right now, with the IV line and the monitor, all I could do was lean over and kiss her lips. The kiss was deep with lots of tongue and I could just about block out the sound of the monitor. What I couldn't block out was the sound of someone clearing their throat.

I recognized that raspy sound; it had to be Foreman. We broke our lip-lock and I looked up to see a smirk on his face. Surprisingly Cameron had a smile on her face; I tried not to read too much into that.

I sneered: "Oh, look, Elle, Gangsta Boy and Rainbow Care Bear are back with our stuff."

Cameron rolled her eyes and addressed Elle. "I think we got everything. We can always go back if there is something else you need."

Elle smiled at her: "Thanks, I really appreciate you doing this."

Cameron set Elle's laptop and book on the bedside table. "Oh, and I saw you were about half-way through with _Outlander_. I have the next two books in the series and I could bring them in if you want."

Elle's eyes grew wide: "It's a series? Oh, wow. I borrowed this one from Lisa; I don't think she knows that. Yeah, I'd love to borrow them. I think the book is great and since I may be here for a while, it would give me something to do. Thanks."

While Cameron and Elle chatted about the book, Foreman put our suitcases in the small closet and handed me a grocery sack that contained the phone chargers and a few other odd and ends. I nodded my thanks and immediately plugged in my phone. No way I was going to get away with not calling my Mom this time.

The redheaded nurse bustled in. "Hi Elle, oh, I see you had some lunch. That's great. How are you feeling?"

"Much better now that I ate. I was starving."

"Good. I'm just going to check your BP and get you hooked up to the oxygen."

Cameron frowned: "Oxygen?"

I gave her a stern look. "Just a precaution. No big deal."

Elle's voice was surprisingly calm. "My OB wants me on strict bed rest and oxygen for 24 hours and then she'll reassess the situation. She doesn't think the baby is in any danger, but she wants to be cautious. If everything looks stable tomorrow, I'll get bathroom privileges, but I'll be staying here until I deliver."

Cameron nodded: "Oh, OK. Well, I'll definitely bring those books for you tomorrow. House, we still have about half of those charts to finish. You want us to bring them here when we're done?"

"I'll let you know. Just call me when you're done with them."

My ducklings knew a dismissal when they heard one, so they said good-bye to Elle and left the room. The nurse checked Elle's BP, which was 110/78, and hooked her up to the oxygen. Elle looked really sad with the nasal cannula in her nose, but it had to be done. I checked the readout on the monitor and Rug-rat's heart rate was unchanged. I breathed a sigh of relief; things were stable for the moment.


	68. Chapter 68

Chapter 68

_**HOUSE**_

Chase returned with my prescriptions and I shooed him off to join the other ducklings with the charting. Elle opened her book and I continued channel surfing. After 30 minutes or so, Elle commented: "You know, you don't have to stay here the whole time."

I pulled her laptop towards me: "Hey, I can surf porn here or in my office, it doesn't matter. I'd rather stay here with you."

She chuckled and continued reading her book. I adjusted the bedside table to the right height and powered up her laptop. I opened a porn site on one window just in case she wanted to see what I was doing, but in the other window, I read everything I could find about placental abruption.

We read through the afternoon. Elle took a break around 3:00 to call Avi and Gen and apprise them of her new situation. I knew that I should call Mom, but I decided to postpone it until later on this evening.

Around 4:00, the kids called to say that they had finished the charting and I told them bring it up to Elle's room. They piled the charts on a cart and rolled the whole stack up here. I had not learned anything new on the sites I was surfing about placental abruption, so I closed that window and just left the porn site showing which elicited the usual responses from each team member. Cameron rolled her eyes and gave me a disgusted look while Chase and Foreman smirked. Fortunately there were only about 20 charts for me to sign so it didn't take too long. Alderman walked in just as I was signing the last one.

I shooed Cameron and Foreman out with the charts and indicated that Chase should hang out for the exam. The three of us started reviewing the readout and Alderman asked: "What were you doing around 1:30?"

Elle laughed: "Just finished lunch. She started break dancing then. I guess she really liked the French fries."

Alderman nodded: "Yeah, her heart rate shot up to around 150 then, but after that it went back down to the upper 130's, so that's very good."

She noted Elle's BP readings and then checked for bleeding. There had been a little more spotting, but she didn't seem to think it was very significant.

"You're looking good so far. If things continue like this, I'm sure we can let you out of bed for short periods of time starting tomorrow."

With the usual reminder to call her if anything happens, Alderman bid us good night and left. Chase stayed long enough to ask if we needed anything and after being told no, he bid us good night also.

Wilson dropped by a short while later. I still felt somewhat angry with him; after all it was his patient's father that slammed into Elle and caused all of this. I knew I was being irrational; Wilson would never wish harm upon Elle, but that was the problem with emotions. They were not rational and logical which is why I preferred not dealing with them.

He shot me an apologetic look before turning to Elle. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

Elle smiled up at him. "I feel OK. Kelly says everything is looking good so far. She might let me get out of bed tomorrow."

"That's great. Hey, hmm, Lisa has a late board meeting tonight, so I was thinking about picking up some dinner for all of us and Lisa and I could eat with you tonight."

Elle smiled: "Oh, yeah, that would be nice. Wanna get Chinese? I'm in the mood for some Hunan Chicken and vegetable lo mein."

Wilson replied: "Sure, whatever you want. Lisa should be finished around 8:00, so I'll be back by then."

He glanced questioningly at me. He was trying to make nice and Elle wanted Chinese so I figured, what the hell, let him buy dinner for us.

"Get me the sizzling beef and an egg roll."

Wilson nodded: "Need anything else while I'm out?"

We both shook our heads.

"OK, well, I should be back around 8:00. If you think of anything else you want, just call me on my cell."

As he walked towards the door, Elle shouted after him: "Get some sesame noodles too!"

He turned and smirked: "Like I would forget that."

Around 7:00, Elle stirred and sighed. "Oh, man, I have to pee again. Where's the damn call button?"

She felt around on the bed looking for the elusive button.

I stood up and headed for the bathroom. "I'll get the urinal for you, sweetheart."

"NO! I don't want you to do it. I don't want you to see me, like, like that."

I shrugged my shoulders and continued towards the bathroom. "I've seen you pee before. It's no big deal."

"You've seen me _sit_ on the toilet before. You haven't actually seen me _pee_."

I ignored her and went into the bathroom. The urinal was sitting on the sink, clean and ready for use. As I walked towards the bed, Elle gave me an alarmed look and shook her head.

Exasperated, I pointed at the clock. "Elle, it's shift change. It will take forever for the new nurse to get in here. Do you want to wait 30 minutes to pee or you wanna let me help you?"

She glanced at the clock. "Crap."

"How long can you hold out?"

She looked defeated. "Not very long."

I perched on the edge of the bed and put my hand on her leg. "If I were in bed and unable to get up and pee, would you hold a urinal for me?"

Elle nodded: "Of course, I would."

"So why should this be any different?"

She looked close to tears. "I don't know. I just feel so weak and helpless. It's like I don't have any dignity left."

Gently I said: "That's what happens when you're a patient. You lose your dignity and have to allow others to help you. I hated it when I was a patient. You remember that time, not long after we met, when I was so sick and you cleaned me up?"

She gave me a small smile: "The first time I saw you naked?"

"Yeah, I know my enormous penis made a big impression on you, but there were other things going on too. I was a mess and you cleaned me up. Talk about a loss of dignity, shitting all over yourself will do that. I didn't want your help but I needed it. And you gave it freely. Now, will you let me return the favor?"

Nodding, she replied: "OK."

I flipped the blanket back and pulled down her panties, noting only a few spots of blood on the pad. I positioned the urinal and said: "Fire when ready."

She giggled and then looked away from me. I could tell by the color of her face that she was still embarrassed that I was doing this for her. Maybe her embarrassment was keeping her from being able to relax her urinary sphincter, so I made a 'pssssssss' sound and after a minute her urine started flowing.

Eyes still closed, she let out a little sigh of satisfaction. When she finished, I pulled her panties back up and took the urinal into the bathroom to empty. When I returned to my chair, Elle reached over and took my hand. "Thank you."

I shrugged: "Hey, I'm not doing it all the time. That's what nurses are for. When it's not shift change, you can ring for the nurse. Golden showers are _so_ not my thing."

She squeezed my hand: "I'll keep that in mind."

Around 8PM, Wilson and Cuddy showed up with a huge bag of yummy smelling food. My stomach growled; apparently my appetite had returned. As Wilson started arranging the cardboard containers on the bedside table, Cuddy walked over and gave Elle a hug.

"How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, except I'm already tired of staying in bed. How are you doing? Not working too hard, I hope?"

Elle gave Cuddy's belly an affectionate rub.

Cuddy sank down into the chair. "These long days are getting to me. I've fallen asleep at my desk a couple of times. My feet are swelling. I can't wear heels at all anymore."

"Maybe you should think about cutting down on your hours. You don't want to wear yourself out."

Cuddy smirked: "You've been talking to James, haven't you? Did he tell you to say that?"

Elle shook her head. "No, he didn't. It's just I'm 10 weeks ahead of you and I know what's coming. You are going to feel more and more tired as the belly gets bigger and the stress may take its toll on you. After all, you don't want to end up on bed rest like me."

As I stuffed half of my egg roll in my mouth, I mumbled: "Yeah, YOU wouldn't be able to handle being on bed rest. But then, you'll probably be holding board meetings while you're in the labor suite."

Wilson said firmly: "No, she won't. She is going to find a temporary replacement and start training him or her. Once that person is in place, Lisa is going to cut down on her hours."

Cuddy's mouth fell open. She sputtered: "Where did you come up with this idea?"

Wilson calmly opened his container of Szechuan Chicken and starting stirring it up with his chopsticks. "I think it's obvious that you will need a replacement for, at the bare minimum, your 3 month maternity leave. You may as well find someone now, get that person trained and start cutting back on your long hours. You came in at 8AM this morning and you didn't finish until 7:30 tonight. That is too long of a day for you at this stage of your pregnancy."

Cuddy pressed her lips together until they formed a thin line: "We'll talk about this later, James."

I grinned as I dug into my sizzling beef; this was better than watching my soap opera.

Wilson went on: "We _will_ talk later, but don't think that I'm going to change my mind. That's my baby you're carrying and if nothing else, the events of these past few days should be a wakeup call for all of us."

Cuddy sighed and reached for the vegetable lo mein. "I'm not going to get knocked down in the hall. That was a one in a million thing to happen."

I could hear the touch of anger in his voice as he continued speaking. "Is it? You don't know that. I'm sure that Elle didn't expect all this to happen. Now look where she is. All kinds of crazy things have happened in this hospital. Remember the guy who brought the gun into the clinic? That was right outside your office. Remember a few years back with the anthrax scare and the white powder all over the floor? We had to evacuate the entire fifth floor."

Cuddy hissed: "So what do you want me to do, James? Stay home, wrapped up in a cocoon, afraid to get out of bed?"

He looked at her: "No, of course not. All I want is for you to start taking it a little easier. Delegate some of your responsibilities. Find a temporary replacement and get him or her trained. Work a normal 8-hour day, instead of almost 12 hours. And as much as I hate to say this, maybe you could start bringing some of the work home, so at least you could work in your PJ's with your feet up. What about after the baby's here? Are you really going to want to work 12 hour days when he's here?"

He took her hand: "It's time, Lisa. Time to let go of some of this."

Cuddy mumbled: "We'll talk later."

I could tell by the look on Cuddy's face that Wilson had driven his point home. She bit her lip and started blinking rapidly as if to keep from crying. Wilson set down his food and cupped her face with his hands. He whispered: "I love you, Lisa and I love our baby. I don't want anything to happen to either of you."

The dam broke and Cuddy started crying. Wilson pulled her onto his lap; she buried her face in his neck and wept.

I managed to swallow my mouthful of sizzling beef and stage-whispered to Elle: "Wow, this is better than General Hospital."

She lightly smacked my hand: "Shhh. Leave them be. And pass me the sesame noodles."

We ate in silence while Cuddy finished her hormonal seizure. Once she had composed herself and was again seated in her chair, she apologized for what had happened.

Elle waved a hand at her: "Already forgotten."

I smirked: "Not by me. I have photographic evidence and it will be posted on YouTube tomorrow. Ow! Stop smacking me." That last part was addressed to Elle who had again smacked my hand.

"Well, stop saying such silly things. Lisa's upset, don't tease her right now."

"Right now? Does that mean I can tease her later?"

"Yes, later, try to hold out until they drive you home tonight."

I looked at her, puzzled: "Drive me home?"

"Yeah, you don't have your car so I'm assuming that they will drive you home tonight and then you can drive my car back in the morning."

"I'm not going home. I'm staying here with you."

She gave me one of her exasperated looks. "Greg, where are you going to sleep? This bed isn't big enough for the two of us with all these leads and IV lines. You can't spend the night in that chair."

Cuddy butted in: "I'll have the janitor bring in one of the big recliners from the OB doctors lounge."

My mouth dropped open, but I closed it quickly. I couldn't believe that she was being so nice to me after I had just sniped at her. "OOOO, I've napped in them before. Those are really comfortable. Thanks, Mom."

Elle looked at Cuddy: "Lisa. You are just encouraging his behavior. I'm in the hospital surrounded by doctors and nurses. I think he could go home and get some decent sleep in our bed instead of trying to catnap here on a recliner. There's no need for him to stay."

Cuddy shook her head: "Elle, I hate to tell you this, but I've known House a long time. He's got that stubborn look on his face. He's not leaving, so we may as well make him comfortable so that his leg is not killing him in the morning."

Elle rolled her eyes. "OK, fine. He's staying tonight. We'll discuss future nights later."

I chuckled inwardly; little did Elle know but I had no intention of going home at all while she was hospitalized. The thought of sleeping in our big bed without her was simply unbearable. I didn't plan on going home until she and Rug-rat were in the car with me.

We ate in silence for a few minutes and then Cuddy said: "Hey, are you enjoying _'Outlander'_? I see you're more than halfway finished now."

Elle replied: "Oh, yeah, it's great. I really like it. And did you know it's a series?"

"No! Who told you that?"

"Cameron did. She has the next two books and she is going to bring them to me tomorrow. I think I'll have plenty of time to read while I'm here. It will be a great distraction."

"Did you get to the part where?"

I tuned them out at this point. I hadn't read the book and wasn't interested in the details of it.

Wilson slid his chair closer to mine. In a soft voice, he asked: "Are _you _OK?"

I chuckled: "Am I ever?"

He rolled his eyes: "Are you at your usual level of not-OK-ness or have you sunk to a lower depth?"

I took a deep breath and watched my lady as she chatted animatedly with Cuddy. This would almost be a usual dinner for the four of us, except our usual dinners didn't take place in the hospital with Elle flat on her back in a bed while hooked up to monitors.

I stared down at the floor. "When the Rug-rat gets here, and I get to take her and Elle home, then I might be able to start breathing again."

He put his hand on my shoulder, and for once, I didn't shrug it off.

As soon as we finished eating, Cuddy marched out to the nurse's desk. Ten minutes later, two of the janitors were wheeling in the most plush looking recliner from the OB doctors' lounge.

I couldn't help snickering. "You know, Tomlinson's going to be pissed. This one is his favorite chair. He caught me napping in it once and damn near had a stroke. His face was redder than a beefsteak tomato."

Cuddy smirked: "If Tomlinson has a problem, he can come to me. This one is yours for now. Is there anything else you need before we go?"

She looked like she was about to drop from exhaustion. Wilson was right; she needed to cut down on her hours. "I think we're good for now, Cuddy. If I need anything, you know I can bully the nurses until I get what I want."

"Don't bully too hard, House. Remember these nurses are going to be taking care of your girlfriend for more than just one night."

Wilson promised to bring us bagels in the morning. They both gave Elle a kiss and then departed. Right after they left, the night-shift nurse came in to tend to Elle. This one's name was Lori; she was a stout woman, with very short brown hair. She had a non-nonsense attitude about her, but yet somehow it came across as though coated with sugar.

She gave Elle her daily aspirin and her evening Lovenox shot. It may seem weird that we needed to keep Elle anticoagulated when she was bleeding from the partially tore placenta, but due to the APS she was still at high risk for throwing clots. We needed to walk a careful line to keep her anticoagulated enough to not throw clots and yet not too much that she would bleed excessively. I didn't want to leave the room to check her labs on the computer so I asked Lori for her chart. The lab work had been printed out and placed in the chart. Elle's coagulation factors and platelet count were in the normal range. This was good news. She did seem to be a little anemic which was not uncommon in pregnancy. I checked Alderman's orders and Elle was due to start iron tablets along with a prenatal multivitamin in the morning. I wrote an order to start a stool softener with the iron tablets as iron generally makes a person constipated and pregnancy further contributes to that.

Lori checked Elle's blood pressure and changed out her IV bag. The rate was lowered again, this time to 50 ml/hr and the nurse explained that if Elle's blood pressure was OK in the morning, that Alderman would probably discontinue the IV altogether. Lori assisted Elle with the urinal and when she was finished with that, asked if Elle needed anything else.

"Your doctor left an order for Ambien if you want a sleeping pill."

Elle shook her head. "No, I'm really tired. I don't think I'll need a sleeping pill."

"Well, if you change your mind, or need anything else, just push the call button."

"Thank you. I will."

Lori gave a smile to Elle, a nod to me and left the room.

I checked the time; it was 9:45. I realized that I couldn't put it off any longer so I picked up my cell phone and dialed Mom.

She answered in her usual cheery tone: "Hello dear. How are you and Elle doing?"

"Well, hmm, I'm fine but Elle's had a bit of a complication."

I told Mom the whole story from the initial fall on Monday to her hospitalization today. She tried to remain stoic like a good Marine's wife should, but her voice shook with emotion from time to time as she pressed me for more details.

"Do you want me to come out there now?"

"Not yet, Mom. Let's see how the next few days go. But you may want to pack your bag so that you are ready to catch a flight at any time."

"I'll do that dear. Let me say 'hi' to Elle, OK?"

I handed the phone to Elle: "Mom wants to say hi."

She took the phone: "Hi, Blythe."

I listened in on Elle's side of the conversation.

"Yeah, we're just hanging out here in the hospital. I'm hooked up to a monitor that records the baby's heart rate so we can check to see if she's in any distress."

"Well, I'm not bored yet. Jimmy and Lisa brought us Chinese food for dinner tonight. I have a book I'm reading and my laptop and the TV and of course, Greg keeps me entertained. Avi and Gen said they would come and visit me tomorrow."

"I don't think you need to come out just yet. We'll call you when it looks like I'm going to deliver. After all, if she's early, she may need to stay in the hospital for a few days or so. I could get discharged before she does. I hope not, but it is possible."

"I promise that we'll keep you posted."

"OK. Put him on."

My head spun around at that remark; was Dad getting on the phone? My question was answered with Elle's next remark.

"Hi Colonel."

"Yeah, I gotta stay in bed now. Try and incubate the baby for a little while longer."

"Well, I hope to last 2 more weeks, but we'll see. She may have other ideas."

"Opa?"

"Oh, that's Dutch for Grandpa. Do you want her to call you Opa or Grandpa?"

Then she actually giggled. "OK. I'll tell her that Opa says to stay put for two more weeks. If she salutes on the ultrasound, I'll get a copy and send it to you."

"OK."

"We'll keep you posted."

"OK. Sure. Say good night to Blythe for me and here's Greg."

She held out the phone to me and said: "Your dad wants to say hi."

Dad wanted to talk to me? I was back in the Twilight Zone.

I took the phone and sat up straighter. "Hey, Dad."

"Hey, son, how you holding up with all this?"

"I'm doing OK. Just, you know, concerned for Elle."

"Course. She sounds like she is hanging in there pretty well."

"Elle's a trouper. Plus she knows that I'll tie her to the bed if she tries to get up before her doctor gives her permission."

He actually laughed at my joke. I rapped my cane against my big toe to make sure that I was awake and not dreaming this conversation. It hurt, so I guess that meant it wasn't a dream.

"Well, you keep us posted, son. We'll be out there pronto once you give the word."

I nodded, despite the fact that he couldn't see me. Then I blurted out: "Opa, huh?"

He chuckled: "Yeah, I figured, you know, it's kind of a family tradition. You don't mind, do ya?"

"No Dad, I don't mind. We'll call you tomorrow and give you an update. Say good-night to Mom for me."

I closed the phone and set it on the nightstand. Elle took my hand and said: "That didn't go too badly, did it?"

I started whistling the theme song to the Twilight Zone and she laughed.

I went into the bathroom and changed into sweat pants and a tee shirt, which were going to pass for my pajamas during Elle's hospital stay. Then I limped over to the monitor and checked the readout. Rug-rat's heart rate still looked good. I dropped the strip back on the floor.

"Still looking good, sweetheart. You ready for sleep?"

Elle nodded.

"You want the urinal one more time?"

She nodded again.

"You want me to get it or you wanna call the nurse?"

Hesitantly, she asked: "Do you mind?"

"If I did, I wouldn't have given you the choice."

I retrieved the urinal and we took care of business. Once that was accomplished, I shoved the recliner a few times until it was close enough to the bed that I could reach out and touch Elle. I made sure Elle was as comfortable as possible and then I settled myself in the recliner with a pillow and blanket. I flipped off the light, but it was never completely dark in a hospital room. The blinking lights from the IV pump and the monitor acted like psychedelic night-lights. I reached out in the semi-darkness and she took my hand.

"Elle, if you need anything, I'm right here. If you can't sleep and want to read or put on the TV, go ahead."

She kissed my hand and rubbed it against her cheek. "Thank you, cowboy. I love you."

I leaned over the bed rails; she rose up a bit until our lips met. My free hand cupped her cheek while she kept a tight hold on my other hand. Our kiss was tender and our tongues danced slowly and sensually with each other. When we finally broke apart, I whispered in her mouth: "I love you too."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

"Greg! Help me!"

My eyes popped open. Elle was in trouble, but something was off. The room looked different. The monitor was gone and so was all the other hospital equipment. In fact the room was completely bare except for the hospital bed, which had somehow moved to the far side of the room.

"Greg! Help me!"

Elle was laying in the middle of the bed, calling out to me. She clutched her belly with both hands and screamed in pain. Her abdomen pulsated as if the baby was going to burst right through her skin. The blankets were gone and I could see the blood between her legs. She was bleeding out. I was stunned by the amount of blood and yet she was still conscious and screaming for me.

I tried to get out of the chair and go to her, but my leg wouldn't move. I looked down and saw that my entire leg, from ankle to hip was encased in a heavy plaster cast. I screamed for someone to come and help her, but the hallway was dark and I could see no one.

I struggled to my feet. I had my cane but it was practically useless. My right leg could not take any weight at all. I took a little hop on my good leg and almost lost my balance. I swore and screamed again for some help. Elle was crying softly now and pleading for help. Her voice sounded weaker and my panic increased. I took a hop and then another, but I didn't seem to be getting any closer to her. I tried to hop faster, but my foot bumped up against something on the floor and I fell, landing hard on my right leg. Pain seared up my leg straight to my brain and I felt like all my nerve endings were on fire. I screamed from the pain and slammed my fist against the floor. I looked around to see what had caused me to fall. At first I thought it was a doll, and when I pulled it towards me, I realized it was a limp, lifeless baby.

"No," I whimpered. Then I realized that I had not heard Elle's voice for a while and I called out to her. There was no response. I called again and this time the only answer I received was that the bed started to move of its own accord towards the door. As it rolled, I could see blood dripping off the edge of the bed and leaving a trail as the bed moved out of the room. I raised myself up as far as I could and was just able to see Elle's pale face as she lay there, still and silent. I tried to struggle to my feet, but the bed rolled out of the door and out of my sight.

I screamed: "NO!"

I woke in a cold sweat, my eyes brimming with tears. I felt disoriented as I looked around the room. This time, it looked the same as it had when I had fallen asleep. All the equipment was in it proper place and the psychedelic lights were still blinking on the monitor. Most important of all, Elle was sleeping peacefully, lying slightly on her left side and snoring softly.

I leaned back in the recliner and took some deep breaths as I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. It was a dream, a really bad dream, but it had felt so real. I was glad that I had not woken Elle with my screams, although I wasn't sure if I had really screamed out loud or if I had only screamed in my nightmare. I reached down and touched my thigh, reassured that I could feel the rough ridges of my scar through my sweats and not a hard plaster cast.

When my heart rate was back to normal, I reached over and gently took Elle's wrist. Her pulse was fine and her skin felt nice and cool to the touch. I stood up and walked quietly over to where I had tossed my jacket over the straight-back chair. My penlight was in the breast pocket and I grabbed that and headed back to the monitor. Shielding the light with one hand so that it wouldn't bother Elle, I scanned the strip for any sign that Rug-rat's heart beat had changed. It looked exactly the same as it had the last time I checked it. I breathed a sign of relief and let the paper drop back on the floor. Then I lifted the blanket and flashed the light around. I could see no blood and I switched the penlight off.

After I tucked the penlight back in my pocket, I reached into another pocket and pulled out my vial of immediate-release oxycodone. My leg throbbed a little, but I really just wanted a little bump in the hopes it would help me fall asleep again. I dry-swallowed two of them and then I limped into the bathroom. I waited until I had closed the door to flick on the light. I took a quick piss and then splashed some cold water on my face. I looked like hell and definitely needed some more sleep. I shut off the light and limped back to the bed. Elle was still sleeping peacefully. I leaned over and gave her a little kiss on the cheek before climbing back into the recliner. I pulled the blanket up and then took hold of her hand. Lightly grasping her fingers, I started mentally reciting all the bones in the hand. When I ran through all of them, I started on the foot bones. The oxy kicked in before I finished and I fell into a dreamless sleep.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Elle and I both groaned when the lights came on. I think lab techs get off on waking up the sick. Why else would they insist on drawing your blood at 6AM? The tech ignored my coarse remarks and just continued with her work. Just as the vampire was finishing up, the night shift nurse came into the room.

"Good morning. Did you sleep OK?"

Elle replied: "Yeah, I did. I must have been really tired; I didn't even wake up to pee, which I really need to do now."

As the nurse walked into the bathroom to fetch the urinal, Elle looked over at me and asked: "Did you sleep OK?"

I merely nodded.

Her left eyebrow raised an inch and she gave me a skeptical look. The nurse returned before Elle could say anything else, and I took the opportunity to escape to the bathroom to take a leak myself.

When I returned, the nurse was busy taking Elle's blood pressure. I watched her with one eye as I scanned the readout with the other. Rug-rat's heart rate still looked good.

"Her BP's 112/78, Dr. House."

I nodded: Was there any blood on her pad?"

"Just a few spots."

This looked promising. If everything looked the same on the ultrasound, Alderman might decide that Elle could get out of bed today. I knew she would appreciate being able to take a shower and wash her hair.

She finished the vitals; charted them and said breakfast should be here around 7:00. Elle stuck out her tongue after she left.

"Blah. Hospital breakfast translates to cold eggs and soggy toast. I hope Wilson remembers to bring bagels."

I leaned back in the recliner and said: "Wilson's an elephant. He never forgets."

I must have dozed off because the next thing I heard was a knock on the door and an announcement: "Food service". A stocky black woman entered, set the tray down on the table and just as quickly left the room. Elle lifted the lid off the plate with some trepidation. "Yuck. Just like I said. Soggy toast, cold eggs, and I bet they are powdered ones too. The food in the cafeteria downstairs is so much better than what they serve the patients. I just don't get that."

"One of the mysteries of hospital life."

Elle nodded, and after grabbing the carton of milk and the glass of orange juice off the tray, shoved the table away. She mumbled: "I hope Jimmy gets here soon," and then she drank the milk.

She shifted around a bit, but there was not much she could do to change positions. The pillow under her right hip prevented her from laying on her right side and if she turned too far to the left, the monitor could no longer pick up the baby's heart beat and the alarm would go off.

She let out a dramatic sigh: "If I'm not bleeding and my blood pressure is OK, do you think she'll let me out of bed today?"

"Maybe, but don't get your hopes up too far. She'll probably only let you take a shower today. I don't think you'll be walking the halls just yet."

Another dramatic sigh. "It hasn't even been 24 hours yet and lying here is already making me antsy."

I watched her face carefully as I said my next words. "Well, we could go ahead and take the baby now, instead of trying to wait."

Elle cried out: "NO!"

She pressed her lips firmly together, brow wrinkled in thought. "No, I want to try to incubate longer if possible. It's just hard lying here. I want to move."

"You need to move around a bit. Do some ankle rolls, 10 in each direction and then flex and extend your toes. Wiggle your legs back and forth like windshield wipers. Small exercises like that may help with that antsy feeling."

"OK."

I watched the movement under the blanket as Elle went through the series of exercises that I had suggested. Strict bed rest coupled with the APS made her a prime candidate for a DVT also, and keeping the blood moving in her legs would help. I'd have to remind her to do these exercises several times a day.

I switched on the TV and flipped channels, finally settling on one of those morning talk shows, since there was nothing else on.

Seven AM was shift change for the nurses and we got the redheaded nurse back again. Elle seemed to like her, so that would help make life a little easier today.

She lifted the lid from the plate and frowned: "Don't like eggs?"

"I like eggs, but real eggs. Not those cold powdered ones."

"I can get you some cereal if you want."

"Thanks, but I've been promised bagels, so I'm holding out."

"OK, but if you want to try something else, let me know and I'll see what I can do. Lori just took your vitals and your IV bag doesn't need changing yet, so just push the button if you need anything. I'll be back in an hour with your morning meds."

"Well, um, yeah, I do need something."

Elle squirmed and looked embarrassed. "Can I get out of bed for just 5 minutes?"

The nurse shook her head: "Not until Dr. Alderman clears you."

Elle blew out a big breath of air. "Well, I guess I need the bedpan then."

"Not the urinal, but the bedpan?"

Grimacing, Elle nodded.

"OK. Hang on, I'll get it."

When she returned, she shot me a look: "Dr. House, perhaps you want to?"

She jerked her head towards the door.

"What? And miss Diane Sawyer talking to Madonna? No way!"

Elle said in a pleading tone: "Greg. I don't want you here for this."

I continued to stare at the TV screen. "I'm not going to watch. Just ignore me and do what you have to do."

Elle switched to French and snarled at me: _"Goddamnit, Greg! I need to take a crap and I don't want you in the room. Get out! Now!"_

I switched off the TV and slammed the remote on the table. _"Yesterday you were shy about taking a piss in front of me, then you changed your mind when you really needed to go and no one else was around. You stay on bed rest long enough and I'll end up helping you with this too."_

She burst into tears: _"Get out! Now!"_

The nurse gave me a stern look. "Dr. House, please. It's not good for the baby if she gets upset."

I growled: "Fine." I grabbed my cane and still wearing my pajamas and bare-footed, stalked out into the hall with as much dignity as I could muster.

Wilson found me a few minutes later, slumped in a near-by chair and tapping my cane against the floor.

He dropped into the chair next to me. "You look like hell. Everything OK?"

"Elle kicked me out of the room to take a dump."

"Well, come on, House. You can understand that. Everyone wants privacy when they are doing _that_."

I grumbled: "The nurse is in there."

"Yeah, but that's her job and Elle does need _some_ help."

I shrugged: "What's the big deal? Everybody craps."

"Yes, everyone craps, but usually not in front of an audience. Maybe she's afraid it will ruin the romance if you see her like that. If she's like Lisa, she is not feeling her most attractive right now anyway."

I just shrugged and tapped my cane against the floor. I didn't want to tell him about my nightmare or my fear that something would happen to her if I left the room. She had the abruption within 30 minutes of my leaving the house yesterday. If I had just stayed home, I would have been there for her.

Wilson kept staring at me. "You look like you didn't sleep well. Recliner not that comfortable? Maybe we can have another bed brought in for you."

I scowled at him. "I slept fine. Besides, there's not enough space in that room for two beds."

The redheaded nurse stepped out of the room.

"Dr. House, you can go back in now."

I muttered: "Great. Now I have permission to enter the inner sanctum."

Wilson warned: "Don't give her a hard time about this."

I shot him a dirty look and got to my feet. I slowly limped back into the room. Elle had her face turned away from the door and was wiping her eyes with a tissue. She looked so small, laying in that bed with all those wires and lines hooked up to her. My chest contracted. She had yelled at me and yet all I wanted to do was crawl in beside her and pull her into my arms.

I walked over to the far side of the bed and let the rails down so I could sit on the bed next to her. I tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear and said softly: "Wilson's here. He brought bagels."

She looked up at me and her lip trembled violently. She managed to stammer out: _"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."_ Then she burst into tears.

I sighed inwardly. Pregnancy hormones. We had barely survived 24 hours in the hospital; how were we going to handle two to four weeks of this?

I leaned over and gathered her into my arms as best I could. I made soothing noises as I rubbed her back, self-conscious about the fact that Wilson was watching. In between her sobs, she kept apologizing to me.

I murmured softly in her ear. "Shh, shh, don't cry. _C'est bien_. It's OK. _I was being an ass. I should have given you some privacy. C'mon, sweetheart, stop crying. Rug-rat doesn't want you to be sad and neither do I."_

It took a few more minutes and a lot of soft words, but she finally got her emotions under control. I kissed away her tears before blowing a raspberry on her neck that made her giggle. That cute little noise told me that things were OK again.

I glanced around; Wilson had left the bag of bagels on the table next to the abandoned breakfast tray and left us alone. I was profoundly grateful for that.

"Hey, Wilson brought the bagels. You hungry?"

"Starving. I just need to blow my nose."

I handed her the tissue box and then made my way around the bed to the table to check out the bag. Wilson had outdone himself. There were a dozen bagels, three kinds of cream cheese, lox spread and a tub of egg salad. I grabbed the breakfast tray to make some room on the table, intending to set it outside the room. Wilson was standing right outside and without a word, he took the tray from me and walked it down to the food service cart. I left the door ajar and he followed me back into the room.

Elle smiled when she saw him. "Thanks for the bagels, Jimmy. That breakfast tray looked disgusting."

"No problem. I've seen the food they serve here and it's no wonder that patients lose weight while they are here. I'll be happy to bring you breakfast every day if you want."

As I dug in the bag looking for an 'everything' bagel, I muttered: "Trying to assuage your guilt?"

Wilson exploded: "Guilt? Is that what you think this is? You think these are guilt bagels? Goddamnit, House! Can't I just do something nice?"

"No, there's gotta be a reason and _ding, ding, ding_, I believe that guilt wins this race."

"I have no reason to feel guilty. I feel bad about what happened, but it wasn't my fault."

"You still feel guilty. That's why we got Chinese food last night and bagels today."

"And it can't be because I want you and Elle to eat something better than hospital food?"

The alarm on the monitor went off and we both turned towards the bed. Elle was sitting up, leads in her hand and an angry look on her face. She hissed through her teeth: "Stop this right now. I can't stand the two of you fighting. This was an accident. Yes, it had dire consequences, but it was an accident and it is not Jimmy's fault. So stop trying to make him feel bad about it. Can't we just?"

She fell back against the pillow, still clutching the leads and looked utterly exhausted from her outburst.

The redheaded nurse ran into the room. "Your monitor went off. Oh. Why did you pull the leads off?"

Elle waved her hand in our direction. "I needed to get their attention. They were making me nuts."

The nurse turned to face us: "Look guys, if your discussion is upsetting Elle, you need to take out in the hall. She needs to remain as calm as possible. Oh, hi, Dr. Wilson. How are you?"

Wilson gave her a warm smile: "Hi, Jenny. I'm fine. Nice to see you again. Are you enjoying your work down here better than on oncology?"

"Yes I am. This is a much happier place."

She turned back to Elle: "Let's get these leads put back on. Dr. Alderman will be wondering what caused the break in the rhythm."

Elle sighed: "I'll explain what happened."

I limped over to the far side of the bed and assisted her with replacing the leads. She took Elle's blood pressure one more time, warned us again to keep Elle calm and left the room. I checked the read-out; Rug-rat's heartbeat was around 140.

I looked up at Elle: "She's doing fine."

"Good. Can I have a bagel now?"

"What kind would you like? Wilson brought a big assortment."

"Onion bagel with lox spread?"

Wilson said: "Got it. Want some egg salad on the side?"

"Oh, yeah, that sounds good."

Wilson pulled paper plates out of the bag and slapped together some breakfast for Elle. She still had her carton of orange juice from her breakfast tray. When Wilson handed her the plate, she dug in enthusiastically.

For Elle's sake, we didn't argue any further. I found an 'everything' bagel and slapped some chive cream cheese on it. Wilson ate a cinnamon raisin bagel with some strawberry cream cheese. He had also brought me a large coffee with just the right amount of sugar in it. He really was trying to be helpful. Elle was right. I had no reason to be pissed at him. I was worried about her and the baby and I was letting out my anger on the most convenient target.

I caught his eye and mumbled: "Thank you."

He gave me a nod.

We ate in companionable silence with the morning talk show droning on in the background. Just as we finished eating, Alderman walked in.

"So what's going on? I hear from Jenny that you've had two melt-downs already this morning."

Elle sighed: "I know, I know. I gotta keep it together. I'm just having a little trouble adjusting to bed rest."

"We could go ahead and take the baby now."

"I know. Greg suggested that too, but she's doing OK, right? And if she is, I'd like to incubate until 36 weeks if possible. I really don't think I could last longer than 2 weeks on bed rest."

Alderman nodded: "If she is doing OK, we could just keep to your previously scheduled delivery date. Let me check you out."

Wilson quickly stood up: "I'm going to take off. I have a few appointments this morning. Call me if you need anything."

Elle replied: "Thanks, Jimmy. I appreciate everything you're doing for us."

He nodded and exited the room.

_**ELLE**_

I figured Kelly would find out about the bedpan meltdown. I watched her as she reviewed the strip.

"Looks like you had a good night. I can see her heartbeat pick up around 8AM; is that when you got upset?"

I nodded.

"And then there's a gap here. That's when you pulled the leads off."

Again, I nodded. I felt stupid that I had done that, but I didn't know any other way to get the two of them to stop arguing. I had yelled at them, but they were too busy fighting to hear me.

Kelly finished looking at the strip and tore it off the monitor. "Her heartbeat looks good. I don't see any signs of distress. It picks up, of course, when you get upset, but it otherwise looks fine. I'm going to do another ultrasound. Is she moving around a lot?"

"Yes. I just ate and she is really swimming now."

Kelly got the ultrasound monitor in position and squirted the gel on my belly. Greg maneuvered around the bed so that he could see the screen. I reached for him and he took my hand. He was still in his pajamas and all rumpled looking. It made him look sexy and I desperately wanted him to climb into bed with me and cuddle.

I put those thoughts aside as we all looked at the monitor. The baby looked fine to me. She was waving her arms and kicking her legs. Kelly and Greg peered more closely at the screen.

Finally, Kelly removed the probe and started wiping the gel off of my belly. "Everything looks the same as yesterday. I can't see any further separation of the placenta from the uterine wall. Have you had much bleeding?"

"Just a few spots. The nurse changed my pad this morning and there wasn't very much on there."

"Good. I think everything looks stable right now."

"Does that mean I can get out of bed?"

Kelly finished putting the machine away before coming over and sitting in the chair next to the bed. "You fell on Monday and then the abruption didn't happen for 2 more days. I want to be conservative about your activities. Everything looks good right now, but I don't want to take any chances. You can get up once today to shower, but then I want you right back in bed with the monitor on. I'll check you at this afternoon and again tomorrow morning and we'll just play this day by day. Maybe tomorrow you can sit in the chair for a while. You have 12 days to go until your scheduled delivery date. Let's see how close we can get, OK?"

I nodded. "OK. Getting a shower would be great."

Greg said: "Since Elle is on strict bed-rest, I think she should be on SCD's."

Kelly nodded: "I'll put in an order for them. Sequential Compression Devices for your legs will help keep the blood flowing to prevent a DVT. You are going to be hooked up to a lot of stuff. This isn't going to be easy for you."

"I know. I'll try not to have any more meltdowns. I have a book to read and some of my friends are coming by later. I'll keep myself amused."

She squeezed my hand. "Alright. Oh, there is one other thing I wanted to talk to you about. You two aren't married, right?"

"That's right."

"Since House is not your legal spouse, you need to designate someone as your health care proxy in case you become incapacitated and I want you to fill out an Advanced Directive. I'll send the caseworker in with the paperwork. Pick a backup proxy too. You can get two of the nurses to witness it for you."

Greg snarked: "Or we could just get married. That would cut down on the paperwork."

I laughed: "I don't want to get married in a hospital room. I want to get married on the beach with all our friends there."

Greg's jaw dropped; he looked stunned. "Really? Which beach?"

"I don't know which one. It's just, if we ever get married, I want to do it on a beach, OK?"

He stared at me for a moment, blinking slowly. "If that's what you want, sure. Fine with me."

Kelly shook her head. "Well, since I can't release you to go to the beach, I guess you'll have to fill out the paperwork instead. I'll tell Jenny to call the caseworker and let her know that you can shower today. Any other concerns?"

"Not right now. I'll take a shower and then back in bed, pronto."

"You got it. I'll see you later on today. Call me if you need anything."

_**HOUSE**_

Other than wanting all of her friends to be there, Elle never mentioned anything that she wanted connected with a wedding before. I took it as a good sign that she actually mentioned a place for the wedding. I felt encouraged; she just might say 'yes' one of these days.

Jenny came in and between us, we disconnected Elle from all the lines and wires. We sat her up slowly and let her legs dangle for a moment, before attempting to get her to her feet. Even after only 20 hours of bed rest, she felt a little weak. We each took an arm and slowly walked her into the bathroom.

Since she was going to need help and I hadn't showered yet anyway, the easiest thing to do was for me to help her and bathe myself at the same time. We sat Elle on the toilet while we got everything ready. Jenny got two bath chairs for us. Elle needed to sit and it would be easier for me to wash her if I were sitting myself. I gathered the soap and shampoo and placed the towels within easy reach. Clean clothes for me and a fresh gown and panties for Elle and we were all set. Jenny said she would change the sheets while we were showering and to ring for her when we were finished.

I shed my clothes while Elle peeled off her gown. I helped her into the shower and got her settled on the chair. As I adjusted the temperature of the water, I took a good look at her. She looked so beautiful, so curvy and womanly with her big belly and swollen breasts. The bruises on her belly and elbow were still purple and ugly. They were deep and showed no signs of fading just yet.

Once I had the temperature just right, I wet her hair and applied the shampoo. She closed her eyes and leaned back into my touch. I washed her hair and then gave her a head massage, until she was almost purring. When I stopped massaging to rinse her hair, I heard her soft voice say: "That was lovely. Thank you."

"My pleasure, sweetheart."

I shielded her eyes with one hand as I rinsed her hair.

"I am really sorry that I yelled at you earlier. I just didn't want to take a crap in front of you. It just seemed like I was losing the last shred of my dignity to do that."

"I know. And I won't, I mean, I'll try not to put you in that position again. Just remember that you are going to need help and if the nurse isn't immediately available, I may need to give you a hand."

"You can help me with everything except that, OK? I mean, I can probably hold it until the nurse is available. It's not like my bladder which can't wait very long."

I soaped up my hands and started washing her left arm, carefully avoiding the IV site.

"Deal. The next time you need to take a crap, I'll step out. I just don't want to leave you for very long."

"You can't stay with me every minute, cowboy. You will need to see your patients and just get out for a bit. Go to the cafeteria, smooze with Wilson, something. Just because I'm stuck inside those four walls, doesn't mean you have to be stuck with me."

"Wilson can bring the gossip to me and the ducklings can bring the whiteboard up here. Then you can help us out with the differential. It will give you something to do."

I put her left foot in my lap and started tickling her toes with the soap. She giggled: "What about clinic duty? Or going for a swim?"

I ran my soapy hands up and down her leg. "You can write me a note, Little Mama, and Cuddy will let me out of clinic duty."

She teased: "I won't write you a note for swimming. You should go."

"We'll see."

She narrowed her eyes at me, but I ignored the look as I continued to wash her, tickling her underarms with my fingers and rubbing her belly. I spent a little extra time on her breasts to make sure that they were especially clean. Finally I had her stand up so that I could get her back and bottom.

When Elle was clean and rinsed, I let her stand behind me for a few minutes so that she could wash my hair. I loved the feel of her fingers massaging my scalp and it relaxed me so much that I almost fell asleep. I woke up for the rinse and then had her sit back down as she wanted to return the favor and wash me. I let her get my arms and chest, but did my own legs, as I didn't want her bending over. Then I sat backwards on the chair and let her wash my back. Her touch was soothing and I felt myself starting to relax. Her hands slid around my sides and across my stomach. Next thing I knew, her soapy hands were caressing my cock, which announced its appreciation by rising to attention.

I murmured: "What are you doing, my little minx? You know we can't have sex."

She snickered: "Well, we can't have sex, but I can play with you. No reason why you can't have some fun."

I stilled her hands: "Yes, there is".

I turned around and cupped her face with my hands. "You can't and I don't want to have fun without you."

Her gaze softened as she stroked my cheek. "Do you know how much I love you?"

I managed to murmur: "I have a pretty good idea." And then her lips crashed onto mine.

We rinsed all the soap off and then I toweled Elle dry. She put on the clean gown and panties with a fresh pad. I dressed while she combed out and braided her hair into a long single ponytail.

While we were in the shower, Jenny had changed the bed sheets. Between us, we helped Elle back into bed and hooked her back up to the monitor. Alderman had discontinued the IV for now, but Elle would keep the Hep lock in her arm just in case the IV needed to be restarted. Jenny gave Elle her morning meds: a prenatal vitamin, an iron tablet, a stool softener and her morning shot of Lovenox. I grabbed the nasal cannula, gently reinserted it into Elle's nostrils and turned the oxygen back on.

Then came the SCD's. Each leg was dressed in a sleeve that covered her from ankle to knee. A pneumatic controller pumps in compressed air that sequentially inflates the multiple chambers of the sleeve beginning at the ankle and moving up the leg. This action empties the veins and results in better blood flow in the lower legs. Hopefully, between the Lovenox and the SCD's, Elle would not develop a DVT despite being on strict bed rest.

Jenny asked if we needed anything else and, when we declined, said she would send the caseworker in as soon as she arrived.

I settled myself back into the recliner and picked up the remote. I flipped through the channels while keeping one eye on Elle. She seemed to be amusing herself by examining all the medical equipment hooked up to her.

Suddenly she giggled: "Look at all this stuff that I'm attached to. I bet you have never seen me looking sexier, have you?"

I wiggled my eyebrows at her. "I'd jump you right now if we could do it. That hospital gown combined with the SCD's really turns me on."

She giggled again and reached for my hand. I took her small hand in mine and continued flipping through the channels. The hospital must be cutting costs again because HBO had disappeared from our channel selection. I made a mental note to speak to Cuddy about that.

My cell phone rang; the ducklings were checking in. I told them to scout around and try to dig up a patient for us and if they failed, they could do some clinic hours. I had just flipped the phone closed when a tall, thin African-American woman walked into our room. She introduced herself as Rebecca Woodbury and explained that she was the caseworker for this floor.

We got right down to business on the forms. Little explanation was needed, as Elle and I were both familiar with them. Elle named me as her health care proxy, but was uncertain whom to name as the backup in case I wasn't available. We debated about Wilson and Avi, but in the end, I convinced her to pick Chase. I was concerned that both Wilson and Avi would be too emotional to make an objective decision; additionally, Avi didn't have any medical knowledge to help him make an informed decision. I felt Chase could be objective enough to make the best medical decision. In the end, Elle agreed with me. I paged Chase to come up to Elle's room so we could discuss the fine points with him. He listened to what Elle wanted and agreed to act as her proxy in case I was not available. I was going to do my damnedest to make sure that Chase's services were never needed, but his name was on the form just in case. Two nurses were called in to witness the forms and the paperwork was finished. The caseworker headed out to place copies in Elle's chart. Chase took a look at the strip, pronounced Rug-rat's heartbeat as stable and headed back to the clinic.

Elle read her book and I surfed the Internet for a while. Yesterday I had read everything I could find on placental abruption so today I concentrated on complications of prematurity. After an hour of reading, I realized that if Elle could make it until her 35th week, which was five days away, the baby's risks of pulmonary complications declined by a large margin. I wondered if Alderman would keep her on complete bed rest until then. Five days of strict bed rest seemed more doable than twelve.

Elle's cell phone rang. Gen was calling to see if she could visit on her lunch hour and bring us sandwiches. Elle happily agreed and placed a lunch order for the two of us. Gen arrived around noon, with a huge roast beef on rye for me and a turkey croissant sandwich for Elle. There were tubs of potato salad and cole slaw and dill pickles too. As usual, Elle ate my pickle. In between bites of her own sandwich, Gen amused Elle with stories of Audra's latest antics at kindergarten and Lenny's latest girlfriend. That guy went through girls like shit through a goose, but this one seemed to have some staying power. Her name was Lorraine and she was a petite brunette with a huge rack. She had been around for six weeks now, and Lenny still seemed totally smitten. The girls laughed that maybe Lenny had finally found 'the one'. I smirked and explained that what Lenny was really smitten with was his two new toys.

After an hour, Gen had to leave to get back to work. She said Avi would call later and see what we wanted him to bring for dinner. Elle had really perked up with her company but got quiet after she left.

I reached over and squeezed her hand. "What's up, sweetheart?"

"Oh, just thinking. It's harder staying in bed than I thought it would be. The highlight of my day is getting out of bed for a shower. Having people drop by, even the caseworker, is a welcome relief from the boredom."

She squeezed my hand: "Don't worry. I'll make it. It's just harder than I thought it would be."

"Well, I could show you my favorite porn sites, but then we'd both get horny and couldn't do anything about it."

She giggled: "Let's save that for later. Much later."

General Hospital had just ended when my cell phone rang again.

I flipped it open. "House."

Bill Arnello got right to his point. "Your car is a piece of crap."

I sighed: "What's wrong with it?"

"It would be faster to tell you what isn't wrong with it. For starters, it has an oil leak."

"Well, that's not such a big deal."

Bill chuckled: "Not by itself, no. But the low oil pressure caused you to throw a rod, which pierced a hole right through the engine block. My guy also found an electrical short."

I moaned inwardly: "Christ, get to the punch line. How long will it take and how much is it gonna cost me?"

In an incredulous tone, Bill asked: "You actually want to fix a car this old? It's got 257,000 miles on it. The repairs are going to be way more than what it's worth. Why don't you just get a new car?"

"That car and I go back a long way. If your guy can't fix it, I'll have it towed to my guy."

"I didn't say he couldn't fix it. I was just questioning the point of getting it fixed at all when it belongs in the junkyard."

"There are still a lot of miles left in her. Just let me know how much it's going to cost."

Bill warned: "It's going to take some time to get it running again."

"Well, I'm not in a rush. Elle's going to be in the hospital for a while. Just keep me posted."

"How's she doing?"

"Everything is stable at the moment. She's on bed rest and we're monitoring the baby's heart rate."

"I'll send over some cannoli's."

"She'd like that. Thanks."

I closed the phone and relayed the conversation to Elle.

Her eyes widened. "The car sounds pretty bad. Are you sure you want to get it fixed?"

"I'm not giving up on her now. She's not terminal yet."

She gave me a skeptical look and went back to reading her book.

The kids came up around 3:30. They had not found a patient and were finished with their clinic hours for the week.

I smirked: "Good. Tomorrow you can all start doing _my_ hours for the month since I'm positive that I won't be there for at least that long."

Foreman rolled his eyes and Chase groaned.

I shrugged: "Hey. Maybe that will give you sufficient motivation to find us a patient. Get a patient, no clinic hours."

Cameron said in an optimistic tone: "Well, Friday is usually a good day to scout the ER. Maybe we'll find someone. Anyway, Elle, I brought the books for you."

She pulled two thick books out of her bag and set them on the bedside table.

Elle grinned: "Oh, thanks so much, Cameron. Having some good books to read will really help. It's boring laying here all day and knowing that you can't get up."

"Your doctor is not letting you up at all?"

"I got to take a shower, but that's it for today. She's playing it day by day, being really cautious. And I'm OK with that, but I get bored quickly."

I snarked: "Yeah, so find a patient, drag the whiteboard up here so we can do the differential and help keep Elle from being bored. In the meantime."

I was interrupted by Alderman walking into the room. "Hello, everyone. Elle, how are you feeling?"

"I feel good. No pain. Baby is kicking just fine."

"Excellent. Would you guys mind stepping out now so I can examine Elle?"

I pointed at Chase: "You stay. Gangsta Boy and Care Bear can take off for the day. Get in early tomorrow and find me a patient."

I needed the distraction as much as Elle did, probably more. They said their good-byes and left the room.

Alderman and Chase checked the strip. I didn't bother looking at it with them as I had been checking it every hour. Rug-rat's heart rate was staying in the upper 130's, which was just fine. Alderman concurred and then she dragged the ultrasound machine over to the bed. We examined the image closely. The baby was moving and breathing just fine and the placental separation looked unchanged. There was no more blood floating in the amniotic fluid and only two small spots on her pad.

Alderman smiled: "Everything is looking good. I still think you should stay on bed rest for a few days, just to be careful. Maybe by next week, we'll get you up and walking around a bit."

"OK. As long as I can get up for a shower, I'm OK with staying in bed. I'm getting used to it. I had some visitors today, so that helped with the boredom."

"Good. I know it's hard, but you and the baby are doing great so far. Read, watch TV, play cards. It's a good time to learn to knit."

Elle laughed: "Hey, I didn't think of that. Know anyone who could teach me?"

"I'm sure we could probably find someone around here who does. I'll mention it to the nurses. Call me if you have any problems; otherwise I'll see you tomorrow."

Chase stayed long enough to ask if he could bring us dinner or anything else. Elle told him that we already had dinner plans, so he left, saying he would check in with us tomorrow.

Avi called around 5PM. After some discussion, they decided on Italian food for dinner. He and Ricky would come over around 7:30 with our dinner. Wilson and Cuddy dropped by at the end of their workday. After being assured that we had dinner plans for the evening, Wilson took her home at a halfway decent hour. He had confided to me earlier that she hadn't come in until 9AM today, so maybe she was starting to take his advice on cutting back her hours.

Just after they left, a deliveryman arrived with cannoli's from Carmine's bakery. Bill had not let us down. We each had one as an appetizer before the guys arrived with our main course. And what a feast they brought us. We had lasagna, chicken parmigiana, and baked spaghetti with meatballs. There was garlic bread and salad too.

Elle definitely perked up when the guys arrived. The three of them kept up a lively conversation while I just mostly listened in. Elle bemoaned the fact that the nursery furniture still had not arrived and fretted that the nursery would not be ready when the baby got here.

Ricky waved his hand at her: "That's the least of your worries. Just tell your housekeeper to let us know when the furniture arrives. We will go over and put it together for you."

Elle gasped: "You don't mind?"

Avi smirked: "Yeah, right. Like we mind. Of course not, sweetie, we'll get the nursery all set up before you get home. Don't you worry about a thing."

Ricky added: "Yeah, and I know where you want everything placed, so we'll take care of it as soon as the furniture arrives."

Elle beamed: "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it."

We all had cannoli's for dessert and then the guys left around 9:30. We had the same night shift nurse again. She gave Elle her evening shot of Lovenox and helped her get ready for bed. While she helped Elle with the urinal, I took the opportunity to slip into the bathroom and change into my pajamas.

As I settled into the recliner, Elle gave me one of her looks. "Are you really going to sleep here every night until I deliver?"

I switched on the TV: "Yep."

"Greg, I don't think that's a good idea. You need to sleep in a bed. I don't think you're going to get restful sleep in that recliner. You looked really tired this morning."

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell her about the nightmare, but I held back. I didn't want to upset her. "OK. I admit that I didn't sleep well last night, but I was worried about you. Things seem better today, so I think I'll be able to sleep OK."

"Yeah, but if things are stable, why don't you feel comfortable enough to go home to sleep? I'm surrounded by nurses and doctors and I'll be OK."

I shook my head. "I just can't."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to leave you."

She reached over and took my hand. "You're afraid that something will happen while you're gone. I had the abruption right after you left the house so you're afraid that if you leave, something else will happen."

I tried to focus on the TV, switching channels, desperately trying to find something to watch. I could still feel her eyes on me. After a few minutes, she spoke again: "Nothing is going to happen."

My throat felt tight, but I managed to choke out: "You don't know that. Look at what has already happened."

I set the remote down and reached for her with both hands. "I'm not leaving you. I, I wouldn't be able to sleep in that big bed alone, wondering if everything is OK."

Elle patted the bed. There wasn't much room, but I lay down next to her. She nestled her head on my shoulder as I ran my hand up and down her back and planted kisses on her face.

She brushed her lips on mine: "I miss this, just laying in bed together. Sleeping in your arms. I wish we had a bigger bed so you could sleep here instead of in that chair."

"I'd like that too, but my movements might screw up the monitor so even if we could get a bigger bed, it is probably not a good idea."

She sighed and snuggled up a little closer. A minute later, she took my hand and placed it on her belly. Rug-rat was kicking up a nice rhythm.

Elle murmured: "I think she wants to say good-night to her Daddy."

I rubbed her belly: "Just eleven more days, Rug-rat, and then you can pop out. Hang in there."

I lay with Elle for a little while longer. We kissed and touched each other affectionately. Finally I forced myself out of her warm embrace and settled her under the covers. I checked the strip one more time before climbing back into the recliner. Elle dozed off while we watched Leno. I finished the show and then clicked off the TV. The lights on the monitor again acted as a comforting night-light and I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	69. Chapter 69

Chapter 69

_Monday, April 7,__2008 _

_**HOUSE**_

We made it through the weekend. Elle had 8 more days to go until her delivery date. One more day and she would be at week 35, when Rug-rat's chances of developing respiratory problems after delivery would decline dramatically.

It was a long weekend, but Elle managed to have only one minor meltdown. She had called Lady and asked her to bring over the mail and some clean clothes for me. I packed up the dirty clothes and Lady took them back home to launder them. She also brought us a big container of her homemade goulash. Wilson had managed to locate a small refrigerator and microwave for our room, so we could store and heat up food. With help from our friends, we were managing to make Elle's stay fairly comfortable.

As I was unpacking my clean clothes, I noticed that Lady had tossed in my swim trunks. I held them up and asked: "What are these doing here? Did you ask Lady to pack them?"

She nodded: "I did. I think you need to get back to your routine and go swimming again. It is silly for you to spend every single minute in this room with me."

Softly I said: "I told you, I don't want to leave you."

"Yes, I get that. You don't want to go all the way home and sleep, but you could go down to the gym and swim for 30 minutes. You could walk the halls and get some exercise. I don't want your leg muscles to atrophy because you feel that you can't leave me alone for 5 minutes. It isn't good for you to stay so sedentary."

I grumbled: "I think I know what's best for me."

"You do, huh? I tried that line on you and you dismissed me."

"That's because you're pregnant and thinking with your hormones. I don't have that issue."

Exasperated, she yelled at me: "No, you just have the overprotective alpha male hormone problem. C'mon Greg, aren't you tired of just hanging out in this room?'

I was but I wasn't going to admit that to her. I turned my back to her and finished unpacking my clothes.

"I can tell by your non-answer that you are. Look, let's compromise. Go swimming and get someone to baby-sit me. Would that make you feel more comfortable about leaving the room?"

I closed the drawer and walked over to the monitor without answering her. I made a big production of checking the readout, which was fine.

Elle went on: "You could get Jimmy or Chase to baby-sit me while you go swimming. They would call you instantly if anything happened and within the hospital, you are no more than 5 minutes away from me."

She reached her hand towards me and I limped forward to take it. "Do it for me."

I smirked: "You want to get rid of me for a while? Tired of me hanging out?"

"Yes, actually I am. I think 30 minutes apart once a day will do wonders for our relationship. You can get some exercise and I can have some private time to do girly things."

I growled: "Not with Chase in the room."

She laughed: "So you'll do it?"

I was torn. I didn't want to leave her, yet I didn't want to backslide on my exercising. Her idea seemed like a decent compromise. I grudgingly agreed to go swimming as long as she had one of the other doctors for company.

Elle called Wilson and asked him to bring breakfast on Monday. When he arrived, Elle politely asked him if he had time to stay with me while I went swimming. He looked surprised, but quickly agreed. I had my phone with me and Wilson swore to call me immediately if anything happened.

I hurried to the gym and quickly changed into my swim trunks. It felt really good to get in the warm pool again. At first I took it easy since it had been a week since my last session, but after a few laps, I got my groove back and picked up the pace. When the alarm went off on my watch, signaling 30 minutes time, I was actually sorry that it was time to get out. I dried off in the locker room and put my jeans back on. I figured that I'd shower with Elle upstairs like I usually did, and headed back up.

Everything was fine when I limped back into the room. Elle was munching on a bagel while she and Wilson watched _'Holmes on Homes'_ on HGTV.

Her face lit up when I walked in. "How was your swim?"

I shrugged: "Not bad."

She gave me a knowing smile.

Wilson rose and said: "Well, I'll be taking off now. I'll check with you later and see if you need anything."

Elle thanked him and he strode out of the room.

We were just about to go and take a shower when Alderman walked in for Elle's morning exam. After checking the readout and the ultrasound, Alderman asked: "So how would you like to get out of the room today?"

Elle's face lit up. "Really? I could go for a walk?"

"Well, not too far. You've been in bed for several days now. You need to get your strength back. After you shower, instead of getting back in bed, why don't you sit in the chair for a while? Then if you feel up to it, try a few steps outside, but have someone on either side of you in case you get tired. Try to sit in the chair for a few hours today, but if you get tired, get back in bed. I'll check back with you this afternoon and we'll see how the baby's heartbeat is after your bit of exercise."

I was concerned; Elle had been in bed for 5 days now and had gotten rather weak in that short period of time. It is amazing how quickly a person loses their strength on strict bed rest. The effort of walking to the bathroom and showering had worn her out yesterday, but she seemed eager to try to advance her activities and I knew better than to try to stop her.

Jenny, the redheaded nurse, had been off all weekend, but we got her back today. Elle and I took a shower and put on clean clothes. Then Jenny and I walked her to the chair. I settled back onto the recliner and put the TV on while watching her out of the corner of my eye. After a half hour or so, Elle said: "Wow. It's amazing how weak I feel. Just sitting up is tiring."

"Don't push it, sweetheart. If you're tired, let's get you back into bed."

"I don't want to get back in bed just yet. Let me try another 30 minutes, OK? Would you hand me my book?"

I nodded and grabbed the book off of the bedside table. Elle had finished _Outlander _over the weekend and had started the second book of the series. She read for 45 minutes and then declared that she was tired and wanted to get back into bed. I rang for the nurse and we helped Elle get back into bed.

As we hooked her back up to the monitor, Elle moaned: "I feel like such a weakling."

Jenny told her: "It's going to take a little while to get your strength back. The important thing is to not overdo it. You rest for a while and after lunch, you can sit in the chair again."

Elle nodded in agreement. We hooked her back up to the monitor and I checked Rug-rat's heartbeat. She was doing fine. By the time I walked back to the recliner; Elle had nodded off. The short time that she had spent in the chair had worn her out. I let her sleep until Wilson arrived with lunch.

After sandwiches and fries, Elle decided that she wanted to get out of bed again. With Wilson on one side and Jenny on the other and me walking behind her, Elle took a few tentative steps out into the hallway. We made it as far as the room next door when Elle decided that was enough for now and we turned around. We settled her back in the chair with her book and I-Pod. Wilson went back to work and I pulled out my PSP for some Grand Theft Auto. Elle managed to stay in the chair for 2 hours before declaring that she was fatigued and wanted to get back in bed. I rang for the nurse and we helped Elle back to bed.

When Alderman returned around 4:30, Elle expressed her dismay at being able to do so little.

"Are you kidding? You did great. If you try to rush it, you will exhaust yourself and stress the baby out. That would not be good. You need to build your strength up slowly, just like you did today. Just keep making baby steps like that and by the weekend, you'll be walking the halls just fine."

The baby's heartbeat looked fine and the exercise had not caused a reoccurrence of bleeding, so Alderman told her to get up again after dinner for a little while and that would be enough for the first day.

Wilson dropped by around 6PM, bringing salad and garlic bread to go with our goulash. He was in a hurry as Cuddy had sworn that he could take her home at 6:00 and he didn't want to miss his opportunity to get her home at a decent hour. He promised Elle that he would bring breakfast tomorrow and hang out again while I went swimming.

Jenny and I helped Elle back into the chair so she could eat dinner sitting up for a change. The goulash was delicious and she ate a big plate. Just as we finished eating, Adam, Gen and Audra popped in for a visit. Elle and Audra were thrilled to see each other, but Adam had to lift Audra up so that Elle could give her a kiss, as Elle could not bend over that far. Audra hugged Elle's big belly and talked to the baby, admonishing her to stay in the belly until it was the right time to come out. It was so cute that everyone laughed and even I cracked a smile. They only stayed about 20 minutes, but I could tell that Elle was happy that they dropped by.

B

On Tuesday, Elle hit the 35-week point and I felt myself relax a little bit. Her time out of bed advanced every day. Wilson dropped by every morning with breakfast and we helped Elle up and into the chair. While she had breakfast with Wilson, I went for my swim. When I got back, we showered and Elle went back to the chair. After lunch, she took a short stroll in the hall, advancing her distance a few yards everyday. When we returned from the walk, she would climb back into bed and nap for a couple of hours. After her nap, we would take another short stroll before settling Elle into the chair for dinner. She'd sit up for an hour or so after dinner, before climbing back into bed. She slept with the monitor on and Rug-rat's heartbeat still looked fine. Alderman was pleased with her progress.

The nursery furniture arrived on Wednesday. Elle was thrilled that it got here before the baby did. Avi and Ricky started putting the crib together on Wednesday night and swore that they would be finished by the weekend. Mom called every night to check on us. She was packed and ready to fly out whenever we gave the word. Elle happily reported that she had to wait a little longer to meet her granddaughter.

The days were long and boring. Elle finished the second book of the _Outlander_ series and started the third. She played a lot of Minesweeper on her laptop. I actually got tired of surfing on the Internet and watching TV. Wilson brought us a deck of cards and I started teaching Elle how to play poker. Chase, Foreman and Wilson joined us for a game one afternoon, but Cuddy caught us and sent the guys back to work.

It was Friday before the kids finally found a case. Cameron had seen a patient in the clinic and thought his symptoms were a little strange. He presented with pain and weakness after exercise. At first it seemed like an out-of-shape man simply trying to recondition and suffering the aches and pains of a new exercise program. But the ever-diligent Cameron had run a urine test and found myoglobin in his urine, which indicated possible rhabdomyolysis so she had him admitted.

Chase and Foreman brought the whiteboard up to Elle's room. She sat up in the chair and watched us run through the differential. The patient's symptoms included: exercise intolerance with myalgia, early fatigue, painful cramps, weakness of the exercising muscles and myoglobinuria. The urine test was the only thing that interested me. The rest of the symptoms just sounded like an out-of-shape guy experiencing some pain after starting a new work out program. I sent Cameron off to get a better history. Elle wanted to take her walk, so I decided to utilize Chase and Foreman for that, and then I would send them off to search the guy's home.

We headed down the hall and passed the nurse's station. That had been our turn-around point yesterday, but today Elle was determined to make it a few yards further. I let her walk pass two more rooms and then said: "Hey, let's turn around. I need to send the guys out to the patient's home." It seemed like a good excuse to not overexert herself.

Elle agreed and we turned around. We were almost back to her room when suddenly Elle moaned and grabbed her right side. If the boys hadn't been supporting her, I'm sure she would have gone down.

I called out: "Elle, what's wrong?"

"Pain. Right in that same spot."

"Let's get you back into bed now."

A nurse hurried up with a wheelchair and we eased Elle into it. We rolled her over to the bed and the guys lifted her up and gently placed her down. The nurse ran off to page Alderman. Foreman wrapped the BP cuff around Elle's arm and started pumping it up. Chase grabbed the ultrasound machine as I quickly hooked Elle back up to the monitor. Rug-rat's heart rate had increased; it was up to 155.

Foreman called out: "BP's 100/68."

I swore under my breath; that was lower than it should be. I barked at him to grab a bag of Lactated Ringers and get it started. He ran out to get a bag.

I heard Elle's little voice call my name. "Greg."

I looked up at her; tears were streaming down her cheeks. "I think I'm bleeding. I feel wet."

I pulled down her panties and sure enough, there was blood on the pad. Not a lot, but enough to worry me.

Chase squirted the gel on Elle's belly and started running the probe over her. There was blood in the amniotic fluid again. We were staring at the placenta trying to decide if the tear was bigger when Alderman rushed into the room. Foreman was right behind her with the bag of IV fluid. She grabbed the probe from Chase and said: "Tell me what happened."

Through her tears, Elle said: "We were taking a walk down the hall. We didn't go that far. Suddenly I had a pain right here, just like before, only not quite as bad. They got me right into bed. I'm bleeding again."

Elle was trying so hard not to cry that she started hiccupping.

Alderman barked orders as she scanned the ultrasound monitor. "Foreman, start that IV at 125ml/hr. What was her BP?"

He answered: "100/68."

"Take it again after you get the IV started. And get the nasal cannula back on."

Chase hooked Elle back up to the oxygen. Foreman access her Hep lok and got the IV started. He took her BP again and it was only 98/65.

Alderman said: "Up the rate to 175ml/hr. Elle, there is blood in the amniotic fluid. I'm going to check the pad."

The amount of blood on the pad had increased in the 5 minutes since I last looked at it and I reported that to Alderman.

She nodded and turned her attention back to the ultrasound. After a few minutes, she stood up and shook her head. "I can't see it on the ultrasound, but it is obvious that the placenta has separated further from the uterine wall. When did you last eat?"

She glanced at the clock: "About three hours ago. Why?"

"Because you are having this baby now."

_**ELLE**_

I gulped: "Right now? Are you going to induce?"

Kelly shook her head. "I don't think it's a good idea to put the baby through labor. I think it would be safer to do a C-section. I know it's not what you wanted, but I think inducing would stress the baby too much. I'm not sure how bad this tear is and I think it would just be better to get her out now."

I looked at Greg and he nodded. "You are not having any contractions now. It would take hours to get you to the point that you are ready to deliver. The tear could get worsen and compromise the baby's oxygen levels. You made it to 35 weeks and 3 days. That's good enough."

I had kept her inside my belly for an extra 8 days since the initial abruption. I guess that had to be good enough.

Nodding, I said: "OK. Let's do it."

Kelly nodded: "OK. I'll send the nurse in to prep you and get the forms signed. I'll get an anesthesiologist to come up and administer the epidural. You can have some ice chips but nothing else. I'll be back shortly."

Greg took charge after she left the room. He pointed at Foreman: "Go find Wilson and Cuddy; let them know what's going on. Then you and Cameron, keep working up the patient. If you think it's necessary, go visit the home. Run whatever tests you think are necessary. Chase, you stick around. I want you in the O.R. with us."

Foreman trotted out of the room and Greg crashed down onto the chair. I could tell he was worried by the way he scrubbed his hands over his face. I was scared too, but things were out of my control now. All I could do was follow doctor's orders and hope for the best.

"Greg?"

He looked up at me, his stoic mask in place. "What, sweetheart?"

"I want to call Avi. Shall we call your Mom too?"

He nodded: "Yeah, I guess we should."

Flipping open his cell, he punched her number. "Hey Mom."

I listened to his side of the conversation. "Elle started bleeding again. So she is going to have a C-section this afternoon. Your granddaughter is going to be born today."

"No, no, she's not bleeding badly. Her doctor thinks it's time, that's all. She doesn't want to wait any longer."

"You can come now or you can wait a few days. You know, Elle will be in the hospital for 3 to 4 days after she delivers."

"Just let me know when your flight arrives and I can send Wilson or someone to pick you up."

"Well, if Dad wants to rent a car, that's fine too. I'll call you as soon as she's born. Bye now."

He closed the phone and handed it to me. I flipped it open to call Avi and watched as Greg limped over to the monitor and examined the strip with Chase. Their faces were grim and I grew more worried as I waited for the call to go through. Finally he answered.

"Avi, it's Elle."

"Hi Sweetie, what's up?"

My lip started trembling and I tried to hold it together. "Avi, I started bleeding again. I'm going to have a C-section in a little while. My doctor doesn't want to wait any longer. I need you to call everyone else for me."

"Of course I will and I'll be there as soon as I can. How do you feel? Does it hurt?"

"No, I'm not in labor at all. She doesn't think the baby can take the stress of labor so that's why she's doing a C-section. Oh, I gotta go. The nurse just came in to prep me."

"OK. I'll see you soon. Bye."

"Bye."

_**HOUSE**_

Jenny bustled in with an armload of items. She set them on the bedside table and addressed Elle: "You're going to have your baby today. Are you excited?"

Elle looked wan. "Scared, actually."

"Well, try to relax. It won't take long and you won't feel a thing once the epidural is in. Now I have some forms for you to sign."

Jenny whipped through the consent forms, indicating on each one where Elle needed to sign. Once that was finished, Jenny pulled out a syringe. "This is famotidine. Some women get very nauseous from the epidural so this will help with that."

She stopped Elle's IV for a moment, shot the famotidine into the line and then restarted the IV. Then she moved down to the end of the bed. "Elle, I'm going to have to prep the area for the incision. I need to shave part of your pubic hair and then I'll have to put a catheter in your bladder, OK?"

Elle nodded.

Chase stepped back so that he was away from the view and I moved up to the head of the bed so I could take Elle's hand. I kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear: "What are you scared of?"

"I just want her to be OK."

"You are not afraid of the epidural or the surgery?"

She shook her head: "No. You're here. You'll make sure that they take good care of me."

I chuckled softly. "You still have faith in me, huh?"

"Always."

Jenny interrupted us: "OK. I finished the shaving. It's not all gone, just enough so that they can make a clean incision. I'm going to put the catheter in now. Ready?"

Elle nodded and then grimaced as Jenny did her job. Once the catheter was in place, Elle relaxed again.

"OK. Now we just need to wait until the anesthesiologist gets here. Let me go and see who is on call."

Just as she turned to head out the door, a short balding man with a few strands of bad comb-over walked into the room. My eyes narrowed; it was Kroll the Troll.

It was obvious that he didn't notice me at first. He was famous for not making eye contact with his patients until the last possible minute. He told Jenny to get him the supplies he needed and then he said: "I'm Dr. Kroll, I'll be doing your epidural." He finally glanced up and then he gasped: "House! What the hell are you doing here?"

"This is my wife. She's having a C-section and needs an epidural. Thought I would hang around and watch my kid being born."

The man exploded: "This is your wife? Oh, I'm not touching her. You can find some other patsy to do this."

And with that, he stormed out of the room, bumping shoulders with Jenny on his way out.

Jenny looked bewildered. "Where is Dr. Kroll going?"

I smirked: "I guess the Troll is going to crawl back into his hole. We need to find another anesthesiologist. Know anyone?"

Jenny frowned: "Dr. Kroll is the one on call for L & D today. I'm not sure who else we can find on a Friday."

Chase peeled himself off of the wall where he had been leaning. "I know a couple of them. Let me make some calls." Flipping open his cell phone, he walked out into the hall.

Chase walked back in a few minutes later. "I got Chapman. He'll be here in about 10 minutes."

I nodded in approval. Frank Chapman was a decent sort and I'd never had any run-ins with him.

Chase and I were checking the heart rate monitor again when Chapman walked in. A tall man with a full head of snow-white hair and almost 70, he still moved with the grace and energy of a much-younger man.

"Hey there, everyone. I'm Dr. Chapman. Jenny, who's my patient today?"

Jenny made the introduction: "Dr Chapman, this is Elle Kaplan. And I'm sure you know Dr. House."

Chapman shook Elle's hand. "Ms. Kaplan, nice to meet you. You look familiar. Do you work here?"

Elle smiled: "Yes, I'm a pharmacist here."

"Pharmacist? I thought your name sounded familiar. You're the one who works with Chris Guskiewicz, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Good man, Chris. And Dr. House, what brings you here? Is there a medical mystery involving this patient? Tell me the details before I stick a needle in her spine."

"No mystery. However, the patient does have APS and a partial placental abruption, which is why she is delivering via C-section at 35 weeks. And she is having my baby."

His eyebrows rose: "Your baby? Wow! Well, congratulations are in order. Chase, remind me to buy a box of cigars when we're done here. So, APS and a partial abruption? Are you on heparin now?"

Elle answered: "Lovenox and my last dose was this morning. I've been on bed rest for 8 days after experiencing a partial abruption. I was allowed to get up and walk a little starting a few days ago. Today while I was walking in the halls, I had a sudden pain and the bleeding started again. We decided to go ahead and deliver the baby now."

"Seems a smart decision. How's the baby's heart rate?"

Chase said: "Holding steady at 150 beats per minute."

Chapman nodded: "A little fast, but not too bad. OK, so you know how epidurals work, right? You are going to lie on your left side and I'm going to swab your back with betadine. Then I'll numb the area with a little lidocaine and insert a needle between two vertebrae in your back and into your epidural space. I'll shoot in a little lidocaine and see if you start feeling numb. If that's good, then I'll insert the catheter and give you a mixture of bupivaciane, fentanyl and morphine. I'll remove the needle, leave the catheter in and tape it to your skin. That way, if you need more meds then I can easily give them to you, but usually a C-section is so fast that you only need one dose. The lower half of your body will feel more or less numb. You will feel pressure from the surgery but not pain. When they have closed you up, I'll remove the catheter. It can take up to 12 hours for the effect to wear off, so you will have to stay in bed, and keep the bladder catheter in until all the numbness wears off. Any questions?"

Elle shook her head.

Chapman smiled at her: "OK. Let's get this show on the road. Jenny, how's her BP?"

Jenny replied: "Holding steady at 102/71."

"Alright, Ms. Kaplan, let's have you roll over on your left side."

We got Elle positioned and Chapman started the procedure. I kept my hand on the back of her head to help ensure that her back remained rounded for the duration of the procedure. Chapman felt around on her spine until he found the spot he wanted, marking it with his nail. Then he disinfected her back with Betadine. After pulling on gloves and mask, he opened the sterile kit that contained the needles. He put in the needle and shot in the test dose of lidocaine.

Elle seemed fine with the test dose, so Chapman shot in the analgesia cocktail. He removed the needle and taped the catheter to her skin.

"You should feel the full effect in 20-30 minutes. Dr. Alderman will give you a few pinches on the abdomen before she makes the incision to make sure it is working. I gotta run check on another patient now, but I'll pop into the O.R. and check on you."

Elle smiled: "Thanks, Dr. Chapman."

He grabbed his kit and ran out.

Alderman returned about 10 minutes later. Elle was already starting to feel some effect from the epidural; she had numb patches on her legs and hips. I figured by the time we got to the O.R., she should be completely numb.

Alderman cheerfully asked: "Are you ready?"

Elle nodded: "I'm ready."

"Let's get going."

Jenny and another nurse pushed her bed out of the door and down the hall to the surgical suite. Chase and I followed along behind them. As we passed the elevator, the doors opened and Wilson ran out. He fell into step with us. "So it's time?"

I wasn't in the mood for small talk. "Yep."

"Anything I can do?"

I shook my head: "Not at the moment."

"Lisa's on her way. We'll be out here, waiting for the news."

They were already pushing Elle into the surgical suite. I hurried to keep up with them, leaving Wilson outside the double doors. Chase and I gowned up while they moved Elle into room #4. By the time we got into the room, Elle had been transferred from her bed to the operating table. Her belly was exposed and painted orange with betadine. One of the surgical techs was hanging the drape so that Elle would be unable to see the actual operation. There was a strategically placed stool by Elle's head, and I sat down next to her and took her hand in mine. She looked nervous and I squeezed her hand.

"April 11, 2008."

She looked at me, puzzled.

"That's our baby's birthday."

She smiled and said dreamily: "Yes, so it is. Four, eleven, oh, eight. Cool."

"It won't be long now. She'll be here in a few minutes."

"I can't wait to see her. I wonder who she'll look like?"

I kissed her temple. "I bet she will look just like you. Mini-Elle."

"Greg, I can't feel my legs at all."

"That's normal, sweetheart. I know it's scary, but it just means that the epidural is working."

Chase stood near the warming table for the baby and Alderman took her place at the end of the table.

"Ready to start, Elle?"

Elle said: "Yes."

"Can you feel this?"

"No."

"How about this?"

"A little pressure, but it's not painful."

"OK. Good. We're ready to start. Scalpel."

Part of me wanted to watch the surgery and make sure everything was going smoothly. The other part didn't really want to see my wife all cut open. I noticed that Chase was watching intently and I was glad to know that he had our backs, not that I would ever tell him that.

It only took a few minutes before Alderman said: "You ready, Elle? She is about to be born. You will feel some pressure as I pull her out."

Chase stepped closer to the table. Elle gripped my hand tightly and let out a small whimper.

Alderman kept us posted: "Her head is out. She's getting her nose suctioned now. OK, ready. Here she comes."

I angled my head around the drape just in time to see Rug-rat being pulled out of Elle's belly. It was an incredible sight and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. I watched as the nurse suctioned her mouth and nose. Then the baby let out a wail that I was sure could be heard in Trenton.

Chase chuckled: "Well, she's got your lungs, House."

G

Elle smiled: "She's here."

I grinned behind my mask. "And letting everyone know about it."

Rug-rat was screaming as the nurse held her. Alderman placed clamps on either end of the umbilical cord and prepared to make the final cut to separate her from Elle.

She looked up and saw me watching. "House, you wanna cut the cord?"

I looked down at Elle. She squeezed my hand: "Go on. Do it."

I took the proffered scissors and snipped the cord in the appropriate spot. Chase took the baby from the nurse and hurried her over to the warming table. I took a step towards the table and then looked back at Elle, torn between watching Chase assess the baby and checking on Elle.

I moved back to Elle and took her hand. "You doing OK?"

She gave me a big smile: "I'm fine. Go see the baby. Tell me how she looks."

I walked to the table and stood next to Chase. Most of the uterine gook had been wiped off of Rug-rat and she looked much better. He was just placing her on the scale. He waited for the scale to settle and then reported: "The one minute Apgar was 8. She weighs 5 pounds and 4 ounces and she's 18 inches long. That's fantastic for a preemie."

Elle called out: "I want to see her."

Chase replied: "Just a few more minutes, Elle. Let me get her all cleaned up and do the 5 minute Apgar. Hand me the Vitamin K syringe, House."

Like all newborns, Rug-rat was getting a shot of Vitamin K 1 mg as a coagulant and a dab of erythromycin ointment in her eyes as a precaution against infection. Chase administered the meds and finished cleaning her up.

I called over to Elle: "She has wispy brown hair, blue eyes and long fingers."

Chase said: "Her 5 minute Apgar is 10. That's fantastic. She looks very healthy."

He looked at me and whispered: "Why don't you go sit by Elle and I'll swaddle her up and bring her to you?"

Could he sense my nervousness about holding my daughter for the first time? Perhaps he just thought with my gimpy leg and all the commotion in the O.R. that it would be better if I were sitting down to hold her. Whatever his reasoning, it seemed like a good idea to me.

I sat on the stool and leaned over to Elle, lifting my mask enough so that I could plant a kiss on her lips. "You did a magnificent job growing this kid."

She smiled up at me: "You helped."

"Ha. I just planted the seed. You did all the hard stuff, but that's what mothers do."

Chapman strolled in just then and wandered over to the warming table. He took a good look at our baby and then yelled: "Hey, beautiful baby here. You're in trouble, House. You'll be chasing the boys off with a stick."

I replied: "Good thing that I already have a cane."

He laughed and then headed over towards Alderman. "Everything good?"

Alderman said: "Yep, just sewing Elle back up. I should be done in another 10 minutes or so and then you can take the catheter out."

I directed my next question to Alderman: "The placenta is out? How did it look?"

She paused in her stitching for a moment and looked at me. "It was about 50% sheared off the uterine wall. It's good we didn't wait."

I nodded; she had made the right call and quite possibly had saved both Elle and Rug-rat's lives.

I felt movement next to me and looked to my right. Chase was standing there with a pink blanket in his arms. Judging from the twinkle in his eyes, he was probably sporting a huge grin behind that mask. "Ready to hold your daughter?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. He gently placed Rug-rat into my arms. Then I turned to face Elle so that she could see her daughter for the first time. She was smiling and crying at the same time as she reached out to touch her tiny hand. "She's beautiful, isn't she, Greg?"

My heart swelled with love for both of my girls. I couldn't say what I felt in front of all these people but I found myself smiling behind my mask. Elle and I had made this little person. I was a father now. This tiny baby was ours to love and guide into adulthood. It was a monumental task and I could only hope I was up to the challenge.

I looked up at Elle and said: "Yes, sweetheart, she is beautiful, just like her mother."

Then I looked down at the baby in my arms and whispered: "You are so not dating until you are 30."

We were in the O.R. for another 30 minutes or so. Alderman took her time getting Elle's incision sewn up and then Chapman had to take the catheter out of her back. Elle was tidied up and transferred to a clean bed to be rolled back to her room. I walked along side of her, holding her hand while Chase pushed the bassinette holding our daughter.

Our nurse, Jenny, met us in the room. She seemed delighted that the baby was born before she went off shift. We helped Elle ease onto her side and placed the baby on the bed next to her so that she could finally hold her.

Once we had Elle and the baby settled, Jenny mentioned that there was a whole mob of people in the waiting area for us. Chase offered to go down and give them the baby's vital statistics and we agreed. Jenny checked the IV and Elle's BP and then she left the room also. The three of us were finally alone for the first time. I lowered the bed rail and sat on the side of the bed.

Elle sighed: "I can't believe that she is finally here. She's so tiny, isn't she?"

I stroked a finger against her soft cheek. "She's little, but really, she is a good size for being born at 35 weeks. If she had gone all the way to 40, she would have been a real bruiser."

We just stared at our baby. She was amazing, so tiny and perfect. I was happy to note that she definitely resembled Elle. I tickled her palm with my pinkie finger and was thrilled when she wrapped her little fingers around it. I knew it was just a reflex, but a lump rose in my throat and I hastened to swallow it down.

I leaned down and kissed Elle's lips. "You are amazing. I love you."

She looked up at me, wide-eyed. I rarely said those words, and I was never the one who said them first. But today was special and I wanted her to know just how I felt about her.

Her gaze softened: "I love you too, Cowboy."

I bent down and gave her a gentle kiss on her lips. Then I planted one on her cheek and one on her forehead. I just wanted to kiss her all over. But this wasn't the time or the place, so I settled on one final kiss on that sensitive spot on her neck. I felt silly and embarrassed for being so affectionate barely an hour after my wife had had major surgery, and leaned my forehead against her shoulder, effectively hiding my face. Elle seemed to understand. She stroked my hair and said softly: "You're a wonderful man and you are going to be a great dad."

Tears rose unbidden to my eyes and I had a hard time getting these words out. "I may need some help."

"We're in this together. We'll help each other. I have faith in us."

I kissed her shoulder. "Thank you."

We continue to stare at the baby. She had fallen asleep and was doing absolutely nothing, yet we both found it to be so fascinating that we couldn't tear our eyes away from her.

Chase knocked on the door and poked his head in. "Um, there are quite a few people who just want to say hi really quickly and get a little peek at your baby. Should I let them in?"

Elle looked at me and, when I nodded, said: "Sure."

To our surprise, Wilson, Cuddy, Avi, Ricky, Adam, Gen, Audra, Theresa, Billy, Lenny, Danny, Cameron and Foreman all crowded into the room with Chase.

Elle cooed: "Wow, everyone wants to see you, baby. All your aunties and uncles are here."

At Elle's urging, I picked her up and pulled the blanket back a little bit so that they could see her face. Oooh's and Aaah's filled the room.

It was little Audra that cried out: "So what's her name? We've been waiting all this time to find out."

Avi chimed in: "Yeah, Elle, what's my newest niece's name?"

Elle smiled: "Well, I named her after my mother. Everyone, please meet, our daughter, Rachel Rose House."

There was silence for a moment while everyone took in the news. Finally Avi broke the quiet: "Welcome to the tribe, Rachel Rose. Welcome to the world."

**A/N**: This is not the end!! But I am taking a little break for a vacation. So it may be 3-4 weeks before you see a new chapter. But at least I have left you in a happy spot. Thank you all for reading and reviewing!


	70. Chapter 70

A/N: YAY, it didn't take a whole month to get another chapter posted. Thank you everyone for your patience and your kind reviews!

Chapter 70

_**HOUSE**_

Elle was tired from the surgery, so the gang didn't stay long. Gen and Theresa said they would check on us tomorrow; Avi and Ricky swore to get the nursery furniture finished over the weekend. Once everyone had a good peek at the baby, they all trooped out except for Wilson and Cuddy.

Wilson couldn't stop grinning. "She's beautiful. I can't believe you made such a good-looking baby, House."

I snarked: "And why not? I've got great swimmers."

Cuddy said softly: "I think she looks like Elle."

Elle smiled: "She's got such long fingers. That's from her daddy. I bet she'll be tall like you too, Greg."

She looked up at me: "We should call your Mom."

I nodded and pulled out my phone.

Wilson said: "Wait. I have an idea. Gimme the phone."

I handed him my phone and he activated the camera and aimed it at Rug-rat. He took her photo and then said: "We'll send her a photo birth announcement. What do you want to say in the text message?"

Elle giggled: "Hi Grandma, I'm here."

Wilson smirked: "How about: _Hi Grandma, Rachel Rose is here. All 5 pounds 4 ounces of me."_

"That sounds good."

Wilson sent the photo and the text message, and then we waited for the phone to ring. It didn't take long.

I flipped the phone open and said: "Hi, Grandma."

She squealed so loudly that everyone is the room heard it. I had to hold the phone away from my ear until she finished. "I take it that you got the text message."

Mom gushed: "Oh, I did. She is so beautiful. Oh, I can't wait to see her. Your father and I are so excited. How is Elle feeling?"

"Elle's doing pretty well. She's tired and I think we're going to let her nap in a minute, but we wanted to call you first."

"Of course, dear. She must be exhausted. And what a beautiful name that you picked out. Rachel Rose House. It's lovely."

That reminded me of something that I needed to ask Elle, but it could wait until later. I filed it in my short-term memory for easy retrieval at the right time.

Mom went on: "Your father and I are going to catch the first flight we can. He is on the phone with the airlines now. I swear he is more excited than I am; he just can't wait to see her."

Dad was more excited than Mom? We were back in the Twilight Zone. I reminded Mom that Elle and the baby would still be in the hospital for a few more days, but she just brushed that off.

"I know that dear, and we won't get there until tomorrow at the earliest. But we want to see her as soon as possible and we want to help. I can cook and your father can."

I shuddered inwardly as she continued talking, wondering how long they were going to stay.

Finally I cut her off. "OK, Mom. Just call when you know your flight number and arrival time. I want to get Elle settled down for a nap now. We'll see you soon. Bye."

I closed the phone before she could say another word.

Cuddy gave me a knowing look. "I guess your Mom is excited."

"She's in high gear. Wilson, I may need a script for some Valium to slip in her coffee."

Wilson smirked: "You'll need that for yourself to deal with your Dad."

I shook my head: "Mom says he's really excited. He was on the other phone calling the airlines while she was talking to me."

Elle softly whistled the Twilight Zone theme and I had to smile. "You need a nap. The first rule of motherhood is: sleep while the baby is sleeping. She is going to wake in an hour and be looking for a tasty nipple, so sleep while you can. Cuddy, get the nurse to call the lactation consultant to come by later."

"No problem. Come on, James, let's go and let Elle get some rest."

They stood up, said their goodbyes and left us alone.

Elle's eyelids were drooping. I scooped the baby up and placed her in the bassinette. "Take a little nap, sweetheart. We'll be right here."

She mumbled sleepily: "OK. Wake me when she wakes up."

I chuckled: "Don't worry. _She_ will."

Elle and I managed to get a 90-minute nap before Rug-rat woke up screaming. Although breast-feeding is a natural function, it takes a little getting used to and with Elle's incision; she needed to lie on her side to nurse for now. The nurse and the lactation consultant gave her some pointers and after some trial and error, Rug-rat was finally nursing happily.

Alderman came by and checked on her. Elle had feeling returning to her legs, but she wasn't completely over the epidural yet. Alderman decided to leave the bladder catheter in until morning. By then, Elle should be completely recovered and it could be removed. She told Elle that she needed to get out of bed starting tomorrow morning and start walking around. Elle said that was no problem, as she wanted a shower as soon as possible.

Around 7PM, Wilson returned with a bag from Chirping Chicken. Elle and I feasted on rotisserie chicken, potato salad, cole slaw and corn-on-the-cob. It really hit the spot, especially since we had both missed lunch.

Rug-rat seemed to be on a 3-hour schedule already. You could just about set your watch by her. She'd wake up, screaming, and ready to nurse. Elle would nurse her; I'd change her diaper and hold her for a while until she settled down. Then I'd put her back in the bassinette to sleep. Around 4AM, I asked Elle if she wanted the baby to go to the nursery for a while, so that she could get some sleep. Elle refused, saying she wanted to keep the baby with her and get used to her schedule.

Mom called around 9AM, saying that their flight would arrive at 4:30PM. I offered Wilson's taxi service, but she said that Dad wanted to rent a car. I didn't see the point to that; after all they could use Elle's car while she was in the hospital, but I wasn't going to argue about that now. Once they were here, I could just casually mention it and then he could turn in the car if he wanted to.

Thinking of cars reminded me of mine and I wondered what was up with it, as I hadn't heard from Bill lately. Of course I had been rather preoccupied. I figured that he would get the word about Rug-rat's arrival from the Italian Connection via Theresa and we would hear from him soon enough.

Gen arrived just as Elle was getting ready to feed Rug-rat again. She gave her some pointers that seemed to help the baby latch on better and increased Elle's comfort level with the whole process. Once the baby was full, changed and sleeping again, Gen agreed to stay with her while Elle and I took a shower. Alderman had already been by and removed the catheter, declaring that Elle was now fit to get out of bed.

Elle still felt weak, so I had her sit in the chair for most of the shower. I was amazed by the changes in her body. Her belly was flatter, although still rounded, but her breasts were huge now that her milk had come in. They were quite impressive and I couldn't help being excited by washing the girls. I tried to think of other things to calm him down, but it didn't go unnoticed by Elle, especially since Mt. Gregory was at her eye level.

"Someone's happy to see me."

I made him dance up and down. "He's always happy to see you."

She wrapped her hand around him and planted a little kiss right on the tip. "I hate to tell you this, but I'm too tired to even think about giving you a blow-job. But I do love the fact that I get you so excited, considering how I look right now."

I moaned at the contact and involuntarily thrust against her hand. "Sweetheart, you look more beautiful than ever. Your tits are _huge_."

I reached down and gave one a gentle squeeze and some milk leaked out. It ran down her breast and I swiped at it with my finger.

"Damn, I gotta remember that these are baby feeders for now."

She laughed: "It doesn't mean you can't play with them, but you have to be prepared for the sticky results."

I stared at the drops on my finger and then Elle said: "You want to try it, don't you?"

I shrugged casually: "I'm curious what it tastes like. The baby seems to love it."

"Well, go on then. Try it."

I smirked: "From my finger or from the fountain?"

Elle laughed: "Which would you prefer?"

I answered by leaning down and gently taking her nipple into my mouth. It was already a little chapped from nursing and I licked it soothingly.

Elle moaned softly: "Oh, that feels nice. What does the milk taste like?"

I suckled just a little to get the milk flowing and got a good taste. I swished it in my mouth for a moment and then said: "It's different than regular milk. For one thing, it's warm, but it's sweet. It's kinda nice. Liked warm melted honey vanilla ice cream."

"Wow, that's descriptive. Too bad you don't like milk in your coffee; I could just squirt some in every morning."

I smirked: "Maybe I'll learn to."

I stood up and continued with her shower. I washed her incision carefully; it looked fine with no redness or other signs of infection. After shampooing her hair, I quickly washed myself and turned off the water. We dried off and I redressed her incision. Elle got into a clean gown and panties with a fresh pad while I pulled on my clothes.

The baby was still sleeping. Gen and I got Elle settled in the chair, and then Gen combed out Elle's long hair and put it in a French braid for her. When that was accomplished, Elle sighed and said: "Wow. I could go right back to sleep."

Gen nodded: "Well, giving birth is exhausting and nursing is more tiring than you would think. Be sure and drink lots of water so that you don't get dehydrated. I used to get so thirsty, that I drank a whole bottle each time Audra nursed."

Gen stayed and chatted with us until Rug-rat woke up again. This time, Gen showed her some tricks for nursing in a seated position. A couple of pillows in her lap helped to support the baby and Elle was able to manage. After I changed her and put her back in her bassinette, I insisted that Elle get back in bed for a nap. She didn't argue, but climbed right back in with our help. Gen promised to visit later and she headed out. Elle was asleep by the time that the door closed behind Gen. I settled back in the recliner and took advantage of the quiet to take a little snooze myself.

We napped until Rug-rat woke us up in the early afternoon. I picked her up and handed her to Elle who was already baring her breast for her. Elle cooed to her in French as Rug-rat squirmed and cried, but finally she got latched on and quieted down to nurse.

After they were settled, I noticed a large white bag sitting on the bedside table with a note attached to it. _"Didn't want to disturb your slumber. Thought you might need lunch. Later, Wilson."_

I checked out the contents of the bag; he had gone to Hogan's Heroes and picked up sandwiches for us.

"Hey, when you finish feeding the kid, we can feed ourselves. Wilson left us some lunch."

"Great, I'm starving."

When Rug-rat was fed, changed and back in the bassinette, we dug into our sandwiches. Wilson had brought me my usual dry Reuben while Elle had a turkey and cheese on a croissant. There was macaroni salad and some potato chips too.

We were in the middle of our repast when the ducklings all walked in. Cameron crowed: "We solved the case!"

Shooting death rays out of my eyes, I shushed her and nodded towards the bassinette.

Stage whispering, she went on: "Sorry. I just thought you'd want to know that we figured it out."

Truth be told, I had forgotten about the patient in all the excitement, but I waved my hand to encourage her to continue.

"It's McArdle's disease. We did a muscle biopsy, which showed an absence of myophosphorylase in the muscle fibers. Then we checked the resting kinase levels, which were elevated. That cinched it. We suggested some lifestyle modifications and Vitamin B-6. If you want to go over the chart and if you agree, we can discharge him."

I held out my hand and she slapped the file into it. I read all the test results quickly and had to agree with them. It was McArdle's. I handed the chart back to her. "Good work. Discharge him and you can take the rest of the weekend off. I'll be out for the next couple of weeks. If you find an interesting case, you can call. Otherwise, work the clinic and whatever else Cuddy wants you to do."

That was a dismissal, but they seemed reluctant to leave. Finally Chase spoke up: "How're you feeling, Elle? How's the baby?"

Elle smiled: "I'm doing fine. A little sore, but not too bad. Rachel's great. She's eating, sleeping and excreting, just what you expect from a one-day-old baby."

I smirked: "Yeah, we told her she can't have her own cell phone until she is at least a month old."

Predictably Foreman rolled his eyes at my little snark, but Chase and Cameron just exchanged nervous glances. Cameron elbowed him, and then he went on. "It's just. Hmm, you see. Well, we got you a little something."

He stepped out into the hall, grabbed a large bag and then handed it to me. I peeked in the bag and had to smirk. Inside the bag was a large stuffed Winnie the Pooh. I pulled it out to show to Elle.

She smiled and gushed: "Oh, thank you so much. That was so sweet of you to get Rachel a gift."

I held it over the bassinette and said: "It's bigger than she is."

Elle gave me one of her _'be nice'_ looks: "She'll grow into it, Greg."

I muttered: "I'm just saying." I propped the bear up next to the bassinette where Rug-rat could see it if she were awake. Newborns can't focus further than 8 to 15 inches away and I managed to perch the bear close enough for her to see.

Elle thanked them again and they walked out. I noticed Chase's hand on Cameron's back as they left the room and I pondered the implications of that. They had slept together a couple of years ago when Cameron took some Ecstasy and jumped his Aussie ass, but it never went any further than that. I wondered if there was a renewed interest or if it was just a casual touch.

Elle interrupted my musings: "They solved the case without you."

I nodded: "The kids are growing up. Next thing you know, they'll be off to college, getting married and having ducklings of their own."

Elle giggled and then glanced at the clock. "Your parents will be here soon. Are you doing OK?"

"Considering how much, or should I say, how little sleep we've had in the last 24 hours, I guess I'm doing alright."

"How do you think your Dad will act?"

I shook my head. "I just don't know. Mom says he's really excited. I just can't imagine it. Guess we'll see when they get here."

Wilson and Cuddy dropped by around 4PM, which was excellent timing. I wanted him to run interference with my parents; he was to let them into the house and show them where everything was. Elle had gotten Lady to make up the guest room for them as she thought it was silly for them to stay in a hotel when we had such a huge house. Since we would need help with the baby anyway, I had reluctantly agreed. The thought of a week or more with my Dad under my roof was enough to give me a migraine.

I didn't like the idea of Dad wandering around my home unsupervised, but there wasn't anything I could do about it. At least my porn collection was still in one of the unpacked boxes, so he would not discover that. I had labeled the box 'medical education tapes', so it was not easily identifiable. Elle fretted a little that we still had so much unpacking to do and that the house was a mess with boxes. Cuddy reminded her that we had only spent two nights at home before she had to be hospitalized and that my parents would understand.

"They are not interested in how the house looks. They just want to see their grandbaby."

Elle had to agree. "I suppose you're right. I just wish the house was a little neater."

Thirty minutes later, my Mom called to say that they had arrived. It would take them probably 90 minutes to get the car and drive to Princeton. I told her to not to rush, that we weren't going anywhere. She laughed and said that she couldn't wait to hold her granddaughter.

I closed my phone and said: "They are on their way."

I scrubbed my hands over my face and tried to convince myself that it wouldn't be so bad. Dad did seem to be really interested in his granddaughter; perhaps he would be different with her than he had been with me. After all she was a girl; he was such a traditionalist that he wouldn't be pushing _her_ into the Marines. Maybe he would just spoil her with dolls and other girly toys. I figured that I could deal with that. Less toys for me to buy her.

There was a knock at the door and I looked up to see Bill Arnello walk into the room with a big smile on his face and a gigantic Teddy Bear under one arm. What was it about babies that made people want to bring a huge stuffed _ursus_ for a gift?

"Hello everyone. Elle, how are you? How's the bambino?"

"I'm tired, but I feel pretty good overall. Rachel's sleeping, but she is doing great."

Bill sat the bear in a chair and leaned over to give Elle a kiss on the cheek. "You look great. Let me see the princess."

Elle pointed to the bassinette and he took a good look, came up smiling. "She looks like you, Elle. Good thing, huh, House?"

I agreed. "Yup. No way did I want my daughter to inherit this mug of mine."

Elle chimed in: "I hope she has your eyes, Greg. They are such a brilliant blue, more intense than mine."

I was pleased with the compliment but tried not to let it show. "Well, we'll see what shade blue they'll be as she gets older."

Bill took the chair not occupied by the bear. "She looks terrific and I'm glad you are both doing so well. Dr Cuddy, you are looking radiant. When are you due?"

She blushed from his compliment. "July 20."

Bill smiled: "That's terrific. Congratulations."

He turned back towards me and said: "I guess you've been too busy to wonder about your car."

I rubbed my chin. "Well, now that you mention it, you have had it a while. Is it fixed yet?"

He shook his head: "House, that car was terminal. My guy had it on a respirator, but the EEG showed no brain wave activity."

I snarked: "What's with the medical analogies? Thought you were a lawyer. What's the bottom line?"

"We pulled the plug."

My jaw dropped. "What do you mean? What exactly did you do to my car?"

"Let's just say she is now a 2 foot by 2 foot square shaped mass at the Mercer County landfill."

My blood pressure hit the roof. Mob lawyer or not, that was my car and he destroyed it without my permission. "You squashed my car? What the hell did you do that for? I told you that I could get my guy to fix it."

He waved his hand: "Shh. Calm down or you'll wake the baby. It wasn't worth fixing. Besides you have a child now. You need a better car, a safer car. And a really decent car fell into my hands."

I snarked: "Just _fell_ into your hands, huh? Where's the original owner? Wearing cement overshoes in the Hudson River?"

"Oh, that's so cliché, House. I expected better than that from you. Aren't you interested in what type of car I got you?"

Wilson exclaimed: "You really got House a car?"

Bill turned towards Wilson. "I did. A barely used Cadillac CTS came into my possession and I thought it would be a great car for House. It's got all the latest features plus it's got the OnStar system. Any more road side problems and you can get help instantly."

Wilson drooled: "House, those are great cars and really expensive."

I snarled: "Yeah, right. What's the catch, Bill? What's it gonna cost me?"

He shrugged in a casual manner. "Nothing. Like I said, it just came into my possession. I don't need another car and you need a better one than what you had. You just need to sign the title transfer and it's all yours. Here."

He tossed a set of keys at me. "It's parked in your usual spot, handicapped sticker and all. All the stuff from your trunk and glove box were transferred to this car. Why don't you and Wilson take it for a spin, see what you think? I'll keep the ladies company while you're gone."

Elle urged: "Go on and check it out. Take some photos for me with your phone."

I let Wilson hustle me out of the door. He was much more excited about this gift than I was. My car was gone, dead, in a junkyard, turned into a squashed hunk of metal. I'd had that car for over 10 years and it was just gone. I didn't get to say good-bye. I grumbled about it all the way down to the parking lot.

Wilson got sick of my bitching before we hit the door. "House, that car was a piece of crap. Now that you have a baby, it is a good idea to have a better, safer car. And this one has OnStar. Hell, if you break down or have an accident, you can call for help without a cell phone. And if it is a serious accident and you are unable to call for help, it sends someone out to check on you. It's a great thing."

Grudgingly I said: "Maybe I'll drive Elle's Honda and let her have this one. She'll probably be driving the baby around more than I will. What the hell am I going to do with a new car? It's not my style."

We stopped suddenly, eyeing the shiny new Cadillac CTS in my parking spot. It was a four-door sedan; a dark red-purplish color that I found out later was called 'black cherry'. It was spotless, not a scratch or ding in sight.

Wilson let out a low whistle: "I think you just acquired some style. Wow."

'Wow' was right. It was a great looking car. I had never allowed myself the luxury of a brand new car and suddenly I was wondering why I had deprived myself of that indulgence all these years.

I remoted the doors open and we got in. The interior was just as beautiful as the exterior with lush black leather seats and glossy wood trim on the console.

While I played with the controls on the steering wheel, Wilson found the owner's manual in the glove box and starting flipping through it. He tapped the display screen on the dash. "There's a navigation system with the OnStar. It's got a 40 GB hard drive media system, 6-disc CD player and a Bose eight-speaker sound system. Hey look, you can plug your I-Pod into the center console here and your playlist will appear on the car's radio display. That's way better than your old AM/FM radio with the cassette deck."

I ignored his slur about my old car, but was secretly impressed with the great sound system. I fiddled with my seat, finding I could easily adjust it for my height and it also had adjustable lumbar support. I pressed another button and my ass started getting warm. "Crap, Wilson, it has heated seats."

He gushed: "Those are fantastic in the winter. You will love that. Hey, it's got Bluetooth."

I pressed a button on the dash and the ceiling started to retract. "And a sunroof."

Wilson started to laugh: "And you got this baby for free! You lucky dog, you. Damn it House, if you really don't want it cuz it's too _new_ for you, I'll trade ya my Volvo for it."

I shook my head. "Not a chance. Bill might get pissed if I traded it. Plus I know Elle will like this car. She loves a sunroof and a good stereo. Her ass will like the heated seats. She'll want to keep it."

He smirked at me and gave me one of his looks: "C'mon. Crank her up and let's take her for a spin."

We took a quick 15-minute spin and I had to admit that the car handled well and the stereo system was awesome. I decided to let bygones be bygones and not be pissed at Bill for squashing my old car.

I drove back to PPTH and parked in my usual spot. After a prompt from Wilson, I pulled out my cell phone and took a few photos for Elle, who promptly squealed when she saw them.

"Wow! What a gorgeous car! Oh, Bill, you shouldn't have, but I love it."

Bill smiled: "If you like the miniature version, wait until you actually get into the car. I think you'll like it even better."

Elle turned to me: "Do you like it, Greg?"

I shrugged in a casual manner. "It's got a great sound system and a sunroof. The heated seats will be nice in the winter."

She gave me a knowing smile; she could tell that I liked the car but wouldn't flat out say so. "It sounds great. Bill, thank you so much. I can't wait to be driven home in style."

My cell phone rang; I glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Mom. When I answered, she said: "We're in the lobby. What room are you in?"

I gave her the room number and she said: "We'll be right there."

I closed the phone and said: "Brace yourself. The grandparents are here."

Bill stood up: "I must get going. I have another appointment. Enjoy your daughter and the new car. I'll see you soon."

He gave Elle a kiss on the cheek and departed.

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Elle glanced at the clock: "Good timing, actually. If Rachel stays on schedule, she'll be waking up in about 20 minutes for her next feeding anyway. They'll get to hear her screaming right away."

It took them only minutes to make their way to the room. Mom strode in expectantly, looking around for the bassinette and, upon spying it, walked right up to it. Dad entered the room behind her and paused at the doorway. His face looked tight but I could see the longing in his eyes as if his excitement was being kept on a tight leash. I wondered if Dad could allow himself to express any emotions that weren't anger or disappointment. I guess we were about to find out.

Mom stared down at our sleeping baby and gushed: "Oh my, she is so beautiful. I can't believe that I'm finally a grandma."

In a teasing tone, I said: "Hi Mom. Nice to see you too, Mom."

She turned and grabbed my face, kissing my cheek. "Oh, Greg. It is wonderful to see you. Congratulations, Daddy! I'm just so excited to see Rachel."

She turned to Elle and leaned in for a kiss. "Elle, she's beautiful. How are you feeling?"

"I'm doing OK, just a little tired and sore."

"Well, you just gave birth yesterday, so that's to be expected. We all need to pamper you now. Hello, Lisa, James. It's good to see you, too. I wasn't ignoring you; I'm just so excited to see my granddaughter."

Cuddy smiled at her: "Of course you are. And she is beautiful."

Mom looked longingly at the baby. I said: "You want to hold her, don't you?"

"Oh, I do, but one should never disturb a sleeping baby. I can hold her when she wakes up."

Elle piped up: "It's OK, Blythe. She should wake up any minute now for her next feeding. Go ahead and pick her up."

I vacated my chair. Mom gently picked up Rug-rat and sat down with her. I hovered protectively nearby.

In a soft voice, she said: "She is so precious. I think she looks like you, Elle."

Elle smiled: "That seems to be everyone's opinion."

"Her face looks like you, but I think she has Greg's eyes."

She stared quietly at the baby for a few minutes and then looked around. Dad was still standing in the doorway, looking uncertain; he hadn't said a word since he arrived.

John, come closer and see your granddaughter."

I saw his Adam's apple bob up and down, and then he moved towards Mom. As he passed me, he gave me a pat on the arm and said: "Congratulations, son."

He bent down and stared at the bundle in Mom's arms.

Elle said: "So what do you think, Opa?"

He turned to her with a smile on his face. "She's a beauty, little lady, you did a great job."

Mom said: "You want to hold her, John?"

"Of course I do."

He put his hands out and immediately I noticed the tremor in his right hand. He saw my look and said with a forced laugh: "Boy, guess I'm nervous. Haven't held a baby this small since you were born, son. Maybe I should sit down for this."

Elle patted the bed. "Here, Colonel. Just lower the bedrail and you can sit next to me."

Dad fumbled with the mechanism and Wilson jumped to his aid. Once the rail was lowered, Dad sat down on the edge of the bed. With his back towards Dad, Wilson shot me a puzzled look. I gave a slight headshake. Was Dad just nervous, like he said, or was this a symptom of something else?

Dad said for a minute, his hand over his heart. "Whew, so much excitement. I never thought I'd see this day. I'm settled now. Let me hold her, Blythe."

Mom handed Rug-rat to Dad and he cradled her against his chest. In a higher pitched voice than I ever heard come out of his mouth, he said: "Hello Rachel Rose. I'm your Opa and I'm going to spoil you rotten."

Rug-rat got hungry right on schedule, about 20 minutes after they arrived. Dad seemed a little embarrassed about Elle breastfeeding and he retreated to a corner of the room, keeping his eyes averted from the action, despite the fact that Elle was discretely nursing under a towel. Wilson offered to go out and get all of us some dinner and Dad jumped at the chance to ride along. We ended up with some nice juicy burgers and fries from the White Lion Inn.

They decided to call it a night about 8PM. Mom still wanted to hang out, but Dad looked tired. Wilson offered to drive their car to our home and Cuddy would follow and pick up Wilson. It was agreed and they headed out after goodnight kisses and promises to be back tomorrow.

Wilson reported in after he got them settled. "They really liked your house, although your Mom thinks the baby's room is too far away from your room."

"Well, I can't change the layout of the house. We have the monitor so we will be able to hear her even though her room is on the other side of the house."

"Yeah, I showed them the monitor, but she still didn't seem happy. She thinks it's too far for Elle to walk in the middle of the night for feedings"

"That will only last a little while. The good thing about having the kid so far away is that when we can have sex again, we can be noisy and not wake the kid."

He laughed at that. "Good point. Maybe we should move our nursery further down the hall."

Then in a more serious tone, he said: "House, I saw that tremor again. When your dad reached for the suitcase in the trunk, it happened again. And he did seem quite fatigued."

I rationalized: "It was a long flight and then he drove from the airport. Travel is tiring, maybe that's all it is."

"Maybe. I'd keep an eye on him, that's all I'm saying. He's 70, right?"

"72."

"He's getting up there."

"I'll see how he is tomorrow, after he's rested."

Mom called about an hour later to say goodnight. "Your house is lovely, dear. Elle did a great job decorating the nursery. Tell her that the boys were just leaving when we got here and that the furniture is almost all put together. Avi said that they would finish it tomorrow."

"Great. She'll be happy about that. Is your room comfortable?"

"Oh, yes, dear. It's fine. Your father is snoring away already."

"He did seem kinda tired today."

"Well, you know we are not spring chickens any more. Travel is tiring on us old folks."

"You get some rest, Mom and we'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night dear. Give my love to your girls."

I closed the phone and relayed the news to Elle. The news about the furniture made her sigh with relief. Monday was the earliest that she would be going home and by then, everything would be ready in Rug-rat's room.

Rug-rat woke up and I handed her to Elle. She had really got the hang of eating and latched on right away. Elle cooed softly to her in French as she nursed.

"You still want her to be bilingual?"

Elle nodded: "Yes. I'll speak to her in French and you speak to her in English. We'll get confused sometimes, but if we are fairly consistent, she'll end up speaking both languages. It worked for me. Maybe I'll get some Sesame Street DVD's in French too. I wonder if that French book store in Manhattan would have them."

"We'll find out. One other thing. About her name."

Elle looked up at me. "What about her name? You don't like it? You never said anything before."

"Oh, no. I like her name just fine. It's just, are you sure that you want her last name to be just House? You don't want Kaplan-House?"

Elle shook her head. "No. I don't want to saddle her with a hyphenated name. And I think Rachel Rose House flows nicely."

I smiled: "And it does. I just wanted to make sure before we fill out her birth certificate. You know Wilson told me that they are going to hyphenate their kid's name. He's going to be Cuddy-Wilson."

Elle shrugged. "Well, that's their choice. I'm happy with her last name being House. Are you? Do you want to hyphenate it?"

"Not really, but I'd be OK with it if that is what you wanted."

"I want her last name to be House. If you and I get married, I might hyphenate my name, but I don't see the need to do that to Rachel's name."

I grinned inwardly. She mentioned marriage again without any prompting from me. She was definitely warming to the idea.

"OK. So it's definite. Rug-rat's official name is Rachel Rose House. Is she finished? I'll burp her for you."

_**ELLE**_

We fell quickly into a routine. Rachel would wake up crying and hungry. Greg would pick her up from the bassinette, cradle her and whisper soothingly to her while I got my milk dispensers ready. I loved watching Greg holding Rachel. She looked so tiny against his broad chest and he was so gentle with her.

When she finished nursing, I would hand her to Greg who would put her up against his shoulder to burp her. He would pat her back until she let one fly.

Then he would change her diaper, talking to her all the while, explaining what he was doing or telling her about things that would happen once we got out of the hospital and back home. She'd kick her legs and wave her arms at him, and he would chuckle and kiss her toes.

Late one night in the middle of a diaper change, he asked: "What is it about babies? They smell so good, if they haven't just taken a big dump in their diaper, and you want to kiss them all over."

I smiled at his back. He had that boyish touch of wonder in his voice that I found so appealing. "It's nature's way of assuring that our species survives, by making our young so cute that we want to take care of them."

He smirked but didn't disagree with me. He finished diapering her and put an onesie on her. Greg picked her up and cuddled her against his chest, dropping a kiss on her forehead. Rachel yawned and her eyes drooped closed. He kissed her again and carefully settled her back in the bassinette.

My heart swelled with love for him. I hoped his doubts about being a good dad were gone, because it was rather obvious to me that he already was one.

I reached over and put my hand on his knee: "She's precious, isn't she, cowboy?"

He looked me in the eye, smiled and said: "You both are."

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When Greg's parents walked in on Monday, Blythe immediately said: Now dear, I hope you won't be upset with me, but I bought something for you."

"That's very sweet of you, Blythe. Why would you think I'd be mad?"

"Well, she's your baby and I don't want to think that I'm interfering. I don't want to be the meddling mother-in-law. It's just that Rachel's bedroom is so far away from yours. It is completely on the other side of the house. It's going to exhausting for you to traipse all the way over there in the middle of the night when you need to feed her."

I shrugged: "I can see your point, but that's how the house is arranged. We can't change that. It will be OK. I won't be getting up in the middle of the night forever."

"I know, dear. I was just thinking of your comfort. These first few months can be so tiring. So, I went shopping. I thought you could use this for the first couple of months or so, until she outgrows it."

Greg frowned: "Outgrows what, Mom?"

Blythe spread her hands in a placating gesture. "I got a bassinette for your room. The salesgirl at the baby store said it was quite a popular model. It's on wheels so you can move it from room to room and it has a built-in changing table too. I just thought, this way, Rachel could sleep in your room for a while, and you wouldn't have to walk so far for those midnight feedings. At least until your stitches heal up and you feel better."

I smiled at her. How could she think I wouldn't like that? "Oh, Blythe, that is so thoughtful of you. That will be really great for the first month or so. Thank you so much."

Blythe looked pleased: "John already put it together, didn't you, dear?"

The Colonel replied: "Yep. It wasn't too hard. I set it up in your bedroom already. It's a good sturdy model and not too girly looking."

Greg chuckled: "You mean it's not pink and frilly?"

His dad nodded in agreement. "Exactly. It's got brown, blue and green dots on it. It's probably more for a boy, but like your Mother said, the salesgirl said it was the best one."

I giggled; this was too funny. The House men were bonding over a mutual hatred of the color pink.

Blythe shook her head and said to me: "What is it with men and pink? I just don't get that. Anyway, dear, Avi and Ricky finished the nursery last night. It looks just darling. Wait until you see it."

I sighed: "I can't wait to go home. We only had two nights at home before I had to come into the hospital."

Kelly walked in just as I made that last comment. "So you want to go home? Tired of the lovely meals here at PPTH?"

I groaned: "Yes! I want to go home. Are you discharging me?"

"Depends on how you're feeling. Medically, I can keep you another day if that's what you want."

"Well, I feel sore and tired, but that's normal, right?"

"Yes, your incision site will be sore for a little while. Once you're home, I don't want you picking up anything heavier than the baby. Remember, you've had major abdominal surgery and you need time to heal."

I waved my hand toward Greg's parents. "I have help. Greg's parents are here and I have a housekeeper. Greg is going to take some time off from work too."

"Well, since you seem eager to leave and you have a doctor at home and some extra helping hands, I think it would be OK for you to leave today. Let me just give you a quick exam and if everything looks good, I'll sign your discharge papers."

I pumped my fist. "Yes!"

The Colonel stood up and said: "Blythe and I will just go get some coffee while you get your exam. We'll be in the cafeteria when you're ready to go."

Greg nodded: "I'll call your cell when we have the all clear."

The exam didn't take long. My incision site was healing nicely and there were no signs of infection. I was still having a pinkish vaginal discharge but Kelly said that was normal and could last up to 6 weeks. She declared me stable for discharge, told me to see her in her office in one week's time and headed out to sign my release papers.


	71. Chapter 71

Chapter 71

**_ELLE_**

Hospital policy dictated that I had to be pushed to the entrance in a wheelchair and that was probably just as well. I was still walking slowly these days, with my hand clutched over my belly, feeling like my insides were going to just fall right out. I wondered how long it would take for that feeling to pass.

Rachel was in her car seat already and her proud grandparents wheeled her out on top of a cart that held our suitcases and some of the gifts that we had been given. Greg commandeered my wheelchair from Jenny the nurse and rolled me towards the front door, sending Jimmy to bring the car around.

My jaw dropped when I saw it. The car was gorgeous, and I still couldn't believe that we had gotten it for free. We settled the baby in the middle of the back seat and I eased in on her right side. Once Rachel and I were settled and the luggage loaded into the trunk, Greg's parents headed off to their own car and Greg settled into the driver's seat.

As he adjusted the seat for his comfort, he asked: "Want the sunroof open, sweetheart?"

"Um, not right now. It might be too much wind blowing on Rachel."

"I'll show it to you later, then. Wait until you hear this sound system."

He put on some soft jazz and I leaned back in the seat, closing my eyes to have a good listen.

After a few minutes, I said: "The sound is really nice. This is a great car. I'm guessing that you're not too pissed at Bill any more."

He chuckled: "Well, I would have liked it if he had told me first before squashing my old car, but I guess the fineness of this automobile makes up for it."

After a moment's pause, he went on: "Actually I was thinking that you should drive this car. You'll probably be carting Rug-rat around more than I will and this great sound system will help her develop an appreciation for music. I can just take your Honda to and from work."

I looked down at our baby and smiled. Rachel's 'appreciation' of the stereo was Greg's way of saying that he thought the Caddy was a bigger safer car for our precious cargo to ride in.

"Well, if you're sure. I don't want you to miss out on the stereo and those heated seats in the wintertime."

He mumbled: "Well, maybe I'll drive it in the winter."

I considered taking some of my settlement money and buying us another new car, with equally great safety and comfort features, but I didn't mention that to Greg just then. He had enough new things on his plate to get used to, especially while his parents were here. We could explore getting another car somewhere down the road.

Greg pulled into the garage and parked. After helping me out of the car, he reached in and lifted Rachel out of her car seat. He cradled her against his chest and whispered: "We're home, Rug-rat. Wanna go see your room? Supposedly your gay uncles fixed it up really well, but Mommy and I haven't seen it yet either. I hope it's not too girly for you."

I laughed: "She is a girl. I don't think it will be too girly for her. You're just hoping that you can stomach it. Anyway, let's go show it to her. You want to carry her in?"

He hesitated: "I need one hand for my cane and one hand for her, leaving no hand for you."

"I think I can get in under my own steam."

"Yeah, while clutching your belly at the same time."

"I'll take it slow. It's not that far."

And just like that, help appeared. The garage door opened and Lady poked her head out. Her eyes widened in delight when she saw us and hurried over to inspect the baby. At the same time, Greg's parents were pulling up in the driveway. Before I knew it, the Colonel had my arm and was helping me into the house.

I didn't make it to Rachel's room on the first try. I felt tired by the time we hit the living room so Rachel and I were settled on the couch while the others unloaded the car. After a rest and a drink of water, I felt ready to proceed down the hall.

Avi and Ricky had done a great job. It was perfect. The crib was made up and ready; the changing table shelves were full of supplies. Her little clothes had been placed in the dresser drawers. The rocking chair was situated so that I could gaze out over the backyard when I sat in it to nurse her.

I teased Greg: "It looks OK, don't you think? Not too girly."

He rolled his eyes: "Not yet. I'm sure there will be a pink invasion one of these days."

Rachel woke up and indicated that she was hungry. Greg carried her into our room and I lay down on the bed to feed her. I was so tired from the unaccustomed activity that I almost fell asleep as she nursed.

Greg tenderly stroked my cheek: "That tired, huh? Maybe we should have stayed in the hospital another day."

I shook my head. "No way. I've had enough of that hospital. I'm so happy to be back in our bed. We can snuggle together tonight. I've missed that."

He nodded, eyes shining. I knew he had missed that too, but didn't expect him to say it out loud.

When Rachel's tummy was full, Greg took her and did the burping and changing duties. The bassinette was a fantastic gift. It had a changing station built right in and Blythe had already stocked it with diapers and wipes. It took Greg no time at all to change her and settle her down in the bassinette.

"Hey, check this out. This thing plays music."

The soothing sounds of Brahm's lullaby filtered out of the bassinette. After some experimentation, we found it played five classical melodies and five soothing nature sounds. It also had a timer, so Greg set it for an hour. Blythe had also gotten us a cute little doorknob sign that said: _"Shhh, baby_ _sleeping."_ Greg hung that on the outside of our bedroom door before shutting it, kicking off his shoes and climbing into bed with me.

I snuggled into his chest and let out a big contented sigh. He kissed the top of my head and mumbled: "I've missed this too."

I wasn't sure how Greg felt about having his parents here, but by Friday, I never wanted them to leave. I couldn't believe how tired I was. At best I was getting 2 and one-half hours of sleep between feedings and that's with Greg handling the burping, diapering and putting back to bed parts. If Blythe and Lady were not around to do the laundry, cleaning and cooking, I don't know what I would have done. The Colonel did his share too. He loaded and unloaded the dishwasher, folded clothes and made beds with the sharpest corners I had ever seen. When I mentioned it to Greg, he just laughed and reminded me that his Dad learned to make beds in the Marines. Greg said that when he was growing up, he had to make his bed so tight that a quarter would bounce on it, or he had to redo it until he got it right.

Greg's pain levels were worse when he didn't get enough REM sleep, so I tried to manage one feeding away from the bedroom at night so that he could get a solid 6 hours of sleep. That worked for 2 nights before he realized what I was doing and scolded me, reminding me that I had the tougher part of the job and needed the sleep more than he did. He suggested that I pump some bottles so that he or his parents could take a turn and I could get in at least a long nap. Just thinking about pumping made me feel like a cow about to be milked. I knew I'd have to do it eventually, but I had not wanted to start just yet.

But after a week of sleep deprivation, I finally lost it and dissolved into tears at a 5AM feeding. I could tell by the look on Greg's face that he wanted to say I told you so, but he held his tongue. When I finished nursing, he took Rachel and addressed her other needs, while I collapsed back onto the bed, still sobbing.

When he climbed back into bed, he pulled me into his arms and I sobbed on his shoulder. He stroked my hair and kissed my forehead until I calmed down.

"You are going to start pumping tomorrow. The baby is going to get at least one bottle a day so that you can get some sleep. You can't keep up this pace, sweetheart. It's not good for you."

I sniffled and whispered: "OK."

I called Gen the next morning and asked her to come over and help me get started. She had pumped bottles with Audra and had a lot of helpful advice.

I had researched breast pumps on-line before deciding to buy an Ameda Purely Yours electric breast pump. Since it was electric, it would not be as tiring as pumping by hand and it had another advantage in that you could pump both breasts at once. I still felt like a cow, but the thought of getting some sleep was so appealing that I pushed my bovine thoughts aside and concentrated on the task at hand.

Gen recommended using Adiri Natural Nurser baby bottles and brought me a couple of them. Supposedly these bottles most closely resembled the breast to help eliminate nipple confusion. With her guidance, I managed to get one bottle pumped and safely stowed in the refrigerator. She advised pumping at least one bottle a day so that I would always have a backup.

After I nursed Rachel in the early afternoon, Blythe took over. She rolled the bassinette out into the living room, saying that Greg and I should take a long nap and she would take care of the next feeding. I was torn, but the idea of several hours of uninterrupted sleep was so appealing to Greg that he grabbed my arm and pulled me down the hall to our room. He stripped to his boxers and climbed under the sheet, holding it up as my invitation to join him. I took off everything except my bra and panties and crawled in beside him. He wrapped his long strong arms around me and I nestled my head on his shoulder. After exchanging a few tender kisses, we quickly fell asleep.

It was dark when we woke up. I rolled over and glanced at the clock. It was eight PM, how had we slept so long? Why hadn't Blythe awakened us? Rachel was probably hungry. I started to get out of bed and a strong arm prevented my escape. His sleepy voice murmured: "Where are you going?"

"It's eight o'clock. We slept for six hours."

"That's good. Still doesn't tell me where you're going."

"I need to check on Rachel."

"Relax. If you needed to be tapped for more milk, Mom would have knocked on the door."

He pulled me closer: "Did you sleep well?"

I felt one hundred percent better. "Yes, I did."

He nodded: "Good. You are going to do this every day. Pump one bottle and let someone else take that feeding so that you can get six hours of sleep. My parents can do it while they are here. After they are gone, I'll do it or we can have Lady do it in the afternoons so that you can get a long nap. But you are going to skip one feeding a day for sleep, got it?"

I smirked: "Aye-aye Captain."

He nibbled on my neck: "Glad to see that motherhood hasn't changed you. You're still a smart-ass."

_**HOUSE **_

My parents had been here an entire week and there had been no explosions so far. Dad seemed to be on his best behavior. Either I was just too sleep deprived to notice any little jabs or I was truly living in the Twilight Zone. We had never been able to spend even a few hours together without an argument, much less this long.

I was glad that Elle finally started pumping bottles. I figured we might as well utilize my parents' help while we had them here. They didn't seem to mind helping out at all. And while I had expected Mom's eager assistance, Dad's equally ardent help did surprise me.

Mom and Dad were in the living room when we emerged from our nap. I had to suppress a shudder when I saw that Mom was knitting something pink. Dad had his socked feet propped up on the coffee table and was giving Rug-rat the last of the bottle. He also seemed to be telling her the story of the 'Three Little Bears'. Now I knew for sure that I was in the Twilight Zone.

Mom looked up as we walked into the room. "How did you sleep, dears?"

Elle sighed: "Oh, just great. I feel better than I have in days. How was Rachel? Was she good?"

Dad answered: "She drank some of the bottle about 3 hours ago and she's just finishing the rest up now."

Then in a higher sing-songy voice he said: "You're just a little angel, aren't you, punkin? Now where were we? Oh, yeah, Goldilocks tried the big bed but it was too hard."

My mouth dropped open. Dad was telling fairy tales to my week-old infant. This was surreal.

Mom suddenly tossed her knitting on the coffee table and stood up. "Your dinner is in the kitchen. Come on and let me warm it up for you."

She grabbed my arm and tugged me along, Elle drifting along behind us.

Once we were in the kitchen, I pulled my arm out of her grip and said: "Ow, Mom. What was that for? You were pinching me."

She waved her index finger at me: "I saw that look on your face, Gregory. You were about to give your father what-all."

I sputtered: "Well, she's a week old. What the hell's he doing? She can't understand a story."

Mom started taking the food out of the refrigerator and scooping it onto plates. "So? Are you going to wait until she _can_ understand to start telling her stories? I don't think so. You have to talk to babies from the moment they are born to help them develop language skills."

Language wasn't really the issue. After all, I was talking to Rug-rat when she was still in utero. I talked to her about all kinds of things now. "But, _Dad?_ Telling fairy tales?"

She popped one plate into the microwave, pressed a few buttons to start it and then turned to face me, hands on hips. "Your father did that with you when you were little. He told you stories all the time. You seemed to particularly like 'Little Red Riding Hood'. You would laugh at the part where the wolf got into the Grandma's clothes."

I pulled myself up to my full height and said indignantly: "Did not."

Mom tilted her head and gave me a look: "Did too. You just can't remember because you were less than a year old at the time."

Elle giggled: "Gee, Greg, didn't know you were into cross-dressing at such a young age!"

Before I could retort, there was a wail from the living room and then Dad called: "Elle. The bottle's empty and Rachel still seems to be hungry."

Elle replied: "Be right there."

She grabbed a towel from the back of a kitchen chair and started towards the living room. She paused next to me, reached up and pulled me down for a kiss. Then she giggled: "My, Grandma, what big eyes you have."

I groaned; she giggled and continued on into the living room. I hear her call out in French: _"Is my baby girl still hungry? Mama's here."_

I sank into a chair and buried my face in my hands. I was never going to live this one down.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Elle had her doctor's appointment on Monday and Alderman removed her stitches. She was healing nicely and everything looked good. Elle made an appointment for her six-week checkup. I made a mental note of the date and looked forward to the time when we could have sex again.

The new furniture arrived on Monday afternoon. Wilson, Adam, Avi and Ricky came over later that evening and helped us shift things around. Now the new couch and coffee table were in the living room and the old stuff was in my man cave. The new furniture seemed to kick in Elle's nesting mode; suddenly she wanted the boxes unpacked and put away. She and the baby sat on the new couch, like a queen and her princess, and directed her 'staff' as we unpacked and placed items at her direction. I just stuck all the boxes of stuff that I wanted in my man cave in the room to be unpacked later. I still didn't want Dad seeing my porn collection.

Dad worked along with the rest of us but I noticed that he seemed to be easily winded, and needed to sit down often. He always made an excuse, like needing a beverage or checking on the baby, and he avoided looking at me as he made his excuses. Something was going on and it was obvious that he didn't want to tell me. I conferred privately with Wilson and he made an attempt to get it out of Dad, but Dad was on to us and assured Wilson that he was fine, just getting older.

We didn't get everything unpacked Monday evening but we did make a decent start. Lady joined in the task on Tuesday and by the end of the day we had everything put away except for certain particular items of mine.

Dad's symptoms continued to nudge the edge of my sleep-deprived brain. I continued to covertly observe him, but without running a few tests, it would be impossible to diagnose him just on these visual clues. They were supposed to fly home on Friday, but Elle seemed particularly reluctant to let them go.

She seemed on the verge of tears Thursday evening when she asked: "Are you sure you have to leave tomorrow? Why don't you stay another week?"

Mom laughed: "Aren't you tired of us old folks hanging around?"

"No, not at all. Are we, Greg?"

I gave a non-committal shrug: "If you need to get home, we understand, but don't feel like you have to rush off."

Dad said: "Aw, I think we've been in your hair long enough for one visit. We should go before we get on your last nerve. But maybe we could come back in July for a week. You know, that deck of yours would be a great place for a fourth of July barbeque."

The 4th of July was a long way off. I could probably tolerate them for another week at that time. I nodded: "Yeah, Dad, that sounds like a good idea."

Dad took about a million more pictures before they left and promised to e-mail them to us. Since he had returned the rental car, I convinced Wilson to drive my parents back to Newark. We said our good-byes in the driveway while Wilson loaded their bags into the back of his Volvo. Elle was holding Rug-rat and her eyes teared up as Mom walked over to tell them good-bye.

"You'll call as soon as you get home, right, Blythe?"

Mom embraced the two of them. "Yes, dear. We will. Don't worry. John and I are used to flying and our neighbor is picking us up at the airport."

She gave Elle a kiss on the cheek and then planted a gentle kiss on Rug-rat's head. "Bye, punkin. Grandma will come see you soon. Elle, you'll have to send us lots of pictures. She is going to grow so fast."

"I'll send you a new picture every week."

Mom came over to me and gave me a big hug. "I hope we weren't too difficult for you to put up with, dear."

I hugged her back: "The cookies helped."

She gave me a kiss on the cheek. Wilson opened the car door for Mom and after one more hug; she climbed into the back seat.

Dad looked awkward as he approached Elle. "Well, little lady, it's time for us to hit the road. You take good care of my granddaughter, now."

Elle said: "I will, Colonel. You can count on that."

He gave her a one-armed hug and a kiss on the cheek. Then he bent down and kissed Rug-rat on the top of her head. "Bye, Rachel. Opa will be back to see you in July. I'll tell ya some more stories then."

Elle smiled: "She'll like that."

Dad gave the baby a wistful look and then walked over to me. He patted my arm and said: "Son, thanks for the hospitality. You have a great family. Take good care of them."

There was nothing malicious in what he said, but I responded defensively anyway. "I will, Dad."

He looked directly into my eyes and nodded gravely: "I know."

He climbed into the car and Wilson started it up. They rolled the windows down and waved good-bye as they backed out of the driveway and all the way down the street until we couldn't see them anymore. I put my arm around Elle's shoulders and together the three of us walked back into the house. We were finally alone.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Elle and I worked out a system. After the 11PM feeding, we would park the bassinette on my side of the bed. I would take the 2AM feeding and let Elle sleep. Then Elle would get up for the 5AM feeding and let me sleep. This way we both got 6 hours sleep at night and didn't feel quite so fatigued. I still insisted that Elle take a nap during the afternoon while Rug-rat slept and occasionally I managed to feed her a bottle and let Elle nap a little longer in the afternoon.

That worked well for almost two weeks and then I got sucked back to work. This patient was an important donor, so Cuddy called and asked me to return and take on his case. As much as I liked staying home with my girls, my brain felt like mush and was ready for a new puzzle. Elle was feeling better; her incision had healed nicely and the vaginal discharge had stopped. She wasn't quite her old self yet but it had only been 4 weeks since she gave birth and she had sworn off caffeine while she was breastfeeding. I told her that one cup of coffee a day would be OK, but she was trying to do without. I figured that with Lady's help, Elle would be able to manage while I was at work.

The kids were already assembled by the time I walked in and someone had used my markers to write the symptoms on the whiteboard. Normally, I would have yelled at them about that, but in the interest of time, I let it go.

I quickly scanned the file. The patient was a 37-year-old male who presented that morning in the ER with cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, fever, and enlarged lymph nodes. He had been started on broad-spectrum antibiotics, but they had not made a dent in his fever. Since he was a VIP, Cuddy had him admitted, listed me as the attending and _then_ she called me in.

I tapped the marker against my chin as I read. "He's a young guy to be rolling in this much dough. What's he do for a living?"

Foreman answered: "He's an insurance executive, strictly a desk jockey. He doesn't go out in the field and check out damaged properties so we figure no exposure to toxic chemicals on the job."

"You _figure_, but you don't know that for sure. _Figuring_ is like assuming and you know what that does to you and me. Do a chest X-ray, then draw blood. Do a CMP, CBC, heavy metal panel and a drug screen. Cameron, get a better history. Find out exactly what he does when he's on the clock. Chase and Foreman, go check out the home and his office."

The kids ran off to do their assignments and I headed into my office. Cameron had taken care of my mail while I was off, and there was a neat stack of papers to sign. The patient's symptoms were swirling around in my mind as I took care of this mundane task. Then I booted up my computer and worked my way through a month's worth of e-mail. Mostly of it was boring, department head meetings and other hospital business, so I deleted them right away. I had e-mailed myself some of the photos that Dad had sent so I stuck them in a private file that Cameron did not have access to. I considered taking my favorite photo of Elle and Rug-rat and making it my new wallpaper, but then I decided to keep Gravedigger there for now. I didn't want my nosy minions to think that I had gone soft.

I headed off to Wilson's office for a visit and he got me caught up on hospital gossip. The head of radiology was still dating that lab tech that used to be a man. There was a new nurse in Peds with a double D rack that Foreman had been seen chatting with on several occasions.

"And I think that your other two ducklings have gotten naughty while Daddy was home with his real family."

"Oh, yeah? Did you catch them in the janitor's closet?"

"Not yet. But they were rather cozy in the stairwell and moved apart quickly when they saw me. Chase was blushing and not meeting my eyes."

"And Cameron looked at you, bold as brass, right?"

"Right."

"Yeah, they're doing it. I'll just have to catch them in the act."

"So what's up with Swensen?"

"Who's Swensen?"

He let out an exasperated sigh. "Your patient. The big donor VIP."

"Oh, that's his name? Didn't notice. The kids are running tests; I'll know more later."

It was several hours later when they got back. I had managed to watch my soap, take a nap and speak to Elle who assured me that she and Rug-rat were doing fine. I hoped that this case was not going to be an all-nighter, as I wanted to get home to them.

We assembled in the conference room. Cameron reported on the patient's history. He was strictly a desk jockey and did not go out into the field. He had no exposure to beryllium or other toxic chemicals. He had not been around hay or any birds. His white count was still high, but there were no drugs or heavy metals in his system. Chase and Foreman reported finding no toxic substances in the home.

I flipped through the file looking for one last piece of information. "Where is the chest X-ray?"

They looked at each other. Finally Foreman said: "Cameron, didn't you take it?"

In a defensive tone, she replied: "I thought you did."

Foreman rolled his eyes: "When did we have time? We drew the blood, took it to the lab and then went out to the guy's home and office. Meanwhile you were here just talking to the guy. You could have taken a simple chest X-ray while you were talking."

Chase butted in: "Alright, alright. We need a chest X-ray, let's just go get one now. C'mon."

He motioned to Cameron and they headed out without a backward glance.

I grinned inwardly; Chase had quickly jumped to Cameron's defense, he was _so_ doing her. I looked over the guy's blood work again. Cameron had failed to mention that his calcium level and his liver enzymes were on the high side.

I pointed it out to Foreman: "Did you see this?"

He nodded: "Borderline high."

"Draw his blood again. Recheck the liver panel and the calcium level. And do an ACE level."

"Angiotensin-converting enzyme? You're thinking autoimmune or cancer?"

"Those are the top two on my list. We just have to see which one."

The ACE level was high and the calcium level had crept up a little, which helped to narrow my suspects. The X-ray was suspicious; I thought there might be granulomas but they were small and hard to see.

"Go do a bronch and biopsy some lung tissue. See if those little bumps are cancerous or not."

Chase piped up: "He's got bumps on his shins and ankles now. They are red and warm to the touch. Thought we might biopsy those also."

"Are his eyes red?"

Chase shook his head. "No."

"Do a slit-lamp test anyway and look for granulomas."

We had the diagnosis two hours later. The enlarged lymph nodes and the abnormalities in the lungs indicated stage II sarcoidosis. The slit-lamp test was negative, meaning that his eyes were not affected by the granulomas at this point.

I figured that I had better deliver the diagnosis to the patient myself. If I didn't set foot in his room, I would never hear the end of it from Cuddy. I didn't want any extra clinic duty assigned to me for my failure to personally deliver the bad news.

With the ducklings trailing behind me, I walked into the room, immediately taking note of a pretty brunette and 2 kids who I assumed were his family. The wife was a knockout despite the worried look on her face; the girl seemed to be about seven and the boy, nine. Despite the late hour, everyone was wide-awake and looking at me expectantly for answers.

I took a few steps closer to the bed. "I'm Dr House. We have finished running all the tests and it has been confirmed. You have sarcoidosis. It's an autoimmune disease characterized by tiny clumps of inflammatory cells in different parts of your body. For you, they have manifested in your skin and in your lungs. That explains the rash on your legs and the shortness of breath."

The patient asked: "So it's not cancer?"

I shook my head: "Nope, not cancer, but there is no cure. It is a lifelong illness that can generally be managed with corticosteriods or other drugs."

The little girl started to cry: "Daddy's really sick, isn't he, Mommy?"

The mother rushed to comfort her. Wrapping her arms around the child, she said: "Daddy's going to be OK, sweetheart; he is just going to need some medicine."

The kid was starting to get under my skin. I wondered what my own daughter was going to think when she first noticed the big hole in my thigh. How was I going to explain my boo-boo to her? Would she cry and worry about her daddy?

I kept my emotions under wraps and went on: "This illness is very manageable. My fellows will explain the treatment to you and refer you to a pulmonologist for follow-up. We'll start the treatment tonight and you should be able to go home in a few days."

The patient said: "Thank you Dr. House."

I nodded: "You're welcome."

I walked out, leaving the ducklings to explain and start the treatment.

Back in my office, I gave Cuddy a call and let her know that she was not going to lose her big donor. She seemed relieved to hear that he did not have a fatal illness. I was going to call Elle next and let her know I was on my way home, but it was after eleven and hopefully she was catching a nap in between feedings. I decided not to call and just head on home in a few minutes. That kid had gotten to me a little more than I liked and I wanted to unwind a bit before I went home.

I straightened up my desk and then took my coffee cup into the conference room. I rinsed it out and set it in the drainer. As I was wiping the symptoms off of the whiteboard, Foreman strolled in and started gathering his things.

"Cameron and Chase starting the treatment without you?"

He frowned: "No, I said I would do it so that they could leave. Didn't they come back?"

I shook my head: "Nope."

He shrugged, puffed out his cheeks, grabbed his briefcase and took off. I smirked; Foreman knew and he didn't want to tip me off. I wondered where they were. Chase's messenger bag and Cameron's purse were still here, so I knew that they didn't leave the hospital. I gathered up a pile of junk mail and old files and headed to the janitor's closet.

_**CHASE**_

It was Cameron's idea to begin with. It all started one night as we were walking out of the hospital together.

We had checked in with House at the end of the day as we had been doing ever since Elle had been admitted for monitoring. He had nothing else for us to do so we were dismissed. Foreman took a detour to talk to that new nurse in Peds while Cameron and I headed out.

As we walked through the lobby, I mentioned how amazing it was that House had finally found love and that it gave me hope that I would find someone one day too.

Cameron replied cynically: "I believe that true love is out there. It's just far, far away, perhaps in another galaxy. We may need to develop faster-than-light travel to make contact."

Suddenly she blurted out: "So I'm thinking we should have sex."

My jaw hit the ground. Slowly I said: "That. Makes. Sense. I think."

She went on: "Despite the wisdom of pop songs, there's no point in putting our lives on hold until love comes along. We're both healthy, busy people. We work together so it's convenient since we are on the same schedule."

"Oh, convenient like microwave pizza?"

She continued as if she hadn't heard me. "And of all the people I work with, you're the one I'm least likely to fall in love with."

"Hmm, thanks, I think."

"The point here is to make things simpler, not more complicated. Some day there will be time to get serious about someone. Meanwhile."

She shrugged: "We already had sex once and didn't get weird about it."

"I get it, I get it! So what if I'm offended by your judgment?"

"Then you're not the man I'm looking for."

She looked into my eyes for a moment and then she walked on towards the parking garage. I pondered her proposal for a moment and then hurried after her.

I followed her to her place that night and we had sex. Great sex. Over the next few weeks, we rotated staying at each other's apartments. The sex was fantastic and we couldn't seem to get enough of each other. We started groping in the stairwells and kissing in the elevators. Foreman found out rather quickly and he wasn't too happy about it. He was afraid it would affect our working relationship. After repeated assurances that it would not, he finally just rolled his eyes and shut up about it.

We discovered that the fourth floor janitor's closet had a lock on the door, so it became our place for a midday tryst. The smell of the cleaning chemicals was a bit strong, but we were usually very quick so it wasn't too bothersome. On the day that House was called in for that VIP case, we had not had time yet for our nooner, and then he kept us so busy running tests that we had not had a chance to sneak away. Finally the patient was diagnosed and he told us to start the treatment. Cameron convinced Foreman that it was a one-man job and he wouldn't mind us leaving, would he? He easily got her drift; a ten-year-old would have done so, and he waved us off, saying that starting an IV of methylprednisolone was not a three-person job and we may as well leave. He'd only need another 10 minutes to start the treatment and then he could leave too.

We hurried off and I was surprised when she dragged me into the janitor's closet.

"Why don't we just get our things and go home?"

"Because House will still be in the office and we'll have to explain to him why we left Foreman to start the treatment and just took off. Let's just have a quickie here and then we'll head back to your place."

She dropped her lab coat and then her blouse and bra hit the floor too. Once I saw her pretty little breasts, I was a goner and started stripping off.

We were going at it hot and heavy when suddenly the door opened and House walked in. He got a good eyeful of what we were doing and casually said: "Sorry. Just looking for an extra large trash can." He strode over to the big waste bin in the corner and dropped some items in it. Then he walked out whistling and acting quite nonchalant as if a naked Cameron was not straddling my equally nude body.

Cameron groaned: "Since when does he clean anything up?"

"Never. I thought you locked the door."

"I thought _you_ locked the door."

I buried my head in her shoulder, my erection withering away. "Oh, man. We are never going to live this down."

_**HOUSE**_

Catching Chase and Cameron in the janitor's closet made my night. This was fuel for the fire for weeks to come. It was almost midnight when I got home. I quietly walked down the hall and peeked into our bedroom. Elle was sleeping on her right side with one arm flung across the empty space where I would be sleeping if I hadn't needed to stay at the hospital so late. Rug-rat was sleeping in her bassinette and looked like a little doll. I longed to pick her up and get a big whiff of her sweet baby smell, but I didn't want to wake her. She would wake up soon enough for her middle-of-the-night feeding and I'd get my cuddle then. She was still breast-feeding on demand, about every 3 hours. Our kid sure had a big appetite, wonder who she got that from?

I eased back into the kitchen and searched the refrigerator. Lady apparently had made goulash today so I scooped some into a bowl and stuck it in the microwave. I popped it out before the buzzer went off and took the bowl to the kitchen table to eat. I was scraping the bottom of the bowl and debating getting seconds when I heard Rug-rat wail. Briefly wondering if the aroma from the goulash had stimulated her appetite, I hurried down the hall, hoping to scoop her up before she woke Elle, but naturally I was too late. Little Mama had awakened right away. By the time I reached the bedroom, Elle was already propped up against the headboard, nightgown pulled down, exposing both breasts with the baby suckling on her left one.

I just stood there for a moment, taking in the incredible sight of the woman I loved, and the beautiful child that we had made together. My heart swelled with so much emotion that I was sure it would burst out of my chest.

Softly, I said: "Hey."

Elle looked up at me and gave me a beautiful smile.

"Hey, you're home. There's goulash in the fridge if you're hungry."

I nodded. "Found it. Want some water?"

She glanced at the bedside table; her glass was almost empty. "Please."

"Be right back."

I stared at them for a moment longer, wanting to scoop them up in my arms and never let them go. I could not imagine my life without them; that pain would be unbearable, worse than the pain of one hundred mangled thighs.

Shaking my head to remove those thoughts, I turned and left the bedroom, heading to the kitchen to get Elle some water.

**_ELLE_**

I fed Rachel around 9 PM and put her down for another nap. I was so tired that I decided not to wait up for Greg, but catch a catnap while I could. If Greg got stuck at the hospital, he wouldn't be around to help me with the middle of the night feedings.

When her cries woke me, I glanced at the clock. Midnight. Right on time, kid. I propped the pillows against the headboard, pulled off my nightgown and picked her up.

I cooed to her: _"Hungry, little one? Mama's here."_ I leaned back against the pillows and put her up to my left breast; she latched on right away.

I heard his distinctive footsteps coming down the hall.

I whispered to Rachel: _"Daddy's home."_

He poked his head in the door and I smiled at him.

"Hey. There's goulash in the fridge if you're hungry."

"Found it. Want some water?"

I glanced at my glass and saw that it was almost empty. "Please."

"Be right back."

When he returned, he uncapped the bottle and set it down on the bedside table. Then he walked around the bed, kicked off his shoes and crawled in next to us. He draped one long arm across my abdomen and laid his cheek against my right shoulder. We lay like that, snuggled up together, quietly watching Rachel nurse.

I planted a kiss on his forehead and looked back at Rachel. After a few minutes, Greg rubbed his scruff gently against my shoulder.

Suddenly he whispered: "Do you love me?"

I was taken aback, surprised by the vulnerable tone in his voice. I replied quickly: "Yes, I do. I love you with all my heart."

In a voice cracking with emotion, he said: "Marry me, Elle. Be my wife. I don't ever want to be without you and Rachel."

Tears filled my eyes; I guess I could blame it on hormones, but Greg always called her Rug-rat. To hear him call our baby by her proper name set off powerful feelings within me. My previous worries that he would feel trapped in marriage vanished in a poof of smoke. I had dodged this question for long enough now.

I whispered: "Yes."

Greg raised his head: "What did you say?"

He had the most incredulous look on his face as if he were almost afraid that he heard me wrong.

I nodded my head and spoke a little louder: "Yes. I will marry you."

I watched as the realization hit him. The smile started off small, but quickly spread until he was grinning from ear to ear.

"You will, huh?"

The tears started leaking out of my eyes. In a blubbery voice, I choked out: "Yes, I will."

He chuckled and covered my mouth with his. The kiss was slow and tender as if he were tasting me for the very first time. He gently cupped my free breast with his hand and it was just enough stimuli to cause my milk to start flowing.

I backed away from him and whispered into his mouth: "I'm leaking. It's getting all over your shirt."

"S'alright", he said as he lowered his mouth to mine. "My _wife _will do the laundry later."

_**HOUSE**_

When I woke up the next morning and saw Elle's beautiful face, I felt positively giddy. _Yes._ She had finally said yes. I was going to give her another ring and make her officially mine.

I pressed my body closer to hers and rubbed my morning wood against her thigh. I planted little kisses on her face and when she stirred, I whispered: "Good morning."

She murmured sleepily: "Good morning."

Her eyes opened slowly and she blinked a few times as she focused on my face. I grinned at her and then kissed her full on the mouth, my tongue slipping in to dance with hers.

When we broke for air, she said: "Wow, someone's really happy this morning."

I nibbled her ear lobe. "Umm, hmmm."

"Wow, if agreeing to marry you made you this happy, I should have done it weeks ago."

I muttered: "Months ago." I nibbled my way down her neck and pressed my throbbing manhood against her.

She giggled: "Oh, Greg, I'd like to take care of your problem, but you know we're not supposed to have sex for a couple more weeks."

Her hand slipped between our bodies and she gave Mt. Gregory a gentle squeeze. My body reacted by thrusting against her hand.

"I know that, sweetheart, but it doesn't turn off my desire."

We kissed and caressed for a few minutes and then these words burst out of my mouth: "Let's go to Virginia this weekend."

She gave me a questioning look: "What's in Virginia?"

"There is no waiting period in Virginia; we can get married right away."

She laughed: "Are you in that much of a hurry to make me your ball-and-chain?"

"Yup. I want to seal the deal before you wise up and change your mind."

I continued nibbling on her neck. She threaded her fingers through my hair. "I'm not going to change my mind. I love you and I want to marry you."

"Then why wait? Let's do it now."

When she didn't answer me, I looked into her eyes. She had a faraway look on her face.

I asked with more than a touch of trepidation: "You don't want a big fancy wedding, do you?"

After a moment, she answered softly: "No, I don't want anything fancy. Like I mentioned before, I really want to get married on the beach with our friends there. Billy can be our officiant, Jimmy can be your best man and Gen can be my bridesmaid."

"You can get your big brother to walk you down the aisle."

Her eyes lit up and she smiled: "I didn't think of that. I just thought that I would walk down alone, but, yeah, Avi could give me away. That's a great idea."

I pulled back a little and took a good look at her face. "You've been thinking about this for a while, haven't you?"

"Yes, actually, I have. Ever since the Keys."

I chuckled inwardly. Maybe if I had pushed a little harder, I would have been able to seal the deal back then. "You wanna go back to the Keys and get married on a beach down there? Down in Key West or that little beach outside your favorite motel?""

"No, I think we should keep it local. There are lots of beaches in New Jersey. That way it will be easy for everyone to attend."

She buried her face in my chest and said: "You'll think this is silly."

I kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair. "Tell me."

"I keep picturing a chuppah made out of palm fronds."

"A chuppah? You want a Jewish wedding? Can Billy do that or would we need a Rabbi?"

"You'd have to convert for us to have a Jewish wedding. No, I just thought about incorporating a few elements of the Jewish ceremony into our wedding."

"Do I get to step on the glass?"

She giggled: "If you want to."

"Yeah, that'd be fun. So we'll have a palm frond chuppah on the beach. I get to break a wineglass. Do I have to wear a tux? What about the little beanie?"

Elle laughed: "No beanie. I was actually picturing you in a Hawaiian shirt, khaki pants and sandals."

"Oh, much better than a tux. I hope you are wearing a low-cut mini-dress."

She giggled again: "I haven't worked out all the details yet and my dress is one of those unresolved parts. Are you really OK with this? Waiting a little while to get married?"

"The sooner, the better as far as I'm concerned, but a casual wedding on the beach with our friends sounds OK to me."

"And your parents."

"If you insist. By the way, Cameron and Chase are bumping uglies."

"No way! They told you?"

"Naw, they showed me. I walked in on them in the janitor's closet. I'd had my suspicions, but suddenly I had visual proof. It was really embarrassing."

Elle laughed: "For them or for you?"

"Not for me, sweetheart. They will be the butt of my jokes for weeks to come now."

"Poor things."

**A/N:** Sorry it took me so long to post again. My dog died this week, and I've been kinda depressed. If I didn't answer you personally,,,,Thank you for all your reviews!


	72. Chapter 72

Chapter 72

_**HOUSE**_

May 27th was Elle's six-week follow-up appointment. She walked into my office about 20 minutes before her appointment time, pushing Rug-rat in her stroller.

"Hi, are you able to get away and come with me?"

I tossed the file on my desk. "You bet. The kids are off running tests."

I stood up and walked over to them. Rug-rat was sleeping soundly in her car seat that was attached to the stroller. After planting a little kiss on her forehead, I pulled Elle into my arms and asked: "How are you feeling? Any problems driving?"

She smiled up at me. "Nope. I feel great. I bet we get the green-light for sex today."

I caressed her cheek. "We probably will, but just because we get the go-ahead doesn't mean we have to dive right in."

"It's been two months."

"You think I don't know that? I'm ready when you are, but I don't want to push you, OK? Breast-feeding on demand is exhausting. Your post-partum hormones are all over the place, so don't be surprised if you're not in the mood for a while."

The corners of her mouth turned down. "I wanna be in the mood. I miss you."

"I miss you too. It will happen, just give it a little time."

She gripped my shoulders tightly. "You are being so understanding."

I looked deeply into her eyes. "I'm not always a selfish bastard. Sometimes I'm the good guy."

She gave me her best smile. "You are the bestest guy, my one and only."

"And you're mine."

My lips found hers and we kissed tenderly. Of course, that would be the moment that the ducklings walk in with the test results. I needed an office without glass walls.

Chase, of course, was thrilled to see my girls. "Elle, great to see you. How are you feeling? How's Rachel?"

"We're both fine. I'm just here for my 6-week checkup."

He spotted the stroller and hurried over to check out our baby. He had a huge grin on his face, as he looked her over. "She's grown so much in six weeks. I think she really looks like you, Elle."

Chase gave Rachel's foot a little squeeze as he leaned over her. He spoke the next words so softly that I could barely hear him. _"Hello Rachel. I'm your Uncle Robbie."_

I snarled: "Get your own baby. That one is mine."

He backed away from the stroller, hands up in the air in a defeated gesture. "Just saying hello."

"She's six weeks old. That's too young even for _you_ to flirt with. If I remember correctly, you draw the line at 9 years of age."

He flushed, catching my reference to Andy, the cancer patient who had conned Chase into kissing her.

I swung my head around and looked at the other two. "So, any test results to report or is this just a social call?"

Foreman said: "There is a spot on the X-ray but it is poorly differentiated. We thought we'd do an MRI to get a better view."

"Good idea, go and do."

They hurriedly left the room.

Elle shook her head and chuckled: "You harass them so."

"It's my job as their boss and mentor."

As we headed towards the elevator, Elle commented: "So Chase wants to be 'Uncle Robbie'? That's sweet."

I rolled my eyes. "Great. She'll have an uncle with a stupid accent."

"What's one more uncle? A child can never have too much love."

The elevator arrived and we stepped in. Fortunately we were alone in the car. I tapped my cane against the floor, remembering my own difficult childhood. In a soft voice, I said: "That's not something that I know a lot about."

Elle reached up and grabbed my chin, turning my head so that I was looking in her eyes. I didn't see the pity that I feared; there was nothing but love in her eyes. "I know, Greg, but it won't be like that for our child, will it? She will have it better than we did. She won't have uncaring foster parents or a demanding, militaristic father. She has two loving parents, two doting grandparents and as many adoring uncles and aunts that we can adopt along the way. She will have unconditional love from all the adults in her life."

I looked down at our baby and knew that I would give her everything that I possibly could. "You're right. It won't be like that for Rachel. But, _Uncle Robbie_? Ewww. She can call him Uncle Chase."

She put her arm around my waist and gave me a squeeze. "Sure, why not? And 'Aunt Cam' will be better than 'Aunt Allie', which is too much of a tongue twister for a little kid to say."

I groaned: "Do all the ducklings have to be adopted?"

"Only if they want to be."

We were right on time for Elle's appointment. After being shown into an exam room, Elle put on a gown and hopped up on the table.

Alderman didn't keep us waiting long. After taking a moment to coo over the baby, she peppered Elle with questions as she performed the exam. Aside from being tired, Elle claimed to be feeling well. Her breast exam was fine; there were no knots, thus no blocked milk ducts. Her uterus was just about back to normal size and there was no tenderness, therefore no infection. Her incision scar had healed up nicely. It still felt numb, but Alderman explained to Elle that the feeling might not come back for months.

Finally she sat back and snapped her gloves off. "You look great. You guys can go back to having sex anytime that you are ready. Just don't forget about birth control. Some women think that because they are breast-feeding that they can't get pregnant, but that is not true."

I snarked: "I've already got the large economy size box of condoms in the nightstand drawer for the occasion."

Alderman smirked: "Good for you. Just remember that Elle may not be in the mood for a while. Post-partum hormones and breast-feeding can diminish desire, not to mention the fatigue of caring for a newborn."

I rolled my eyes: "Duh, I think they talked about that in med school."

"And you didn't nap through that lecture? Amazing."

Elle was exhausted by the time I got home from work. The baby had been fussy for the remainder of the day and Elle couldn't figure out why. Rug-rat wasn't hungry, she didn't need her diaper changed; she was just cranky and wanted to be held. Every time that Elle thought she had her soothed and had tried to put her down, she started crying again. So Elle had carried her in the baby sling for the rest of the day.

It had been Lady's day off and Elle had been trying to cook and comfort Rachel at the same time. Combined with the trip to the hospital, she was just exhausted and on the verge of tears herself.

"Sweetheart, you didn't have to cook. I could have picked something up on the way home. Let's get something delivered."

Elle wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "It's almost ready. I just need to drain the pasta. Could you take Rachel and feed her a bottle? She's squirming around and I think she's ready to eat again."

I took Rachel from her and fed her a bottle while Elle finished throwing dinner together. Right after she finished her bottle, she started crying again. I held her, bounced her and tried all my little tricks to comfort her, but to no avail. It seemed like today only her Mama could comfort her. So Elle put her back in the sling and Rachel settled down again. The three of us sat at the kitchen table and the two larger people ate the spaghetti and meatballs that Elle had prepared.

When we finished eating, I escorted Elle to my recliner and made her climb in. I handed her the remote and told her to relax while I headed back to the kitchen and cleaned the dishes. By the time I got back, Elle was sound asleep. I eased the remote out of her hand and quietly channel surfed while my girls slept. A mere two hours later, Rachel woke up and screamed for her favorite nipple. Elle woke up enough to shove her clothing aside and position Rachel on her breast.

When Rug-rat finished eating, I took her from Elle and we all walked back to our bedroom. I gave Rachel a fresh diaper and cuddled her until she was fast asleep. Then I gently placed her into the bassinette. She didn't wake up this time.

Quietly we stripped and climbed into bed. I pulled Elle into my arms and held her tightly. After a few minutes, I realized that my shoulder was wet.

I whispered in her ear: "Why are you crying, sweetheart?"

"This isn't how I wanted today to go. I thought I could make you a nice dinner and we'd put Rachel to bed and then we could have sex."

Knowing what her answer would be, I asked anyway. "You wanna have sex now?"

She sobbed quietly against my shoulder. "I'm so tired. She wouldn't settle down all day. I feel like I've let you down."

"You love me?"

She sniffled: "Of course, I love you."

"Then you haven't let me down. I told you, we'll have sex when you're ready. Go to sleep now. I'll get the next feeding."

I kissed her tenderly and she drifted off to sleep. As I held her, an idea drifted into my mind. I grabbed it with both hands and examined it closely. Deciding that it might work with a little assistance, I filed it away for tomorrow and dozed off.

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I hopped over the balcony wall and burst into Wilson's office. He glanced up from his paperwork, smirked, shook his head and went back to writing.

I flopped on the couch and waited. After five minutes of watching him write, I said: "Aren't you going to ask me why I'm here?"

He didn't pause in his writing. "Nope. You'll tell me when you're ready."

"Aren't you the least bit curious?"

He tilted his head and frowned. "Not really."

"Humph. You're no fun."

He gave me one of his annoyed looks. "Well, it's too early for lunch. I haven't heard of any outrageous medical procedure that you want to do but have been forbidden to do, so you are not hiding from Cuddy. Either Chase and Cameron are getting all lovey-dovey in the conference room and it's grossing you out or you just want to annoy me. Which is it?"

"Neither."

This time he put down his pen. "Is everything OK? Elle? Rachel?"

"Elle had her 6-week checkup yesterday."

He sat up straighter. "Is everything alright?"

"Yup. Everything is OK and we got the green light to have sex again."

"OK. So, what's the problem? Traffic signal messed up?"

"Yeah. The baby was really fussy yesterday and Elle was exhausted when I got home."

"Can always try again tonight."

"Well, yeah, but I had an idea."

I outlined my plan.

He nodded and said: "Sounds fine to me. I'll check with Lisa and get back to you."

"Tell her to consider it a dry-run."

Wilson called me later in the day to tell me that all systems were go. I picked up the phone and made reservations. Now I just had to convince Elle that it was a good idea.

At first, she balked at leaving the baby. I knew she would resist the idea initially, but I persisted. I threw several reasons at her. It was only for a few hours. Wilson and Cuddy needed the practice for the future. We needed a quiet dinner for just the two of us to 'rekindle our relationship'. I was especially proud of that argument; I had heard it on an Oprah commercial earlier that day. Finally after multiple reassurances that it would only be for a couple of hours and our baby-sitters would always be within cell phone reach, she agreed.

She was so nervous about being away from the baby on our 'date' that she pumped extra bottles just in case. I grinned inwardly, knowing that they would be needed if our 'date' went well.

By the time I got home from work on Friday, Elle was already dressed for our night out. She looked gorgeous in a light blue sleeveless dress with a V neckline that really showed off her enhanced cleavage. I took a quick shower and put on a sky-blue button-down shirt and my dark gray slacks. I eschewed a tie, but grabbed my gray jacket. We made quite the handsome couple.

Wilson and Cuddy showed up shortly afterwards. They did not drag in a suitcase or in any other way reveal my sneaky plan. Elle had a whole list of instructions for them and they listened patiently as she went over them. It took 15 minutes before I finally managed to drag her out to the car.

Once we were in the car and I was backing out of the driveway, Elle let out a big puff of air. "I'm sure they must think I'm completely neurotic leaving them with that whole list of instructions."

I reached over and squeezed her hand. "Naw, they understand. It's the first time you are leaving Rachel. If they don't understand now, they will when their kid gets here."

She turned to face me and gave me a smile. "Thank you. So where are we going?"

I smiled mysteriously: "You'll see. Sit back and relax."

There was soft jazz playing on the sound system and I opened the sunroof. Elle leaned back and closed her eyes. I think she actually dozed off because she didn't open them again until the Hyatt's valet opened her door.

"We're here, sweetheart."

In a surprised tone, she asked: "The Hyatt? We're having dinner at the Hyatt?"

"Yeah, they have a great restaurant."

She gave me a funny look, but stepped out of the car. I tossed the keys to the valet and took Elle's arm as we strolled in the door. I had checked in on my way home from work and had the room key in my pocket. When we headed towards the elevator instead of the restaurant, she knew something was up.

"Greg. The restaurant is over there."

"I know, but we're going over here."

"I don't understand. I thought we came here for dinner."

"We are. We are having a nice quiet dinner, upstairs. I thought the restaurant would be too noisy for a intimate dinner."

She smirked but didn't say anything else as we got on the elevator. When I opened the door to the presidential suite, she took three steps inside and stopped. "We are having dinner, here?"

"Nice and quiet, don't you think? We won't have to deal with rude waiters or the obnoxious people at the next table. This place has a great stereo system and a fabulous view."

"And we came here, to this fancy hotel room, just for dinner? The fact that there is a bedroom right over there has nothing to do with why we are here."

In my most innocent tone, I said: "There's a bedroom? Oh, would you look at that? There is one. Well, that's handy in case one of us needs a nap, huh? Now, where is that room service menu?"

Hands on hips, she said: "You planned all this so we could have sex?"

I turned to face her. "I planned this so we could have some time alone. I didn't want to share you with a crowded restaurant."

"And having sex in a hotel room never crossed your mind?"

I shrugged: "Where else can we have a private meal? Look, I admit that I came here hoping that we would have sex, but, first and foremost, I want to enjoy the company of the woman I love. We'll have dinner, enjoy the view from the balcony, listen to some music and then we'll go home whenever you're ready."

She looked at me without saying a word.

I was sure that I had screwed this up. "I'll just find the menu. We'll have dinner and go right home afterwards."

The menu was sitting on the desk and as I walked towards it, I heard Elle say softly: "You are such a romantic."

I grinned, knowing that she couldn't see my face. "Well, don't let _that_ get around. It would ruin the bad-ass image that I have worked so hard to achieve."

I picked up the menu and turned to face her. She was smiling at me now. I smiled back and extended the menu towards her. Elle shook her head. "You know what I like. Order some wine too."

She kicked off her shoes and padded over to the stereo. After selecting a light jazz station, she headed towards the balcony, giving me a come-hither look over her shoulder. I picked up the phone and gave room service our order, and then I followed her out to the balcony.

I wrapped my arms around her, snuggling her back to my chest. She was so tiny without her shoes. I kissed the top of her head and then laid my cheek against her hair.

She sighed: "It's a nice view, isn't it?"

I glanced down; I had a great shot of her cleavage from this angle. "Great view."

"You're looking down, not out, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but I know a great view when I see one."

The vibrations from her laughter felt good against my chest and I held her closer still. We stood there, with our bodies pressed together, until room service knocked at the door. The bellman set our dinner up on the dining room table and popped the cork on a bottle of Shiraz. He poured a small amount into the wineglass for me to taste, and when I nodded approval, he poured each of us a glass and quickly departed.

I had ordered lemon chicken over orzo for Elle and a sirloin steak for myself. As we ate our dinner, we talked about the wedding and Elle's indecisiveness about returning to work. Her maternity leave was going to be up in six more weeks. She was hesitant about returning to full-time work while Rachel was so small and still being breast-fed. I saw no need for Elle to return to full-time work unless she wanted to and I told her so. I encouraged her to take extra time off if she desired or to return to work on a part-time basis.

"After all, you have a wedding to plan. Why not wait until afterwards to go back to work?"

"That's a idea. Geez, we need to set a date, don't we?"

"Why don't you figure out _where_ you want to do it and then pick the earliest available date?"

She giggled: "Still eager, aren't you? I just want to make sure that Lisa and Jimmy will be able to be there, so it can't be too close to her due date. You can't get married without your best man."

"Oh, yes, I can. The only person I can't get married without is you."

I had ordered chocolate mousse, topped with strawberries for dessert. I picked up one of the strawberries, swirled it around in the mousse and placed it on Elle's lips. Her tongue licked off the mousse and then she slowly took the strawberry into her mouth. My mind was envisioning her tongue licking elsewhere and my body responded to that image. She seemed to know what I was thinking as she gave me a wicked grin while slowly licking mousse off of her spoon. I dipped a finger in the mousse and smeared it on her lips, like chocolate lipstick. She took my finger into her mouth and sucked the rest of the mousse off of my finger. I leaned across the table and claimed her lips, slowly licking all the mousse off with my tongue.

Her spoon clattered to the table as she put both hands on my face and deepened the kiss. Our lips locked, I felt her rise and come towards me. I pushed my chair away from the table and pulled her into my lap. We sucked face until we ran out of air and then took a desperate breath, our lips mere centimeters apart.

My hand on the back of her head, I pushed her lips into mine again. As our tongues danced with each other, I heard a soft moan, but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out which one of us made the sound. My pants were growing uncomfortably tight. I could feel Elle's fingers stroking the back of my neck and I ran my hand up her leg and under her dress.

We ran out of air again and broke apart. Her look was tender as she caressed my cheek; I gently stroked her bare thigh.

After a moment, Elle said: "You know, there's a bedroom right over there."

I took a quick glance over my shoulder. "So there is. You wanna take a nap or something?"

She smiled: "Or something."

"Well, how 'bout I just tuck you in?"

"I'd like that."

She climbed off of my lap and took my hand. I stood and adjusted my package with the other hand so that I could walk the short distance to the bedroom. Elle playfully rubbed my crotch as we walked.

"Hey, don't start something if you're not going to finish it."

"Oh, I plan to finish it, cowboy."

I was eager to dip my wick again, but knew that I had to take it slow. It had been two months and I didn't want sex to be uncomfortable for Elle. I had taken the extra precaution of bringing lubricant along with the condoms.

I slipped those necessary items out of my pocket and onto the bedside table while we undressed each other. Elle seemed almost shy for me to see her completely naked again and draped one arm across her belly.

"I'm still kinda fat."

I kissed her neck and murmured: "You're a goddess. You're so sexy; you see what you do to me."

I took her hand and placed it on my throbbing erection.

"Yeah, well, it's been two months. I bet you're so horny you'd screw a knot hole in a pine tree."

I had to chuckle at the silly colloquialism. "I've been _pining_ for you, sweetheart, you and you alone. If I just wanted an orgasm, I would have jerked off in the shower."

I cupped her face with my hands. "Lay down. I wanna make love to you."

We crawled into bed and lay on our sides, facing each other. Our tongues tangled while our hands stroked and caressed. Elle moaned loudly when I nibbled on her neck. My hand slipped over to her breast and squeezed gently. Suddenly there was a different kind of wetness on our bodies.

Elle groaned: "Oh, crap. I'm leaking."

"S'OK. I'll take care of it."

I lapped up the drops of milk and gave each nipple a soothing lick. I kissed my way down her body, sticking my tongue into her belly button, and nuzzling her soft hair until I reached the Promised Land.

When I licked her slit from bottom to top and then gently blew on it, Elle moaned and thrust her pelvis towards me: "More."

I dove right in, licking, sucking on her clit and fucking her with my tongue. Elle moaned, her head thrashing from side to side, her hands fisting the sheets. I slipped one finger and then a second into her hot wet cave.

Her hands tugged on my shoulders. "I want you inside me."

My fingers continued to slowly fuck her as I teased: "Do you now?"

Her tone was urgent. "Yes. I need you."

I rubbed the head of my cock against her clit. "Is this what you need?"

She practically screamed: "Yes! Oh God, fuck me Greg."

She thrust against my cock and it slipped inside her for just a moment before I recovered enough to pull out. "Condom."

Elle snagged one off the nightstand and ripped it open. She quickly dressed me and spreading her thighs further apart, repositioned my cock at her opening.

"You want me on top?"

"Yes. I want your body covering mine."

Elle moaned as the head of my cock slipped inside of her. I eased in slowly, giving her time to adjust to my girth again. She felt deliciously tight. I wanted to plunge in but I managed to restrain myself. When I was balls-deep, I stopped for a moment, absorbing the feel of her tight hot pussy around my erect member.

Her walls gripped my cock. "Don't stop. Ride me, cowboy."

I thrust slowly at first, picking up the tempo as she moved her pelvis in rhythm with mine. Her head lolled back on the pillow, exposing her creamy neck to me. I gave her neck a sharpish nip and she cried out, a fresh flow of moisture coating my cock.

We had been deprived of this pleasure for so long that it only took a short time for both of us to fall over the edge. Elle screamed my name as she came, her walls tightening and I exploded deep inside of her. I thrust a few more times to ride out our orgasms and collapsed on top of her, managing after only a few seconds to roll us, still joined, onto our sides. Her breasts had leaked again from the combination of her orgasm and my body pressing on them.

I carefully pulled out of her and rolled the condom off. After licking the sweet milk off of her chest, I pulled her into my embrace. She snuggled her face into my chest and let out a deep sigh.

"That was fabulous."

"Ummm, hmmm."

"I love you, Greg."

"Right back at you."

She planted a few small kisses on my chest, let out a contented sigh and fell asleep. I watched her sleep for a few minutes, then kissed the top of her head and dozed off.

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Elle shook me awake, sounding frantic. "Greg, it's midnight. Lisa and Jimmy must be wondering what happened to us. I can't believe that they haven't called."

She started to get out of bed, but I wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to me. "Shhhh. Relax. They were in on this. I told them that it might be a long date. They are actually prepared to spend the night."

"Stay the whole night? Really? You're serious?"

"Yep. That's why I was glad that you pumped extra bottles without me having to find a clever way to tell you to do so."

"You sneaky man. I can't believe that you planned all of this."

I shrugged and nibbled on her earlobe until I heard her sigh. "You wanted this first time to be really special, so that I could relax and not worry if the baby was going to start crying any minute. That's so romantic of you."

I snarked: "Stop saying that. I'm not romantic. I'm just a horny guy who wanted a few minutes of peace and quiet to screw his woman."

"Yeah, right." She muttered against my skin as she planted little kisses and nibbles on my neck. I raised my chin allowing her more access and sighed with pleasure.

"You like that?"

"Mmmmm, yes."

"Then you'll love this."

She kissed her way down my body until she found a semi-erect Mt. Gregory. It didn't take long before she had him at full salute. After rolling on a condom, I pulled her on top of me. She looked so beautiful and felt so good that I found myself heading for the conclusion of this fun, long before I wanted it to end. I licked my thumb, pressed it to her swollen nub and took her over the edge with me.

We fell asleep again and didn't wake until 5AM. This time I not only let Elle get out of bed, but I was right behind her. We had left Rachel long enough. After a quick shower, we dressed and hurried home.

As we entered through the garage door, we could hear Rachel crying. We found Wilson in the kitchen, clad in rumpled pajama bottoms and a faded McGill tee shirt, rummaging for a bottle in the refrigerator. Barefoot and clad in a white cotton nightgown, Cuddy was pacing in the living room, bouncing our screaming baby over her shoulder. I had never seen Cuddy look this frazzled. I think they got a good feel of what life is like with a newborn.

Elle took Rachel from Cuddy and cooed at her. _"Hey baby girl, Mama's here. Let's get you some breakfast."_

She sat down on the couch, wiggled her clothing around enough to expose a nipple and opened the milk bar for Rachel who latched on immediately. Cuddy sat down next to her and the two of them starting yakking away.

I joined Wilson in the kitchen and poured myself a cup of the coffee that he had made. Then I took pity on Wilson and poured him one too. I carried both mugs over to the kitchen table and sat down.

Wilson sank down heavily into the chair across from me. He looked exhausted. He took a long sip of the coffee and then said: "So? I take it the traffic signals are working again?"

I nodded: "Green lights all the way."

He let out a long breath. "You owe us, House. When our guy is 6 weeks old, we'll expect you to return the favor."

"You really think Cuddy will spend the night away from her baby, when he is only 6 weeks old? I'll bet you two hundred bucks and pay for Lady to baby-sit that she won't."

He shook his head: "I'm not taking that bet. Either way, I lose."

"Well, look at it this way. If you do have to pay up, at least you'll get laid."


	73. Chapter 73

Chapter 73

_**HOUSE**_

Rachel's two-month birthday fell on my 49th birthday, and Elle wanted to throw a small dinner party to celebrate. I wasn't into having a big mob around to fete my aging and I wasn't sure that Elle was really up to throwing a big party just yet. So I nixed the idea and told her that I just wanted a quiet dinner with her and Rachel. She seemed disappointed but agreed that I should have what I wanted on my birthday.

She made my favorite, meatloaf with mashed potatoes and those little green peas that always made me think of Mom. I had peeked in the white bakery box and knew that there was chocolate cake for dessert. If I were really lucky, I'd get a taste of Elle for _after dessert_ assuming that Rachel cooperated. The smile on Elle's face and the twinkle in her eyes told me that she was hoping for that too.

Elle had just served me a slice of meatloaf when the doorbell rang. She exclaimed: "Crap! Who could that be?"

She stood up and started for the door, but I grabbed her wrist, halting her progress. "What did you do?"

She gave me a completely innocent look. "Nothing. I swear."

I examined her face closely; her left eye twitched ever so slightly. I repeated myself: "_What_ did you do?"

She cupped my face with her free hand. "Nothing bad, I swear."

The doorbell rang again.

"Let me get it."

I released her wrist and she hurried to answer the door. I looked at Rachel, laying in her swing next to the table and whispered: "Mama's been a very bad girl. I'll have to punish her later."

Elle returned to the kitchen with Wilson and Cuddy in tow. They were carrying a couple of wrapped gifts, which I eyed suspiciously. Wilson clapped me on the shoulder and said: "Happy Birthday, House." Cuddy gave me a kiss on the cheek.

I stared at Elle. "Who else is coming?"

Elle held up her hands in surrender. "No one else. I swear."

"And I should believe you?"

Cuddy sank heavily into the chair next to Rachel's swing. "Is the birthday boy being a grouch? No cake for you, buster."

I sneered: "No cake for you, preggo. Your rotundous ass doesn't need it."

She stuck her tongue out at me and winced as she shifted in her seat, trying to find a more comfortable position. She was looking rather wan.

Cuddy was 33 weeks pregnant now. Her belly looked huge on her small frame. Her breasts and butt had also grown along with the swelling baby bump. I teased her about her rotundous ass every time I saw her. Wilson reported that she tired very easily now and had actually cut down to 6-hour workdays. Cuddy had convinced Dr Myers from Internal Medicine to be her temporary replacement during her maternity leave and had been training her since May.

I grumbled: "Well, as long as you're here, I guess you could stay for dinner."

Wilson helped Elle bring two more place settings to the table. Everyone was quickly served and we tucked in. I noticed that Cuddy wasn't eating very much and she winced a few times, her hand going to her back. We were halfway through the delicious meal when suddenly Cuddy groaned and doubled-over, both hands on her belly.

Wilson turned to her and placed his arm around her shoulders. "Lisa, what's wrong?"

In a whiny, very un-Cuddy-like voice, she said: "I don't know. I've had this backache all day and now I just had a sharp pain in my abdomen."

Elle inquired: "A contraction?"

Cuddy shook her head: "I don't think this so. I hope not. I'm only 33 weeks; it's too early."

Wilson frowned: "Maybe we should call Alderman."

"No, no, I'm fine. It's over."

He placed his fingers over her wrist. "You're not fine. Your pulse is fast and you look pale. I want you to lay down now."

Over her protests, he scooped her up and carried her to our sofa. He positioned her on her left side and stuck a small pillow under her head. "Any more pain?"

Cuddy shook her head. "No, not like that cramp. My low back just aches."

Wilson plopped his ass down on our coffee table and whipped out his cell phone. I guess he had Alderman on speed dial too.

"Kelly? Hi, it's James Wilson. Lisa isn't feeling well. She just told me that she's had a low backache for most of the day and I'm pretty sure that she just had a contraction. She doubled-over at the dinner table. I have her laying down on her left side right now."

He listened for a moment and then said: "Lisa, are you having any spotting or any discharge at all?"

Cuddy just shook her head. Wilson reported that to Alderman.

"Any pain right now, any cramps? Any nausea, diarrhea or any other unusual symptoms today?"

Again with the head shake. "Just the backache."

Wilson conveyed the message to Alderman and fell silent, presumably listening to her rattle off some instructions.

I knew Cuddy wasn't feeling well, as she didn't try to interrupt Wilson once while he was talking to Alderman. My level of concern went up two notches.

Wilson was concluding his call. "OK. OK. I'll call you back in an hour."

He closed his phone. "Kelly wants you to stay on your left side and drink 2 or 3 glasses of water now. You could just be dehydrated. If the backache doesn't subside or if you have another contraction, we have to go in and get you checked out."

Lisa nodded, a single tear sliding down her cheek. Wilson leaned forward and caught it with his finger. I had to turn away, it was too tender of a moment for me to witness.

Elle stroked Lisa's hair and said: "I'll get you some water. Be right back."

She hurried to the kitchen and returned with a large glass of water with a straw stuck in it. Wilson took the glass and held it while Cuddy sipped through the straw.

Elle put her hand on Wilson's shoulder: "Jimmy, can I get you anything?"

He merely shook his head.

"OK. We'll just be in the kitchen. Let me know when that glass is empty and I'll get you a refill."

He silently nodded, his left hand gliding over to rest on Cuddy's belly. We turned to go, but not before seeing the tremble in Wilson's jaw and another tear slide down Cuddy's face.

Elle managed to keep her emotions in check until we reached the kitchen. I could see the distress in her face and I immediately pulled her into my arms.

She whispered in French: _"Do you think she'll be OK?"_

"_It's too early to tell yet, sweetheart."_

Elle let out a small sob and I held her tighter_. "If she is having premature labor, Alderman will put her on bed rest and give her IV magnesium to stop the contractions. She should be able to buy some time and give the little guy some more inside time."_

"_I just feel so bad for them. I remember what we went through. Greg, if Lisa needs to go to the hospital, you have to go with them."_

"_What? Why do I have to do that?"_

Firmly she said: _"Jimmy was there for us. Now it's our turn. They are going to need our help. If Lisa needs to get admitted, you should go with them and help them get settled. Run over to their house and get some things for them."_

Her eyes implored me: _"They helped us."_

She looked on the verge of tears and I couldn't say no. _"All right. I'll go with them and I'll get their stuff. OK? Don't cry."_

Elle buried her face in my chest. I held her tightly and pressed my cheek against the top of her head. She cried silently for a minute and then managed to compose herself. I was kissing away the remnants of her tears when Wilson called from the living room, asking for a refill. Elle started to go to him, but Rachel started crying at the same time.

I kissed her forehead: "You get Rachel, I'll get the water."

Carrying a large glass of water in one hand, I limped out to the living room. Wilson took it from me, stuck the straw in it and handed me back the empty glass.

I stood there for a moment, wondering what to do. I tried to figure out what Wilson would do if the situation were reversed and I knew that he would be the picture of concern. I couldn't go that far but I figured I could at least inquire. "How ya feeling, Cuddy? Any more contractions?"

She huffed: "That wasn't a contraction. It was just a cramp and no, I haven't had any more."

"Mighty big cramp. If you were pregnant, I would have thought you were having a contraction. Oh! Wait, you are pregnant. Did you consider the possibility that it might be a contraction?"

Wilson growled: "House, you're not helping here."

I backed my sarcasm down a notch or two. "OK, so no more cramps. That's good. How's the backache?"

Reluctantly she said: "Still there."

"Well, finish this glass of water and let's see how you feel."

I quickly headed back to the kitchen with the empty glass. Elle could take the next one and do the comforting thing that she does so well.

Rachel was hooked up to Elle's left nipple when I returned to the kitchen. _"How's Lisa?"_

"_No more contractions, I mean, cramps, but the backache is still there."_

Elle sighed: _"I think she should just go to the hospital and get checked out. She'd feel a lot better if she saw the baby on the monitor and knew that he was OK." _

"_Maybe you could suggest that to her. I think she is trying her best not to go."_

Elle nodded and headed out to the living room with Rachel still happily sucking away. She sat at the end of the couch, near Cuddy's feet. I wandered in behind her.

"Lisa, how are you feeling?"

Cuddy looked like she was trying not to cry. "My back still hurts."

In a gentle tone, Elle said: "You know, maybe it would be best if you went to the hospital. Kelly can hook you up to the monitor and do an ultrasound. That way you can see the little guy and know that he is OK. I bet that would make you feel a lot better. I know that when I was having all of my problems it was reassuring to watch the monitor, knowing that Rachel was OK."

Wilson spoke softly: "How about I call Alderman back and have her meet us at the hospital? We'll get everything checked out and feel better knowing that this was just a false alarm. We can even get a new ultrasound photo of our son."

Cuddy's tears were falling fast now. In the 20 years that I'd known her, I'd only seen her cry on a handful of occasions and I couldn't stand the sight. She had just turned 42 last month and if she lost this kid, the chances of her having another shot were slim. "C'mon, I'll drive you."

Wilson gave me a surprised look, but quickly covered it up. Cuddy sniffled a few more times and then finally said: "OK. Call Kelly back and we'll go."

Wilson called Alderman back and made the arrangements. I pulled Wilson's Volvo as close to the front door as I could and he carried her out to the car, settling her in the back seat. After promising Elle that I would call as soon as I knew anything, I chauffeured the expectant couple to PPTH.

A nurse with a wheelchair was waiting for us at the L & D entrance. She helped Wilson ease Cuddy out of the car and into the chair. After determining that Cuddy was being taken to Room 357, I went off to park the car while they headed upstairs.

By the time I got to the room, Cuddy was already in a gown and Alderman was squirting gel on her belly in preparation for the ultrasound. I hesitated at the doorway, but Wilson waved me in. I stood on the far side of the bed, next to him, where I could see the screen. Their kid looked OK; he was waving his arms and legs and moving around. Suddenly I leaned it and took a closer look.

I exclaimed: "Look at the size of that penis. It's huge. That can't be your kid, Wilson. Alright, Cuddy, who's the real daddy?"

She growled: "Shut up, House. You've made that stupid joke already and it wasn't funny the first time. James is the dad and you know it. You're just jealous that you didn't get the gender that comes with a penis."

I smirked: "I'd rather have a Mini-Elle than a Mini-Me any day."

Alderman interrupted: "Can I get back to the exam, please? You two can argue later."

She took our silence as acquiescence and then went on. "Lisa, everything looks fine on the ultrasound. Are you sure that you only had that one contraction?"

"Positive, just the one."

I muttered under my breath: "NOW she's calling it a contraction."

Wilson elbowed me: "Shut up, House."

Alderman ignored the interruption and went on: "Did you have any spotting or discharge, even a tiny bit?"

Cuddy shook her head: "No, none at all."

"House, turn around."

I frowned: "Why?"

"Because I'm going to do an internal and you don't get to look."

I rolled my eyes, but turned around as instructed. "What's the big deal? It's not like I haven't seen her hoo-hoo before."

Wilson and Cuddy simultaneously screamed: "HOUSE!"

Alderman pulled off her gloves. "Oh. Kay. Too much information. Lisa, everything looks good. I don't see any blood or discharge. The cervix is closed up, nice and tight. I think we should keep you on the monitor overnight and see if you have any more contractions or if the baby seems to be in any distress."

Cuddy glanced at Wilson who nodded. She let out a sigh and said: "OK."

I positioned myself in a corner of the room and watched as they hooked up the fetal monitor. When it was turned on, the baby's heartbeat filled the room and I could see my friends visibly relax at the reassuring sound.

Alderman said that she would be back in an hour to check the readout and she headed out to see her other patients. Wilson lowered the side rails and sat on the edge of the bed. Stroking Cuddy's hair away from her face, I heard him whisper: "It's going to be OK."

Cuddy's jaw trembled. "But what if it's not?"

He repeated his words: "It's going to be OK. You may need to be on bed rest for a while, like Elle was. But you haven't had any more contractions and that's a real good sign."

I limped over and checked the readout. "His heart rate is 130 beats per minute. He's doing fine."

She sniffed: "For now."

I shook my head. "Cuddy, don't."

"Don't what?"

"We're doctors and yeah, we know the worst that can happen. But it's pointless for you to focus on that. I'm not going to tell you to chant positive affirmations or anything, but it would be better for your stress level and thus the baby's, if you wouldn't dwell on the worst-case scenario."

She smirked: "I can't believe that you, of all people, are telling me to think positively."

I rolled my eyes. "I speak from experience, remember? I spent two weeks sitting where Wilson is sitting now. I thought of everything that could possibly go wrong. Elle had a partial abruption on top of the APS; what if the placenta had completely sheared off the uterine wall? She could have bled to death. I could have lost both of them."

My voice trailed off as I realized that I had said too much, and exposed a part of myself that I preferred to keep hidden. Griping my cane tightly, I turned from the bed and headed towards the door.

I stopped when Cuddy called to me. "House. Wait. I'm."

I interrupted before she could go any further. In a gruff voice, I asked: "What do you need from your home? Change of clothes, laptop?"

Wilson answered firmly: "No laptop. Grab me a pair of sweats, a tee shirt and a change of clothes for tomorrow. Bring Lisa a change of clothes too. If we need to stay longer than one night, I'll figure the rest out tomorrow."

I enquired: "No I-Pod? No book?"

Cuddy piped up: "Grab my book. It's on the nightstand. _Julie and Julia_."

"Oooo, sounds like lesbian porn. Rather kinky in your condition, don't ya think?"

She narrowed her eyes at me. "It's about Julia Child and cooking and this woman Julie who decides to make all the recipes in Julia's first book. Oh, what am I telling you about it for? Just bring it."

I took two more steps to the door and paused. "Want some Chinese take-out?"

Cuddy shook her head: "I'm not hungry."

Wilson said: "Get the sizzling beef and vegetable lo mein."

I nodded and headed out the door. Behind me, I could hear Cuddy whine to Wilson. "I said I'm not hungry."

"You might be hungry later and you know how the hospital food is."

The door closed behind me and I heard no more of their conversation. If Cuddy ended up on bed rest as long as Elle did, I wondered which of them would crack first.

On the drive over to their place, I called Elle and gave her the update. She was glad to hear that things looked good at the moment.

"I'm going to grab some stuff at their place, pick up some Chinese food and drop it all off. Then I'll be home."

"I'm sorry that your birthday got messed up. Want the rest of your dinner when you get home, or just dessert?"

In a tone that she couldn't misunderstand, I simply said: "Dessert. And I want to unwrap my present."

She blew a kiss into the phone and said in a sultry voice: "The birthday boy will get what he wants. Ring me when you're on your way home."

"OK." I had a smile on my face, wondering what she was up to, wanting advance notice before my arrival.

It took me a few minutes to limp up Cuddy's stairs. My leg was in better shape from all the swimming, but stairs still gave me problems. Once I made it to their bedroom, I started pulling open drawers and grabbing the requested items of clothing. In the closet, I found a dress shirt, pants and tie for Wilson and an outfit for Cuddy. I also found a small suitcase and tossed everything in there. Just as I was about to close the suitcase, I remembered the book. After locating it on the nightstand, I tossed it in on top of the clothes.

I paused at the nursery door on my way back to the stairs. This room had been ready for occupation before Cuddy entered her third trimester. They had decided on a jungle theme for the room and I hoped that kid wouldn't have nightmares his entire childhood. The walls were painted a sage green and decorated with lions, giraffes and other assorted jungle animals. There was a large stuffed lion on top of the dark walnut armoire and assorted jungle animals dangled from the mobile hanging over the crib. A rocking zebra awaited its rider in one corner of the room and a large stuffed chimpanzee sat on the floor next to the dark walnut crib. I strolled around the room for a moment taking it all in. The dresser drawers were filled with neatly folded clothes; the changing table was stocked with diapers and wipes. Two shelves of the armoire were filled with toys. Brenda and the other clinic nurses had thrown Cuddy a baby shower last week, and clearly she'd made out. Cuddy could start her own baby supply store with all the crap in this room. As I turned to leave, I noticed the baby monitor next to the door. It wasn't a simple audio monitor like the one we had, it was a video monitor so that they could see and hear the kid from other rooms of the house. I chuckled at the sight; that was so like the two of them, completely obsessed that everything should be perfect. Then I sobered. They wanted this child so badly and would be completely devastated if they came home to a room that would never be used. Cuddy was so close now. I knew that they had picked out a name, but going along with Jewish tradition, they refused to tell us until after the baby was born.

A wave of emotion hit me, remembering what it had been like watching Elle lay in that hospital bed for two weeks and constantly monitoring her condition. It was Wilson's turn to do that for his baby mama. He had been there for us, constantly bringing us food and other creature comforts to make our stay a little more pleasant. Elle was right; it was our turn now. I grabbed the suitcase and headed down the stairs. From the car, I speed-dialed China Star and phoned in Wilson's order. It would be ready by the time I got there.

I found a handicapped spot not too far from the L & D entrance, but I wasn't sure that I could balance the bag of Chinese food and the suitcase in my left hand while my right hand was preoccupied using my cane. Then I spied an abandoned wheelchair near the door and I snagged it for duty. The suitcase lay flat on the seat and I balanced the bag on top of it. Problem solved, I headed off to the elevator.

Wilson was standing next to the monitor when I arrived, staring at the readout and Cuddy was asleep.

I jerked my head towards the bed and mumbled: "Did you slip her something?"

He shook his head. "You know she's too smart for that. She just dozed off."

I set the bag of food on the bedside table; Wilson took the suitcase and placed it in the closet. He motioned towards the door and we stepped outside.

"Alderman came back while you were gone, checked the monitor. She says everything looks good, thinks it was just a minor false alarm. But she told Lisa that she needed to take it easy for the rest of her pregnancy, that she would prefer it if Lisa stopped working completely or at the very minimum, cut back to four hours a day. Lisa didn't seem too happy about that. She doesn't think Dr Myers is completely trained to do her job yet."

"Cuddy will never think anyone else is capable of taking care of this hospital the way that she can."

Ruefully, he said: "I know. I'd like her to stop working now. Myers can call her at home with questions. Lisa doesn't need to physically be here."

"Elle's stubborn, but Cuddy's even more hardheaded. You will have to use every trick in the book to convince her to take it easy and follow Alderman's instructions. Remind her what happened to Elle and ask if she wants to be on complete bed rest in this hospital."

"Yeah, you know she doesn't want that."

"Use it. Guilt her into staying home. Bribe her if you have too. I'll make a bet with her that she can't stay away from here for the next three weeks. She'll do it just to spite me and win."

He grinned: "That just might work. If she could hang on for that length of time, she'd be at 36 weeks and if she goes into labor, that won't be too early."

"Lungs will be matured by then. Rachel was born at just over 35 weeks and believe me, her lungs work just fine."

"They sure do."

He gave me a pat on my shoulder. "Thanks House."

I stared at my feet and tapped my cane against the floor. "You know, I _want_ to tell you that everything will be OK."

"I know."

"But you keep telling Cuddy that; she'll believe you. She _wants_ to believe you."

"Did you do that with Elle? Did she believe you?"

Remembering all the times that I had tossed out Madame Gina's prediction, I replied: "Yes."

He nodded. "OK. I'm going to convince her to stay home using whatever means necessary and you make that bet with her. Ask Elle to talk to her too. I think she will really listen to Elle."

I held up my cell. "Call me if you need anything. I'll be back in the morning with bagels."

He chuckled: "You gonna be me for a while?"

I rolled my eyes: "Driving a Volvo does weird things to a person. I'm returning the keys to you tomorrow. Who knows what would happen if I kept them much longer. I'll get Elle to pick me up."

He bit his lip, unsuccessfully trying to hide a grin. "Good night, House."

"Night, Wilson."

I rang Elle on the way home as requested. She sounded excited and I was looking forward to her little surprise. I pulled Wilson's Volvo into the driveway about ten minutes later.

When I opened the front door, Elle was waiting for me in the middle of the living room. My eyes bugged out of my head and my jaw dropped to the floor.

Elle giggled at my reaction: "You requested dessert and a gift to unwrap. Happy birthday, cowboy."

Elle was standing there, completely naked, holding a plate with a piece of chocolate cake on it. Well, completely naked wasn't quite right. She had wrapped herself up in red ribbon and placed a red stick-on bow on each breast and three on her lower abdomen, just above her pubic hair.

I managed to shut the front door and take a few steps into the room. Elle closed the distance by walking right up to me. She forked up a bite of cake and fed it to me, whispering: "Happy birthday, Greg."

The cake was a deep delicious chocolate, so moist that it practically melted in my mouth. I took the fork from Elle and fed her a bite. She moaned: "Ummmm, that's so good. Want more?"

She reached for the fork, but I refused to relinquish it. I fed her another bite, delighting in her ecstatic expression.

"I want to open my present now."

She teasingly wagged her finger at me: "You are supposed to finish your cake first, then open your presents."

I grabbed the plate out of her hand and set it on an end table. "It's my birthday and I want my present first, then I'll have more cake."

My cane thudded to the floor and I placed a hand on each hip, pulling her close to me. She wrapped her arms around my neck and tiptoed up for a kiss. Her mouth was sweet and chocolaty, the kiss deep and passionate. Mt Gregory swelled to full salute and I pressed her body even closer to mine. The silly bows prevented the complete contact that I desired. I needed to remove those and get my clothes off too.

I broke the kiss and whispered: "When did Rachel go down?"

"Forty-five minutes ago."

We had a good two hours until she woke again. I grabbed Elle's hand and the cake plate and we headed off to the bedroom.

I set the cake plate down on the nightstand and pulled her into my arms again. Our tongues tangled while my hands roamed all over her body.

"How much ribbon did you use?"

Elle giggled: "Two big rolls"

I managed to mumble "little minx" before our lips crashed together again. Elle started unbuttoning my shirt and I managed to toe off my sneakers while we were lip-locked. She pushed my shirt off my shoulders and then I pulled my tee shirt over my head.

"Lay on the bed. I need to open my present properly."

While shoving my jeans and boxers to the floor, I watched as she arranged herself on the bed and then I crawled in beside her. I gently tugged the bow on her left breast and slowly peeled it off. Her skin was slightly pink from the adhesive and I used my tongue to soothe it. The right breast got the same treatment and Elle sighed with pleasure as I licked her luscious melon.

I pulled her tightly against me, feeling the now familiar sensation of wetness as her breasts leaked a little from her excitement. The bows on her lower abdomen prevented the full body contact that I desired so it was time to remove them.

Her body was crisscrossed with ribbon and I kissed the exposed skin between the wrappings. One at a time, I gently pulled off each bow, soothing the pink skin with my tongue. After nuzzling her soft hair for a moment, I headed lower for my real dessert. I loved that low moan that Elle made when I licked her clit for the first time. It always ratcheted my own desire up several notches and tonight was no exception. I took my time, exploring her folds with my tongue until she was thrashing with desire. I slowly thrust two fingers inside of her, feeling the warm wetness and knowing how ready she was for me.

But I wanted to stretch it out. I reached for the cake plate and set it on the bed. Dabbing some icing on my finger, I painted it over her clit. Naturally, then I had to lick it off. The sweet chocolaty taste was such an interesting complement to Elle's natural salty flavor that I had to savor that sensation a few more times.

As I was reaching for my fourth helping of icing, I saw Elle grabbing a big fingerful. I grinned and waited for her next move. She smeared that chocolate around the head of my cock and then proceeded to slowly lick it off, her eyes on mine, watching my expression.

"Tasty?"

She murmured: "Oh yeah."

The puff of air from her breath was exquisite on the damp skin of my cock and I moaned with pleasure. She slowly slid her lips down the entire length of my cock until I felt myself hit the back of her throat. She adjusted her position slightly and then started sucking in earnest. It was incredibly erotic watching her fuck me with her mouth, but I didn't want to end things this way. I wanted us falling over the edge together. I put my hand on her jaw to stop her and then urged her onto her back again. The icing-less cake was still sitting on the bed and I forked off a bite-sized piece and placed it right on her nipple. As I closed my mouth over the cake and nipple, I also got a small blast of milk. The combination was delicious and I savored the taste before swallowing.

"Ummmm, milk and chocolate cake. It doesn't get any better than this."

Elle giggled as I forked up another bite and placed it on her other nipple. My second bite was just as good as the first.

As I licked my lips, she gave me a faux pout. "Not fair. You're getting to eat all the cake."

"Well it _is_ my birthday, but I'll share."

I knelt, straddling her waist. Mount Gregory was poking straight out only inches from her mouth. I forked a bite of cake and balanced it on the head of my cock. Elle needed no urging to gobble the cake and my cock. I thrust into her mouth a few times and knew that I wasn't going to be able to hold out much longer.

Grabbing the condom conveniently left on the nightstand, I quickly dressed myself and moved between her spread thighs. I entered her slowly, in short stabs, giving her a little time to adjust to my girth. She was so incredibly tight. As I entered her fully for the first time, Elle moaned loudly and put her hands over her head. I knew what she wanted and I was happy to give it to her.

Closing my large hand over both her wrists, I pressed them into the pillow, firmly, but not painfully.

"You're mine, aren't you?"

Elle moaned: "Yes."

"All mine."

She hissed through her teeth: "Yeeeeeeeeesss."

My thrusts became harder and faster. My breath was coming out in short pants now. "Tell me."

"I'm yours."

"Again."

She gasped as I bit her neck. "I'm yours. All yours."

I was falling and wanted to take her over the edge with me. I shifted the angle of my thrusts just a bit to put even more pressure on her clit. She cried out with pleasure and after a few more thrusts, I felt her walls tighten, and she screamed my name as she came. Two more deep stabs and I followed along, moaning "mine" as I came.

I collapsed on top of her, releasing her hands and she immediately wrapped her arms around me. I lay there for a moment, trying to catch my breath and then I rolled us to the side.

"Oh, crap."

"What is it?"

"I think I landed on the cake."

"Oh, don't worry, there's lots more."

Elle scraped the cake off of my torso and dumped it back on the plate.

"Am I getting chocolate on the sheets?"

"Yeah, well, the bed's a mess. I leaked a lot too. It's OK. I'll change the sheets before we go to sleep."

I pulled her close and we cuddled and kissed in post-coital bliss. I ran my hand up her back, but the ribbons were starting to annoy me.

I tugged on them: "Time for these to go. Do I have to unwrap you like a mummy?"

"Naw, there's an easier way."

Elle rolled over to the nightstand and grabbed a pair of scissors. I carefully cut the ribbons until they fell away from her body. It felt good to hug her complete nakedness against me.

She nibbled my earlobe and asked: "Did you like your present?"

I gave her a lazy smile: "I loved my present. Give me 15 minutes and I'll love my present again."

She giggled: "OK."

I held her tightly, relishing the feel of her body against mine.

After a few minutes of cuddling, I broke the silence. "Cuddy was asleep when I got back. Alderman thinks she just had a minor false alarm, but wants her to take it easy for the rest of her pregnancy, otherwise she could end up on bed rest. Wilson wants her to stay home, let Myers take over now, but I'm not sure Cuddy will be easily convinced."

"You want me to talk to her?"

There were times like these where I was positive that Elle could read my thoughts. I nodded: "That might help. And I'm going to make a bet with her that she can't stay home. She might do it just to spite me and win my money."

Elle laughed: "Yeah, that just might work."

We cuddled and discussed different strategies to convince Cuddy to stay home. After a while, conversation wound down and we just held each other, sharing an occasional kiss. I was just about to doze off when Rachel's cries came through the monitor. Elle had put her down in her own room so that we could be alone. Elle rolled out of bed and trotted naked through the house to grab our hungry baby girl. I fluffed up the pillows against the headboard while she was gone.

Elle and Rachel returned in a moment. Rachel was already contentedly sucking away on Elle's left nipple. How she walked and fed the kid at the same time was just a wonder to me. She carefully eased onto the bed and positioned herself up against the pillows.

"You always put her on the left one first, don't you?"

"She seems to like it better that way. Hope that doesn't mean that she has OCD tendencies."

"Naw, nothing like what Wilson and Cuddy's kid will have. That nursery of theirs, man, it is just so _perfect_. Gave me the willies."

"It's perfect now cuz there is no occupant. Wait until he's born. It won't be so pristine then. They had a one-night taste of what life is like with a newborn. Remember how frazzled they were when we got back?"

"Yeah, that was amusing."

I picked up a length of ribbon and dangled it in front of Rachel. Her eyes followed it as I swung it back and forth, but she didn't let go of the nipple. I rubbed it against her skin and she smiled. A small amount of milk leaked out of the side of her mouth before she closed her lips around the nipple again.

I dabbed a corner of the sheet on her cheek to mop it up. "Oops."

Elle laughed: "Like a tiny bit more milk is going to hurt these sheets?"

I loved how Elle didn't let these little things bother her. Our bed was littered with ribbons, stained with chocolate cake and milk, and she just shrugged it off.

I was suddenly hungry. "Want more cake?"

Elle nodded eagerly and I limped to the kitchen to fetch a fresh piece. I cut a large slice for us to share and I fed us while she fed the baby. When we were finished, I set the plate on the nightstand. Elle had switched Rachel to the right nipple by now. I wrapped my arms protectively around both of them and rested my head on Elle's shoulder. Elle leaned her cheek against the top of my head and we quietly watched Rachel nurse.

"Do you think she gets chocolate milk when you eat chocolate cake?"

Elle smiled sleepily: "I don't know, but that would be cool, wouldn't it?"

Wilson and Cuddy were arguing when I entered the room the next morning. I set the bag of bagels down on the table and glanced at the two of them.

Wilson looked tired and pissed. There was no recliner in this room and I suspected he had spent the night trying to sleep in the straight back chair. He looked me in the eye and spat out: "Lisa had another contraction this morning, but yet she seems to think that it is OK to just get dressed and go back to work."

In an exasperated tone, Cuddy said: "It was just a small one. It's not a big deal. Kelly said I could work 4 hours a day."

Wilson exploded: "You had the contraction after she left, remember? She doesn't know about it. That changes the whole equation. You had a contraction while you were lying down and resting. What's going to happen when you are running around this hospital and getting stressed out over the lack of tongue depressors in the clinic or something?"

I shrugged: "Eh, tongue depressors are not a big deal. Now if you ran out of lollipops, that would be a problem."

Wilson hissed through clenched teeth. "House. Not helping here."

Turning back to Cuddy, he continued: "You want to go into labor at 33 weeks? You want our baby to spend the first weeks or months of his life in NICU instead in our home?"

"No, of course not. But I know what to look for. I'll take it easy. I just need to take care of a few more things before I go out on leave."

"And those _few things_ are more important than your health and the health of our child?"

I tuned them out and limped over to the monitor to check the readout. After examining the strip for a few minutes, I said: "The more pissed off you get, the more his heart rate goes up."

Cuddy huffed: "It does not."

"Yes, it does. The proof is right here. Don't believe me? We'll see what Alderman says when she gets here."

Elle walked into the room just then, carrying Rachel in her car seat. She had stopped to show off the baby to the girls in the pharmacy. The tension in the room was obviously palpable to her because she exclaimed: "What's going on? Is everything OK?"

I snarked: "Oh just peachy. Cuddy just had another contraction but she still thinks it's OK to go back to work. At this rate, she'll have her baby in the clinic this afternoon or in her office tomorrow."

Cuddy shouted: "I will not." And then she burst into tears.

Elle let out a big sigh. "Why are you guys upsetting her so much?"

She thrust the car seat at me. "Here. Take your daughter."

I took the car seat and set it on the table. Rachel was sleeping through all the commotion.

Elle sat on the bed next to Cuddy and stroked her arm. "Shhhh. It's going to be OK, but you gotta relax. When your heart rate goes up, so does the baby's."

After a few minutes of Elle's soothing voice, the waterworks stopped and Cuddy blew her nose. "I can't relax. I'm so upset about these contractions but there are so many loose ends that I need to tie up before I go on maternity leave. I just need a few more days in my office."

"But Dr Myers and your assistant can handle those things. You can keep in touch on the phone or e-mail, but you have to rest. Kelly just wants you to stay home now, right? She doesn't want you on strict bed rest and on a monitor like I was, right?"

Cuddy blew her nose again. "She doesn't know about this latest contraction. I don't know what she'll say when she finds out."

"OK. Well, whatever it is, you'll deal with it. Taking care of your baby right now is the most important thing."

Wilson sat down on the other side of the bed. "Lisa, I'm sorry that I yelled at you. I just want you to take it easy. I'm worried about you and our son. His heart rate is up to 150 beats per minute now."

Cuddy's eyes grew wide: "150? Oh, no."

Elle slapped Wilson's arm: "Nice going. Great way to get Lisa to relax. Where's that great bedside manner that you are known for?"

She looked back at Lisa. "Men. What do they know? They have no idea what it's like carrying another person inside of them for 9 months."

Wilson shook his head and retreated back to the monitor next to where I was standing. I muttered under my breath: "I think Elle's playing 'good cop, bad cop' and needless to say, you're the bad cop."

"Shut up, House." He picked up the strip and started reviewing it again.

Meanwhile, Elle was talking soothingly to Cuddy. "Lisa, if you relax and your heart rate goes down, so will your baby's. I'll help you. Close your eyes and pretend you are lying on the floor in Savasana."

I glanced at Wilson, puzzled. He waved his hand at me: "Some yoga pose."

Elle went on: "Put your hands out at your sides, palms up, just like in class. That's it. Take a deep breath in through your nose. Hold it for 5 and let it out slowly through your mouth. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Continue at your own pace. Inhale the calming fresh oxygen and exhale the stale carbon dioxide. In and out."

Elle kept up her one-sided conversation until Alderman walked into the room. By then the baby's heart rate was back down to 125 beats per minute.

Alderman took in the scene and quietly said: "You paged me. What's up?"

No one said anything for a moment so Alderman walked over to the monitor and starting reviewing the strip. "You had another contraction?"

Cuddy said softly: "Yes."

"Not good. His heart rate has been as high as 150 and now it's back to 125. What's been going on since I left? House stressing you out?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's not always my fault. They were arguing when I walked into the room."

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck and then said: "As soon as you left, Lisa started fretting about how much work she needed to get done before the baby gets here. Then she had the contraction. When House walked in, we were having the same old argument about how she wants to finish up her job duties and I want her to stop working now."

Alderman dropped the strip on the floor. "Well, Lisa, that contraction just bought you another night at Hotel PPTH. I think it is stress causing these contractions but I don't know for sure. Meanwhile, you need to stay on the monitor. If they keep happening, I'll need to give you meds to stop labor and betamethasone to speed the baby's lung maturation. You need to turn over all your administrative duties _now_ to Dr. Myers because you are not going back to work until after the baby is born. How you respond over the next 24 hours will decide whether you spend the rest of your pregnancy on bed rest at home or here at the hospital."

Cuddy groaned: "I don't want to spend the rest of my pregnancy here."

Elle tried to be cheery: "Rachel and I will visit you every day. It's not so bad, as long as someone brings you decent food to eat. Plus you have stairs at your house. It's probably not good for you to be walking up and down stairs at this point."

Alderman went on: "Elle's right. No more stairs. If I do let you go home, you will have to be confined to just one floor for the duration of your pregnancy. I'd really like you to make it to 36 weeks."

Cuddy said softly: "I would too."

She let out a big sigh and looked at Wilson. "I need you to call Myers for me, tell her what's happened and that she needs to take over now. Since you are on the board and you're familiar with a lot of the issues around here, you could field a lot of her questions. There may be a few topics I'll need to discuss with her, but I think you or one of the other board members could help her with most of it."

Wilson sat on the side of the bed and took her hand. "I'll take care of it. Don't concern yourself with anything except growing our son."

She smiled: "You also have the job of keeping House under control. Good luck with that one."


	74. Chapter 74

**Chapter 74**

_**HOUSE**_

Cuddy surprised me by actually following doctor's orders. The only administrative thing that she did all day was to order the janitor to bring one of the nice recliners out of the OB doctor's lounge up to her room for Wilson to sleep in. Wilson called Myers who immediately stepped up to bat. Between Wilson and Cuddy's assistant, they handled all of Myers' questions, spared Cuddy any work issues and kept the hospital running smoothly. I did my part by going to my office and hiding out for the day. We had no patient so I sent the kids to the clinic while I got caught up on my soap and worked on level 5 of Grand Theft Auto. I also wrote Mom a short e-mail, catching her up on the events in Princeton and sent her a few new photos of Rachel.

Elle and Rachel kept Cuddy company for the rest of the day. By the time Alderman checked on her in the late afternoon, there had been no more contractions. I ordered dinner from the White Lion Inn and tipped the guy twenty bucks to deliver it to the hospital.

Cuddy seemed to be in much better spirits during dinner. I think Elle probably had been a calming influence but also a reminder that if Cuddy didn't relax, she was going to be stuck in her own hospital until she delivered.

Once we had finished dinner, Elle said that she was really tired and wanted to go home. Wilson looked ready to drop. He'd had a busy day, seeing his own patients and trying to help Myers get settled in her new position. Maybe he'd get some better sleep tonight in the recliner. Cuddy told us that Alderman would be back in the morning and decide if she could go home or not. So it was agreed that we would wait for their phone call to see if Cuddy was going to get discharged or if they would need us to bring them some more things from home. We said our good byes and I took my girls home.

Later that night as we snuggled together in bed, I asked: "Cuddy seemed more relaxed over dinner. She wasn't complaining at all about having to stay in bed or missing her job. What did you say to her?"

"I didn't really say much. I just mentioned that these remaining weeks are the last full night's sleep that she is going to get for a long time and that she should take advantage of the imposed rest time and sleep as much as she could."

I chuckled, remembering how frazzled Cuddy had looked after that one night of staying with Rachel. "Good advice."

Cuddy did get to go home the next day albeit with strict instructions. She had to stay home, in bed or on the couch as much as possible. No working, cooking, cleaning, shopping or climbing stairs. Fortunately she had a guest bedroom with attached bath on the first floor so it was decided that she would be confined downstairs for the duration of her pregnancy. When Lady showed up at our house that morning, Elle sent her over to Cuddy's to get the downstairs bedroom freshened up for the new occupant.

Since Wilson took the day off, I decided that I should do the same since they would need help. Not sure what help a gimp like me could provide, but it sounded like a good reason to take off anyway. I didn't have a patient and taking the day off would give me a three-day weekend. We arrived at their room just as the discharge came through. Cuddy did not seem too happy about the outfit that I brought to the hospital. That "Baby on Board" tee shirt must have been a gift; it looked brand new and I was sure that she had never worn it. I looked pointedly at her chest and smirked; she just rolled her eyes.

Cuddy seemed resigned to her fate; she was uncharacteristically cooperative with riding in a wheelchair out to the car. Myers walked beside her on the way out and Cuddy gave her a few last minute instructions. It was decided that they would communicate via e-mail as much as possible and that Wilson would be the first contact person for any serious problems that she couldn't handle alone.

Over Cuddy's protests, Wilson carried her into the house and settled her on the couch. Lady fussed over her, getting her comfortable with pillows and an afghan throw and then she hurried into the kitchen to prepare some lunch. I flopped down in the recliner, grabbed the remote and started channel surfing.

Cuddy groaned: "I thought the idea was for me to relax."

I flipped from the Weather Channel to USA, stopping there for an old James Bond movie. "This isn't relaxing?"

"It might be if you would settle on one channel instead of flipping all over."

I waved my hand at the TV. USA was playing the one and only James Bond movie starring George Lazenby: _'On Her Majesty's Secret Service._' Not a great flick, but Diana Rigg looked hot in it. "Wanna watch this?"

She shrugged: "Fine with me."

By the time lunch was ready Cuddy had fallen asleep. We ate roast beef sandwiches and potato salad in the kitchen while Cuddy snoozed on the couch. I ate with gusto, but noticed that Wilson was just picking at his food. Finally he pushed his plate away.

Elle put her hand over his and asked: "Jimmy, it's going to be OK."

He covered his eyes with his left hand and shook his head. "I'm worried about Lisa and the baby."

"Well, of course you are."

"I don't want to go back to work. I don't want her to be alone. I'm afraid something will happen when I'm not here."

I concentrated on my sandwich. I remembered that feeling and I didn't want to relive it, ever again.

Elle squeezed his hand and looked thoughtful. After a few moments, she said: "We'll just have to make sure that she isn't home alone."

He tilted his head and looked at her around his hand. "What do you mean?"

"OK. Right now, Lady comes to our place on Tuesdays and Fridays and to your place on Mondays and Thursdays. We'll just switch things around. How about if Lady were to arrive here everyday before you go to work and then stay until about 1:00? Then she could come over to our place for the rest of the day and I'll come over here to keep Lisa company."

Wilson looked dubious: "You think she would go for it?"

Elle chuckled: "Who? Lady or Lisa?"

Wilson smiled for the first time in days. "Well, of the two, I think Lady will be the easier one to convince. But you won't mind coming over here everyday?"

Elle waved him off: "Of course not. I know what it feels like to be on bed rest. We'll just hang out and play with Rachel. Oh, and she can help me plan the wedding."

I swallowed my last bite of sandwich: "Good. I was wondering how much longer you were going to keep me waiting until you attached the ball and chain."

Wilson glanced between the two of us. "So you're OK with this?"

I shrugged: "My wife's going to keep yours company in the afternoons. What's the big deal? I don't care as long as Elle's OK with it. You just need to check with your baby mama."

Elle said: "And Lady. It's a lot of back and forth for her."

Wilson asked Lady to sit down at the table. He explained the situation and asked if she could change her schedule around for the next few weeks while Cuddy was on bed rest. Lady quickly agreed, so that part was settled.

Elle said: "Now you just need to get Lisa to agree."

I pondered: "The direct approach may not be the best. Subterfuge could be the order of the day."

Elle rolled her eyes. "Lisa knows what's at stake; I think she'll be OK with it. And she remembers what happened to me when I was alone. She may actually be happy for the company. I loved having visitors when I was on bed rest."

Wilson nodded: "She'll get bored rather quickly. Something like helping you plan your wedding could help keep her preoccupied."

Just then we heard her call from the living room: "James? Could you bring me a glass of water, please?"

"Be right there. Want a sandwich?"

"OK."

Wilson stood up and said to Elle: "Come talk to her. She'll listen to you."

Elle smirked: "OK."

Wilson took Cuddy a glass of water while Elle placed a sandwich and some potato salad on a plate and took it into the living room. Rachel started fussing and I picked her up. But Daddy-bouncing wasn't what she needed; she wanted the milk bar. So I handed her off to Elle who settled into the recliner, lifted her shirt and starting feeding our Rug-rat.

Wilson had politely averted his eyes while Elle got Rachel attached, but Cuddy was watching closely. Elle noticed and commented: "You'll be doing this soon enough yourself."

Cuddy looked down at her plate and mumbled: "I hope so."

Elle frowned: "What do you mean? I thought you were planning on breastfeeding?"

I snarked: "Yeah, those puppies of yours could feed a whole litter."

Cuddy shot me a dirty look and then addressed Elle: "I just mean, if, you know, if everything goes OK."

"Everything will be OK, Lisa. You just have to do what Kelly said. You have to rest. At least you get to be home, on your couch, watching your TV and sleeping in your own bed at night. Well the guest room bed at any rate."

Cuddy toyed with her fork. "Yeah, it is easier than you had it. I shouldn't complain. I'm just used to working. I don't know what I'm going to do all day. I'm going to be a bored, fat lump."

Wilson and Elle exchanged a look and then Elle went on: "Well, actually, I was thinking you could help me out a little. I need to get the wedding organized and I thought if you wouldn't mind the company, Rachel and I could come over in the afternoons and you could help me plan the wedding."

Cuddy's face brightened: "Oh, that would be great. I'd love to help you. It would give me something to do and I can play with Rachel while you're here."

"Yeah, she can get to know her Aunt Lisa better. And um, we talked to Lady and she's going to switch her schedule around a little. She'll spend mornings here at your place and then come to my place in the afternoon. That way, you'll have company in the mornings after Jimmy goes to work and before I come over."

Cuddy stared at Elle for a moment and I could see the realization hit her. She looked at Wilson and started to laugh. "You don't want me to be alone, do you? You're afraid something will happen if I'm alone?"

He looked sheepish and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, hmmm, you see."

Cuddy reached for his hand. "I love you too."

His mouth dropped open. "You're not mad?"

She shook her head. "How could I be mad at you for wanting to take care of me and our baby?"

He grinned and leaned over to kiss her.

I rolled my eyes and whined to Elle: "Do we have to watch this?"

Elle shrugged: "It beats listening to them yell at each other."

The new schedule started on Monday morning. Lady arrived at their house just before 8:00, Wilson' usual departure time. She made breakfast for Cuddy and did her usual cleaning chores. Elle and Rachel went over around 1:00 and then Lady headed over to our place. The system seemed to be working well. Cuddy wasn't alone and Elle was actually making progress on the wedding plans.

Wilson, on the other hand, was a nervous wreck. He was calling home constantly to check on Cuddy. When I slipped into his office at lunchtime on Thursday, I overheard his part of the conversation.

"I know it's the fourth time today that I've called. I just want to check and see if you're feeling OK."

"You think I'm calling too much?"

"OK, OK. I won't call so often. I just like to hear your voice."

I muttered under my breath: "Nice touch. _I wanna hear your voice_."

Wilson snarled at me: "Shut up."

His attention focused on the phone again. "No, not you, sweetheart. House just barged in and I was telling him to shut up."

I reached over and snatched the phone out of his hand. "Wilson's taking me to lunch. You have at least an hour's reprieve from his obsessive phone calls. Enjoy it."

I closed the phone and slipped it into my jacket pocket.

Wilson shot death-rays out of his eyes. "Gimme my phone."

"Not until after you buy me lunch."

"Gimme my phone and _then_ I'll buy you lunch."

I shook my head: "Lunch first, then you get the phone."

He exploded: "This is priceless. Have you forgotten how you were when Elle was on bed rest? You wouldn't leave her side for five minutes! I have to leave Lisa for 8, 9 hours a day. You have a team to help you deal with your _one _patient. I'm juggling multiple patients, helping Myers with her new position and trying to clear my calendar so that I can take a couple of weeks off when my son is born. So if I'm a little obsessive with calling Lisa while I'm at work, tough shit!"

He slumped back in his chair, panting with exhaustion from his outburst. I dropped onto his couch, feeling worn out myself from his tirade. Never wanting to relive those days, I didn't appreciate his reminders about my behavior while Elle was on bed rest. My cane beat a staccato rhythm on the floor while Wilson's respirations returned to normal.

When he seemed calmer, I reached into my pocket and handed him back his phone.

He slipped the phone back into his pocket. "Thank you."

"You're still buying me lunch."

He nodded: "I'll get my wallet."

_**Elle**_

The new schedule seemed to be working out just fine. I enjoyed spending time with Lisa and Rachel seemed to love having another person paying attention to her. Lisa enjoyed watching her little antics. Rachel had a new act this week. If I placed her on her tummy, she had started lifting her head and shoulders, like mini-pushups. Lisa and I would clap and cheer her on and that would make Rachel laugh.

I started working on the wedding in earnest. I knew I wanted it on the beach, but the big question was: which beach? A few weeks back, I had looked at a map of New Jersey and Long Island beaches and started calling resorts, requesting wedding information. Now I had a ton of brochures to shift through. I dragged them all over to Lisa's house and we plowed our way through them.

By Thursday, I was frustrated. Most of these places advertised fancy type weddings and I didn't want that. I tossed the last brochure on the 'reject' pile and groaned.

Rachel was napping on one arm of the couch while Lisa was stretched out on the other arm. She turned to stare down at me, sitting cross-legged on her carpet. "Didn't like that one either, huh?"

I shook my head: "Nope."

"You're going about this all wrong."

I smirked and replied sarcastically: "Thanks."

"No, really. You should make a list of what you want and then contact places that you think can work with you. Here. I've got a legal pad. Tell me what you want and I'll write it down."

She propped the yellow pad against her belly and looked at me expectantly. I closed my eyes and thought for a moment. "I want to get married right on the beach, under a chuppah made out of palm fronds."

Lisa giggled and I shot her a look. "No, no, go on," she pleaded.

"It will be a small wedding, very casual. I see Greg in khakis and a Hawaiian shirt and me in some kind of Hawaiian print dress. Billy is going to officiate and Avi is going to walk me down the aisle. I was thinking luau type food for the reception and a wedding cake."

Lisa was writing as I spoke. "And how big is the guest list? When we call places, we'll need to tell them out many people."

I started ticking people off on my fingers. "You and Jimmy, Avi and Ricky, Adam, Gen and Audra, Greg's parents, Billy and Theresa, Danny, Lenny and a guest each. Chase, Cameron and Foreman."

Her eyebrows rose: "You are going to invite his team? Is he OK with that?"

I shrugged: "Don't know. I would feel bad not inviting them especially since Chase was so helpful during my pregnancy. Chase and Cameron are dating, and Foreman may want to bring a date so put that down. How many is that so far?"

"Twenty-one people, counting you and House, and not counting the babies."

"They'll still be nursing, so they won't be eating any food."

"That's the whole list? That's pretty small. You don't want to invite any of your co-workers from the hospital? What about Bill or your ex?"

"Tony? You think I should invite my ex to my wedding?"

Lisa shrugged: "Well, you are still friends with him. You told me that he invited you to his wedding."

"Yeah, but I didn't go. I just sent a gift."

"Well, that's probably what he would do too, but I think we should put him and Bill on the list."

"OK, but I can't imagine what Greg will think of that. What's the count now?"

"Twenty-five. Even if everyone comes, this is a really small wedding. We should be able to pull this off anywhere. Was there any place that appealed to you?"

I sighed and thought for a few moments. "You know, I really liked that place in Cape May that Greg and I went to. It was right on the beach."

"That little B & B?"

I nodded.

"We didn't have a brochure for them. Do they do weddings?"

"I don't know."

She pulled my laptop closer. "What's the name of the place?"

"Rhythm of the Sea."

Lisa found their website and sure enough, they did weddings. "Up to 40 guests, Elle. It's perfect."

I read over her shoulder. "You have to book the whole place. I wonder when the first available weekend is."

"Only one way to find out."

She grabbed her cell phone and dialed.

Amazingly, they had had a wedding scheduled for the weekend of Sept 6th and the couple had just cancelled it yesterday. I grabbed the date and gave them my credit card number to hold the reservation. They promised to mail information on local florists, photographers and other necessary wedding services.

I had a date and a place now. I was starting to feel excited but figured I'd better run this by Greg and make sure he was on board with my plans. Lisa rolled her eyes as I dialed his number.

He answered the phone: "Are you naked?"

I giggled: "I'm at Lisa's."

"Are you both naked? That would be totally hot."

"No, silly, but we are working on the wedding."

"And you can't do that naked?"

I laughed: "No!"

He muttered: "I don't see why not. Any progress?"

"Well, we have a date and a place."

"Sounds like progress to me. When and where are you attaching the ball and chain?"

I told him all the details. He chuckled: "Was that the soonest date?"

"Yes, we were lucky that they had a cancellation, otherwise the next opening was in late October. I made a tentative guest list, but you'll have to let me know if there is anyone else you want to invite. I only have twenty-something people on the list so far and we can have up to 40."

"Did you invite Wilson?"

"Of course, he's your best friend and best man."

"Can't think of anyone else."

I teased: "Your parents?"

"Yeah, guess we should invite them. Mom would kill me if we didn't."

"Any other relatives that you are on speaking terms with?"

"I don't know. Aunt Sara would probably like to come, but Uncle Carl had a stroke and I don't think he could make it. Aunt Sara won't come without him."

"Well, we can send them an invitation anyway. Let me know if you think of anyone else."

"OK. You know, we have to get rings."

"Rings? You used the plural form of that noun. You're going to wear one too?"

"Of course. With my bum leg, I can't be dragging a real ball and chain all over the place. Plus it would screw with my swimming. The ring will be my symbolic ball and chain."

I laughed: "Glad you're so eager to be tied down."

"I prefer to tie you down; can we do that tonight after Rachel goes to sleep?"

The wedding plans came together slowly over the next two weeks. I contacted three photographers and reviewed their work on-line. After talking to a few of their previous clients, we finally agreed on one and signed a contract with him.

I couldn't decide on flowers until I knew what I was going to wear, so I started looking for a dress. I found just what I wanted on-line. It was a long white dress with a brighter white hibiscus print design. It had spaghetti straps and a slit up the side. It was perfect, bridal yet casual enough for a beach wedding. I wanted to get married barefoot so I planned to have it hemmed enough that it would not drag in the sand. For the reception, I'd slip on some white sandals. I also found a cute dress in a similar style for my flower girl Audra. After talking to the florist, I decided on a white orchid bouquet, an ankle lei and a crown of orchids in my hair instead of a veil.

For Greg, I found a dark blue Hawaiian shirt with a pattern of white orchids running up one side of the shirt. Khaki pants, brown leather sandals and a white orchid boutonnière would complete his wedding ensemble.

Danny and Lenny agreed to play a Hawaiian wedding march for me and I arranged a DJ to play music for the reception. We just needed to decide on the dinner menu, order the cake and the invitations.

Blythe was thrilled and squealed with delight when I told her that we had finally set a date. Naturally she insisted on baby-sitting Rachel on our wedding night so that we would have a proper honeymoon, an idea that Greg whole-heartedly approved of. I told Blythe that I would tell her more of the details when they came to visit over the 4th of July.

Lisa's time on bed rest passed slowly. Rachel and I tried to keep her as amused as possible. We watched all the daytime talk shows and even started watching the telenovelas that Jimmy liked. After just a few days, we were totally hooked on them.

Once a week, Jimmy would take off from work and the two of them would go to PPTH for her checkup. Otherwise Lisa never left the house. At her appointment on July 2, Kelly told her that, although she couldn't go back to work, she could get out of the house and be a bit more active. Lisa was now at week 36 of her pregnancy and the baby's lungs were mature enough for survival if he were to be born now.

Lisa excitedly convened this information to me as I waited at the airport to pick up Greg's parents.

I was thrilled: "That's great, Lisa. That means you can come over for our Barbeque on Saturday."

"I know. I can't wait. I'm so excited to be able to get out of the house and see people. Have the senior Houses arrived yet?"

"Their plane just landed, so they should be walking my way any minute. I put that little blue flowered dress on Rachel and she looks so cute. They are just going to go nuts when they see her."

"Well, it's been 2 months. She's changed so much since the last time they saw her. I can't believe that they haven't come back sooner, especially Blythe."

"I think they would have liked to, but didn't want to push too much. You know, things are so iffy between Greg and his Dad. I'm just hoping this visit goes well."

"The last one went amazingly well."

"Yeah, I'm hoping for more of the same. Oh, I see them. I'll call you later."

_**HOUSE**_

My parents' flight was scheduled to arrive at 2:30PM. Ordinarily I'd send Wilson to pick them up or let Dad rent a car. But Cuddy had her OB appointment on Thursday afternoon and Wilson was taking her there. Even I couldn't come up with a clever reason for him to skip the appointment and head to the airport instead.

Elle couldn't see the point of my parents renting a car, so she volunteered to pick them up.

"Your parents will be tired from traveling and there is no point in them renting a car. They are going to want to see Rachel as soon as possible anyway, so we'll just go and pick them up."

"You sure you don't mind, sweetheart?"

She waved her hand at me. "Not at all. Besides, your Dad doesn't scare me anymore. I have his grandchild and I'm not afraid to use her."

I chuckled and pulled her into my arms. Elle 'got' me so well. She knew it would be easier for me to deal with Dad at home with Rachel as a buffer than alone in a car with him. I made a mental note to express my gratitude later on tonight, after Rachel was asleep.

Elle phoned me from Newark, to let me know that their plane was on time and that they should land any minute. No sooner had I hung up from her, when my phone rang again; it was Wilson this time.

He sounded like he was bouncing off the walls. "Lisa's off bed rest. She can't go back to work, but she doesn't have to stay home all the time either. So that means we'll be able to make your Barbeque after all."

We, or rather Elle, had decided to throw a 4th of July Barbeque while my parents were here. I considered it to be one less day for us to spend alone with my folks. In addition to Wilson and Cuddy, Elle had also invited Avi and Ricky, and Adam and his family. Now it looked like my bestest bud and his baby mama would be able to make it. The more the merrier as it would keep Dad busy talking to other people. For a brief moment, I considered inviting the ducklings for extra conversation pieces, but I just as quickly rejected the idea.

"I better tell Elle to get some extra food since _Rotundous Ass_ is coming now. You can bring the beer. Get several cases and one of them had better be Grolsch."

Wilson laughed: "You're not getting a keg or two? Figured you'd be drinking a lot with your parents here. They're arriving this afternoon, aren't they? Bet you're excited."

"Yeah, right. I'm sure it will be a laugh a minute."

Elle called me when they got back from Newark, assuring me that everything was fine. "Your Mom is unpacking and your Dad is entertaining Rachel on the couch."

"OK. I should be home around 5:30."

"Great. We're having pot roast. Bring your appetite."

I could have left work earlier. It's not like Cuddy was here to keep tabs on me and Myers was steering clear of my office as much as possible. I just wasn't in a big hurry to go home and see my folks. I straightened my desk and cleaned out my inbox, both on the desk and in my e-mail. Finally I ran out of mindless things to do, so I grabbed my backpack and headed for home.

Mom was there to greet me as I walked in from the garage. She pulled me into a hug immediately.

"Greg. You look wonderful. It's so good to see you."

I hugged her back. "It's good to see you too, Mom."

"Your daughter has grown so much and she looks so beautiful."

"I can't take the credit for that, Mom. She gets her looks from her mother. Speaking of which, where are my girls?"

"In the living room with your Dad."

Time to bite the bullet. I wandered into the living room with Mom trailing behind me. Elle and Dad were sitting on the couch with Rachel lying in between them on her tummy, doing her little push-ups.

Elle smiled when she saw me. "Hi, Greg."

Then she turned to Rachel and said in an excited voice: "Daddy's home!"

Elle said that to Rachel every single day when I arrived home, but for some reason, today when she said it, a huge wave of emotion flooded through me. When I was a kid, hearing those words struck terror in my heart. It was never said in excitement or happiness, but as a warning of things to come. And the cause of my terror was sitting right next to my precious daughter.

I wanted those same words to never incite that type of fear in my child. I called to her: "Hey, Rug-rat."

She turned her face towards my voice. A gummy smile broke out on her face and she squealed as she bounced up and down on her arms.

Dad laughed: "Boy, she sure knows her daddy. Hey, son, how are you?"

I held out my arms; Elle lifted Rachel and handed her to me. I kissed Rachel's forehead and gently rubbed my nose against hers. She gurgled happily, waving her arms in excitement until one hand landed on my lips. I mouthed her hand and she squealed. I kissed her again and said: "I'm fine, Dad, just fine."

Dad chuckled: "Little Rachel sure has grown since we were last here. She's so smart too."

Rachel's hand clung to my shirt collar as I sat down on the couch next to Elle. "She's not even 3 months old, Dad. How do you know she's smart?"

"I can see it in her eyes. She watches everything that everyone does, just like you did when you were a baby. You were completely fascinated with the world around you and Rachel seems to take after you."

It was astonishing to hear Dad talk about me as a baby. I know Mom said he was different then, but I still found it hard to believe.

Elle piped in: "Well, she is certainly hitting all her milestones. She can do everything that a three-month-old baby is supposed to do and her three-month birthday isn't until next week. She's even trying to roll over, but she hasn't made it yet."

Mom asked: "Does she like music?"

Elle nodded: "Oh, yeah. She loves the lullabies in her bassinette and she'll coo while she's laying there listening to them. And I discovered a trick if she's fussy, I'll put her in the sling and sit down at the piano. A little classical music soothes the cranky baby."

My Dad had a faraway smile on his face: "Just like you, Greg. Your mother had this seven record set of Mozart. If you were fussing, she'd put on an album and rock you in that wooden cradle that Uncle Henry made. That used to settle you right down."

These trips down memory lane were getting a bit too much for me. I turned to Elle and said: "So what's a hard-working doctor gotta do to get some grub around here?"

Her smile told me that she knew that I was trying to change the subject. "You must be starved. Give me ten minutes and I'll have everything on the table."

We spend the dinner hour talking about the wedding, which kept me pretty much out of the conversation since Elle had done all the work. My parents both seemed pleased that we were finally tying the knot and surprisingly liked the idea of a casual beach wedding.

Dad said: "This is great. I don't have to wear a suit?"

Elle shook her head: "Nope. We're hoping that everyone will come in Hawaiian shirts and similar casual attire. Feel free to go barefoot too. We'll be on the beach, after all."

Tired from their long trip, my parents thankfully turned in early. I had a long three-day weekend with them to look forward to before I could escape back to work. At least tomorrow we would be distracted with the preparations for the barbeque and then the barbeque itself on Saturday. That would take care of two-thirds of the weekend.

I saw Dad's tremor two or three times over the course of the evening, but I didn't mention it. I knew he was tired from the long trip and that could be part of the reason for it. But I planned on keeping a close eye on him and bringing it up before they left to go home.

Elle nursed Rachel around 11PM and settled her down in the bassinette. She was now sleeping for 5 to 6 hour stretches, which were fantastic compared to waking every three hours. Once Rachel was settled, Elle climbed into bed and I covered us with the sheet.

I gave her an affectionate kiss on the cheek and asked: "Did I thank you for picking up my parents at the airport?"

Her arms curled around my neck. "No, but you don't have to. They're your parents and Rachel's grandparents. I was happy to do it."

My lips gently took possession of her earlobe and I nibbled there until she sighed. As I pushed up the hem of her nightgown, I whispered in her ear: "Oh, no, I should show my gratitude. Let me thank you."

As my fingers tangled in her soft downy curls, a smile slowly crept across her face: "Well, if you insist."

Elle had plans for part of Friday. At Princeton Battlefield, they were having a special 4th of July celebration and she thought my parents might enjoy it. There would be people running around in period costumes, a demonstration of the weaponry of that era and a reading of the Declaration of Independence. Didn't really sound like my kind of day, but it would entertain the parental units. Elle and Mom packed a picnic lunch and off we went.

The Battle of Princeton took place on Jan. 3, 1777; about 10 days after Washington made his famous crossing of the Delaware River. The British forces were defeated and in 1946 it was deemed appropriate to make a state park out of the former battleground. I guess it was better than another shopping mall.

Dad thoroughly enjoyed the display of the period weapons. He expounded at length about the differences between muskets and rifles. Elle and I learned more than we ever wanted to know about bullet spin, shooting accuracies and reloading times. He had an amazing knowledge of American military history, I have to give him that.

"Elle, did you know that historians consider the Battle of Princeton a very important win? Between this battle and the victory at Trenton, the Colonial troops recaptured most of New Jersey."

"Wow, I didn't know that, Colonel."

Dad continued to throw tidbits of history at us throughout the day and every time he did Elle answered him politely. He seemed quite pleased with the attention.

After a tour of the Thomas Clark House Museum, we found a quiet space under a large oak tree and had our picnic lunch. While we munched on turkey sandwiches and chips, Elle nursed Rachel, shielding her breast from prying eyes with her Hooter Hider.

On the way home from the Battlefield, we stopped at the grocery to pick up a few last minute food items that we needed for tomorrow's barbeque. We left Dad and Rachel in the car, with the air conditioning on, while the three of us went in. He said it would be faster for us to go without the baby and that he didn't mind waiting in the car. I thought he looked a bit fatigued after all the walking today, but I let it slide for now. We were in and out of the store in ten minutes. After a simple dinner of leftover pot roast, potatoes and salad, we spend the evening out on the front lawn. The city was shooting off fireworks at Princeton University Sports Field and we had a halfway decent show from our front lawn. It sure beat fighting the traffic to go and watch them in person, not that I was interested in doing that. Seems most of the neighborhood had the same idea as almost every house had people sitting out front in lawn chairs and staring up at the sky.

Dad chuckled: "This is great. You can watch the fireworks from home while drinking a cold beer from your own fridge."

In a serious tone, Elle said: "That's one of the reasons we bought this house, Colonel."

Dad just looked at her and she managed not to laugh for at least 30 full seconds, and then she cracked up. He got the joke and joined in.

After watching a decent display of pyrotechnics, we all turned in. It had been a long tiring day and I was glad of the company that we would have tomorrow. They would provide welcome assistance with parental entertainment.

As soon as we got under the covers, I pulled Elle into my arms. "You were wonderful today."

"I was?"

"Listening to my dad go on and on about all that history stuff."

She chuckled: "Actually, you'll think this is kinda strange but it brought back some nice memories. You know my dad was a history teacher and he used to do the same thing. No matter where we went, he knew the history of the place and had to tell us all about it. Mama and I used to secretly laugh about it later, but he was so smart and he knew so much."

Her voice trailed off.

I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "You miss them more at this time of year, don't you?"

She nodded: "Yes, the 4th of July always makes me a little sad, knowing that their yahrzeit is only four days away. That's one reason why I was happy that your parents wanted to come back over the holiday. It's kind of a distraction for me. And it's so nice seeing your parents interacting with Rachel."

Her voice broke: "My parents would have been so happy to have a grandchild."

I pulled her closer and did my best to comfort her as she sobbed on my shoulder. At least now I understood her willingness to put up with my parents. It wasn't just for me or for Rachel. Elle needed this for herself. For a person who lost her own parents at the tender age of 10, having in-laws was the next best thing. Maybe listening to my dad go on and on about rifles wasn't such an awful thing after all.

Elle and Mom spent Saturday morning in the kitchen preparing the food. They even conned Dad into peeling the potatoes for the potato salad. I escaped outside; saying I had to attend to the manly duties of being the grill master. With a gas grill, there really wasn't any prep work to do. All I had to do was light it when we were ready to cook the meat. It gave me an excuse to get out of kitchen duty, but I was pretty sure that Elle was on to me. She did let me nap in the chaise lounge for a couple of hours, waking me right before our guests were due to arrive.

Avi and Ricky were the first to show up. Avi brought a case of Heineken while Ricky schlepped a couple of homemade key lime pies that Elle swooned over. My parents, of course, had met them before and appeared happy to see them again. Dad, surprisingly, didn't seem to have any issues with their lifestyle, although I remember hearing a lot of _'fag'_ jokes when I was growing up. Dad accepted a cold Heineken from Avi and clapped him on the back while Ricky discussed his key lime recipe with Mom and Elle. I sat on the patio with Rachel in my arms, sipping on a beer and whispering to her that her Opa was really an alien from the Twilight Zone.

Adam and his clan were next to arrive. Gen had made an ice cream cake, which she promptly stuck in the freezer. Too bad, cuz I was really for a slice of that right now. Adam and Audra carried in a set of horseshoes and a croquet set. Dad perked up when he saw the horseshoes. "I haven't played that in years. I used to be pretty good at it."

Adam replied: "Well, we'll have a friendly little competition after we eat."

Hands down, the grand entrance of the day belonged to Wilson and Cuddy. When Cuddy walked in, all conversation stopped for a moment and then was directed her way.

Mom squealed: "Oh, Lisa. I'm so glad you were able to make it. You look wonderful, dear."

Dad said: "Wow, Lisa. Any day now, huh?"

Audra walked up to her and patted her belly: "You sure got a big baby in there, Miss Lisa."

Elle gave her a hug. "You look great. It's so good that you were able to come over."

I snarked: "Finally there is something bigger than your rotundous ass. That huge belly must act as a counterweight for your ass."

She smirked at me: "Nothing you say can bother me today. I am off of bed rest and only have two weeks left to go. So snark away."

Getting permission took all the fun out of sniping at her. I walked over to the cooler and grabbed another beer. Wilson followed me and I handed one to him.

In a surprised tone, he said: "No one said hi to me."

"Get used to it. All the attention will be on Mama and baby for a while. Daddy gets back in the picture when it's time to pay for stuff or those middle of the night diaper changes."

He looked slightly shell-shocked, muttered _huh_ and took a long swallow of beer. Right after that, Mom came over to greet and hug him and he seemed to relax after that.

We had tons of food. There were hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken, and corn on the cob from the grill. Elle and Mom had made potato salad and cole slaw. We had sodas, lemonade and lots of beer. We ate our fill and decided to digest a bit before having dessert. Adam measured out the distance for the horseshoes stakes and drove them into the ground. Then he and Dad played a round. Dad may not have played in a while, but he found his groove fairly quickly. He and Adam were pretty evenly matched. Adam won by just two points. For the next game, Wilson teamed up with Adam and Avi teamed up with Dad. Meanwhile, Ricky had set up the croquet set and he, Elle, Mom Gen and Audra were playing on the other side of the backyard.

Cuddy, Rachel and I were relaxing in the canopy covered two-seater patio swing, watching all the action. I sipped a beer, Cuddy worked on a lemonade, while Rachel drooled all over my shirt.

Cuddy watched her for a moment and then asked: "She's drooling a lot. Think she's cutting teeth already?"

"Naw, she's an advanced kid but teething at three months would be really early. Hope not, since Elle is still breastfeeding."

I kissed the top of Rachel's head. "No biting your Mama when you're at the milk bar. She might cut you off from the goodies."

Cuddy shook her head and laughed. We sat in a peaceful silence for a few minutes and then she quietly asked: "Did you ever think you would be here?"

"_Here_, as in, here in Princeton, or here in the universe?"

She playfully slapped at my good thigh. "Don't be an ass. You know what I mean. _Here_, as in here, with a house and a baby and a woman you are about to marry. Hosting a party with food that doesn't just consist of beer and pretzels? Having your guests playing horseshoes and croquet instead of poker? Getting along with your _Dad_?"

I looked at her and realized that she wanted a serious answer. For once, I decided to give her one. "No, if you had told me two years ago, that this is where I would be now, I would have laughed in your face. I would have told you to stop smoking crack. There is no way that I would have imagined _this_." I waved my hand, as if to indicate the situation that I found myself in.

She rubbed her belly. "Me either. If you had told me two years ago, that I'd be with James and pregnant with his child, I would have packed you off to rehab, positive that you were shooting heroin."

"If I had said that back then, I probably would have been. Crap, two years ago, Wilson was still married to Julie."

She nodded: "I know."

We sat in companionable silence for a few more minutes and then she asked: "Are you happy?"

I snarked: "Who, me? Happy? Have you even seen me happy?"

She considered the question and then said: "Well, there was the time when you won all that money at that charity poker tournament, but then you realized that you didn't get to keep the money, so the moment passed quickly. And you have those occasional moments of glee when you solve a really difficult case. And you looked ecstatic when you reported catching Chase and Cameron in the janitor's closet. But those were fleeting moments. I'm talking days, weeks, the long haul. Are you happy?"

I focused my attention on Elle. She had just hit a nice shot through the wicket and raised her mallet victoriously. She turned and looked at me as if to ask '_did you see that_?" I nodded. She blew me a kiss and I felt a smile creep across my face. Right at that moment, watching my wife-to-be play croquet and holding my daughter in my arms, I knew the answer to Cuddy's question, but I'd be damned if I was going to tell her. I had given her one serious answer today and that was her quota for the month.

My expression back on neutral, I turned my attention back to Cuddy. She had a knowing smile on her face. Before I could open my mouth to reply, she gently squeezed my shoulder and said: "I'm glad."

When they tired of playing games, Elle and Gen brought out the desserts. Ricky's key lime pie was deliciously tart with a touch of sweet whipped cream on top. Gen's dessert consisted of rich chocolate cake layered with vanilla ice cream and had chocolate sprinkles on top. They were both so good that I couldn't decide which one I liked better so I had seconds of each one.

We sat around, relaxed and stuffed, watching Dad amuse Audra with some of his magic tricks. By the time he finished pulling quarters out of her ear, the kid had two bucks. Meanwhile, Gen pulled out a bottle of bubbles and blew them in Rachel's direction. Her eyes followed their upward direction and occasionally she tried to catch one.

I had kept one eye on Dad all day, but aside from the tremor, which showed up during the magic tricks, he seemed fine today. He had no trouble keeping up with the younger men when they were throwing horseshoes. I did notice that he limited himself to two beers and then switched to lemonade.

When Rachel got cranky and Elle excused herself to go and put her down, everyone took that as a cue to pack up and go. When Elle got back, there were hugs and kisses all around. Everyone said that they had had a great time.

Wilson and Cuddy were the last to leave. Elle rubbed Cuddy's belly and said: "Call us when you head to the hospital."

Cuddy laughed: "It's not going to be that soon. I'll see you before then."

Elle smirked: "I'm not so sure. I saw you rubbing your back several times. It aches, doesn't it?"

Cuddy shrugged: "Yeah, a little."

"It may not be tonight, but I'm betting it will be soon. That backache is the first sign."

Cuddy laughed: "I have two weeks left. It won't be tonight."

Elle smirked: "I wouldn't count on that."

Wilson groaned: "I'm not sure that I'm ready yet."

I smirked: "You better get ready, dude. Look at the size of that belly. That kid is popping out any minute."

After they had left, Elle gave me a big hug. "I think our first party in our new home was a big success."

I squeezed her back: "Yeah, it wasn't half bad. You really think Cuddy is going to pop tonight?"

"Definitely in the next couple of days. Did you feel her belly? It's as hard as a rock"

I nodded: "Good point. Yeah, three days, tops. Wilson better get ready. Is there any more of that ice cream cake?"

"I'll cut you a slice."


	75. Chapter 75

Chapter 75

_**CUDDY**_

I glanced at the clock when the pain woke me. It was 2:46AM. I took several deep breaths and the pain eased off. The second one hit at 3:03AM. When it had passed, I slipped out of bed and padded out to the living room. If I were really starting to have contractions, I didn't want to wake James until it was absolutely necessary. I put the TV on and flipped through multiple infomercials while timing my contractions. I had just decided that the Core Rhythms exercise DVD's looked like a good way to get my figure back after the baby was born, when a really big contraction hit me. I doubled-over and moaned out loud. When it passed, I looked at the clock. The contractions were now only ten minutes apart. The time between contractions had shortened considerably in the last 2 hours. I decided it was time to wake James up.

_**HOUSE**_

I grabbed the phone quickly, hoping to reach it before it woke Elle up. The clock read 5:17AM as I snarled into the phone: "This had better be good."

A panicked voice answered: "Lisa's in labor."

I settled back on the pillow with a smirk on my face. "Cool. You're about to become a dad. Ya ready yet?"

"No, I'm not ready. I was hoping to have at least another week."

"Oh, relax. You're a doctor. You know what to do. Are you dressed?"

"Of course, I'm dressed, you jerk."

"I bet you don't have shoes on."

He muttered: "Crap!" and I chuckled under my breath.

After a few minutes of listening to various noises, he huffed into the phone. "OK, I've got shoes on, wallet in my back pocket and car keys in my hand. Think I'm ready now."

"Good. Now put her bag in the trunk and you're all set."

"Right, right."

I listened to more noises as Wilson apparently did as I instructed. Then I heard the car start and frowned. I yelled into the phone: "Hey, Wilson, don't forget your baby mama."

This time he yelled at me: "Do you think I'd forget about Lisa?"

I chuckled as his voice faded momentarily. He let out another curse and turned off the engine, and then I heard Cuddy's voice in the background. "I was wondering if you were coming back for me."

"I'm sorry, Lisa. I called House to let him know we were going and I just got all."

The call must have dropped or more likely, he just closed his phone. I guess he didn't want me to hear the rest of that conversation as he explained why he was about to leave for the hospital without her. I smiled and rolled over to give Elle the news.

_**WILSON**_

I tried to remain calm for Lisa's sake, but I couldn't believe this was happening so quickly. By the time we pulled up to the L & D entrance, Lisa's contractions were already eight minutes apart. Lisa had phoned Alderman from the car and the doctor was on her way in. Lisa had also phoned the L & D desk to inform them of her imminent arrival; therefore three nurses with a wheelchair were waiting for us when we pulled up. Lisa got into the wheelchair while I pulled her bag out of the trunk. I tossed my keys to one of the nurses and asked her to park my car for me. She agreed and I hurried inside with Lisa.

By the time Alderman arrived, Lisa was gowned up and settled into her bed. Alderman performed a quick internal and said: "Wow, you are moving right along. You are 3 centimeters dilated already. I don't think you are going to need any Pitocin. We better get the anesthesiologist in here to give you the epidural before you advance much further."

She hurried off while Lisa groaned with the onset of another contraction. She felt a little more comfortable lying on her left side, so she rolled over and I rubbed her back for her.

Chapman showed up about 15 minutes later. He came to a dead stop when he saw who was lying in the bed. "Holy crap! I'm doing the epidural for the Dean. I win the pool!"

Lisa snarled: "There's a pool for who gets to do my epidural?"

He laughed: "Dr Cuddy, there is a pool for every detail connected to the birth of your child. Who gets to do the epidural, the date, the weight, the length, how long you are in labor."

In an irritated tone, she said: "I get it. I get it. Congratulations on your win. Let's just get this part over with, shall we?"

"Sure thing."

Chapman performed the procedure and Lisa felt some pain relief immediately. Promising to be back later to check on us, he hurried off to see his next patient.

After he left, Lisa reached for my hand. I gave her a gentle squeeze. "How are you feeling, sweetheart?"

"I'm OK at the moment, but when the contractions really hit, I'm warning you. Don't ask me that question."

I stroked her hair off of her face. "OK, sweetheart. I'll try to remember."

"James. I hope you are in on some of these pools."

"Actually, no. They wouldn't let me. Figured that I had too much inside information. But House placed some bets for me."

"How long did you predict that I would be in labor?"

"Ummm, twenty hours."

She groaned: "God, if you win that one, I'm really going to make you pay."

I called both of our mothers around 9AM and let them know that their grandson would be making his big entrance sometime today. Judith Cuddy said that she would get a flight and arrive first thing tomorrow. My Mom said that she and Dad would be here later on this evening. Remembering our one night with Rachel, I was grateful to have a houseful of help arriving shortly.

My phone rang around 10AM. Lisa was puffing her way through a contraction and squeezing my hand so hard that I thought all the bones were going to break. I still managed to answer the call. I figured it was House, but it turned out to be Elle.

"Hey, Jimmy, how's it going?"

"Lisa's at 9 centimeters now. I don't think it will be much longer."

"Oh wow, that's great. Is there anything you need? Anything we can do for you?"

I asked Lisa the same question and she just shook her head. Speaking into the phone, I told Elle: "Not right now, thanks. We're OK at the moment."

Harshly Lisa replied: "Speak for yourself!"

To Elle, I said: "What I mean is that we don't need anything right now."

Lisa screamed: "I need to get this baby out!"

Elle said: "Oh, boy, I heard that. Hang in there, Jimmy. It will be over soon. Remember that you have the easy part."

I hissed through clenched teeth as Lisa again squeezed my hand through the contraction. "I'm trying to."

"We'll come over and see you later on this afternoon. I can't wait to see your baby."

"Yeah, me too. See you later."

I closed the phone and turned my attention back to Lisa. She was sweating and I dabbed at her face with a damp washcloth.

"House and Elle are coming over later."

In her best administrator voice, she said: "House is not coming in this room. I will not have photos of me in labor e-mailed to the entire hospital staff. Elle can come in, but if you ever want to have sex with me again, you will keep House out of here."

Naturally, I agreed with her. "Absolutely. No problem. House will not set foot in this room while you are in labor."

After a while, Lisa started to shiver. She felt nauseated. Her contractions were now only 3 minutes apart and lasting as long as one full minute. Even with the epidural, she was having considerable discomfort.

Suddenly, she cried out: "Oh, God, I feel like I need to push."

I pushed the call button as I said: "No, no, no. Not yet. Breathe, Lisa."

Jenny, the same redheaded nurse that had taken care of Elle, rushed into the room. "Yes, Dr. Wilson?"

"Get Alderman now."

"Certainly" She hurried off to page her.

It only took 5 minutes for Alderman to arrive at our room, but it seemed like much longer. Lisa was moaning and complaining about the desire to push. Alderman quickly checked her out.

"Oh boy, you transitioned really quickly. You are completely dilated and effaced. You wanna push, huh?"

Lisa moaned: "Yes."

"It's almost time. He's at station +2. Let's get you into the delivery room."

Once in the delivery room, things happened really quickly. It wasn't long before you could see our son's head crowning with each contraction. Jenny held a mirror so that Lisa could see it too and she managed to smile at the sight.

Alderman took her position. "OK, Lisa, with the next contraction, give a really big push."

Lisa grunted and pushed hard, while I stood behind her and supported her back. She fell back against me, exhausted when the contraction was over. We repeated this over and over. Each time, a little bit more of his head appeared.

After the 5th or 6th intense push, Lisa whimpered: "James, I'm so tired. I don't think I can do this."

I kissed her cheek and stroked her back. "Yes, you can, sweetheart. He's almost here. I know you're tired, but you can do it. You are the strongest woman I know."

Lisa exploded: "Get stuffed! I'm pooping out a watermelon and you're telling me I'm the strongest woman you know. That's a big help."

Alderman interrupted: "Lisa, this is it. When this contraction hits, give it all you got."

Lisa groaned and closed her eyes for a minute. When the contraction hit, I supported her back and Lisa squeezed my hand tightly as she grunted with the exertion of pushing. Suddenly she screamed and Alderman cried out: "He's here. The head just popped out. Suction."

Lisa gasped for breath and I glanced down. There was his little face, covered with mucus and yet undeniably the most beautiful baby that I had ever seen.

My words came out in a whisper. "Oh my God, Lisa, he's beautiful." She let out a whimper, tears streaming down her face.

Alderman quickly suctioned his nostrils and mouth and he let out a cry. "OK, Lisa, one more big push and he'll be out."

Lisa gave a mighty push and he popped out. He was red, mucous-coated and crying his lungs out. Alderman laid him on Lisa's belly and said: "Congratulations. It's a boy."

Lisa was blubbering happily as she reached out and touched his tiny hand for the first time. "Oh my god, James. He's here. Oh, he's so beautiful."

I could feel wetness on my cheeks as I reached out and touched his little foot. "Yes, he is."

After a long moment of staring at our son, Alderman clamped off the cord and offered me the scissors to cut it. I took a deep breath and made the snip, severing the connection from his mother. The nurse whisked him away to get him cleaned up and we watched intently as they took care of him. Once he was clean, weighed and given his Vitamin K shot, the nurse swaddled him in a blue blanket and brought him back to us.

Jenny gently handed our son into Lisa's waiting arms. "Nice big baby, Dr. Cuddy. Seven pounds, 10 ounces and 22 inches long."

Lisa chuckled: "Wonder who won that pool?"

Finally we were back in our room, just the three of us. Lisa cradled our son in her arms and I had climbed on the bed next to her and wrapped my arms around both of them.

She sighed: "He's so beautiful, isn't he?"

"Yes, very handsome, and _big_. Seven pounds, ten ounces. That's quite a watermelon you pooped out."

I kissed her cheek and tightened my embrace. "You were amazing, Leelee. I love you so much."

She smiled at me and whispered back: "I couldn't have done it without you. I love you too, Jamie."

_**HOUSE**_

"You're naming him what?"

Cuddy sighed with exasperation. "Benjamin Jacob Cuddy-Wilson."

We had left Rachel at home with my parents while we came to eyeball the new kid. I squinted at the small baby that Elle was holding. "Seems like a long moniker for such a little guy. It needs to be shortened. I know. Call him BJ."

Through clenched teeth, Cuddy hissed: "We are not calling my son BJ. His name is Ben."

"What's wrong with BJ? It's a great name, not to mention a very pleasurable act."

"And that's exactly _why_ we are _not_ calling him that."

Elle, always the peacemaker, diverted the conversation. "He is so much bigger than Rachel was when she was born. Rachel's almost 3 months old and only weighs 9 ½ pounds. Ben's almost her size now."

"Well, don't forget our Rug-rat was born almost 3 weeks earlier than BJ here and she only weighed 5 pounds when she was born. Rachel's growing just fine. If she ate any more than what she's doing now, you'd need to grow an extra breast or two. And that would be just too weird."

She turned and smiled at me. "She does have your appetite."

Cuddy hissed through her teeth. "It's _Ben_. Come on, House, you can say it. _Ben_."

I whined: "But I like BJ better. It's a way cooler nickname."

Elle tried to divert the conversation again. "Whom did you name him after?"

Cuddy replied: "Benjamin is after my father and Jacob is after James' favorite uncle."

Elle shook her head and chuckled slightly. Mumbling under her breath, she said: "That's so funny."

There was something about the tone of her voice. Wilson must have picked up on it too and before I could say anything, he quickly asked: "What's funny, Elle?"

Elle kissed the top of the baby's head before handing him back to Cuddy. "Well, my father's name was Benjamin too."

Wilson nodded in understanding: "Oh, and Rachel is named after your mother. So our babies are Benjamin and Rachel, just like your parents. I hope that's not too weird for you."

She smiled at him, but her tone was sad: "No, it's just funny, that's all."

Wilson gave her one of his patented sympathetic smiles: "Well, who knows? Maybe one day they will be a couple, just like your parents."

I narrowed my eyes at him: "Bite your tongue."

Cuddy chuckled: "Would that really be sooooo bad, House?"

I smirked: "Depends. If your son is half the man you are, Cuddy, then it might be OK."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Cuddy was tired, so we cut our visit short, returning later that evening with my parents and Rachel. Wilson's parents had arrived by then so there was quite a crowd in the room. Miriam Wilson was proudly holding her grandson while a very cheerful Pete Wilson thumped me on the shoulder.

"House. Good to see you again. It's been, um, a while."

There was an awkward pause as we hadn't seen each other since Wilson's last wedding, but I guess Wilson Senior deemed that inappropriate to bring up in front of Cuddy.

He recovered quickly. "Have a cigar and introduce me to everyone. I take it this lovely woman is your bride-to-be."

I stuffed the proffered cigar in my pocket for later and made the required introductions. Pete admired our beautiful daughter and praised Elle for her ability to put up with me. She just laughed and wandered over to introduce herself and Rachel to Miriam. Pete greeted my parents warmly, shaking Dad's hand, and then he and Dad huddled in one corner of the room, talking grandpa stuff, while the ladies congregated around Cuddy and the baby. I propped myself up in the corner of the room and merely watched the action.

Wilson joined me and we stood next to each other in a comfortable silence. After a few minutes, he said: "My parents are ecstatic over their grandson."

I nodded: "That's good. They bugging you to get married, yet?"

He shook his head: "No, not yet. I think after three weddings, they are not going to push the subject. They are just happy to have a grandchild to spoil."

"That should keep them distracted for a while."

"They are going to stay for about 10 days and Lisa's Mom is going to be with us for at least three weeks."

I nodded: "Enjoy the help while you have it. Try to get one of them to take a nighttime feeding so that you and Lisa can get a 6-hour stretch of sleep. That will make all the difference. Those three hour cat naps just don't cut it."

He chuckled: "It seems weird getting parenting advice from you."

I grinned at the irony of that statement. "Yeah, I bet it does."

I was happy to escape to work on Monday, although I felt bad about leaving Elle with my parents. She didn't seem to mind though. I checked in on Wilson and Cuddy in the afternoon. His dad had driven to Newark that morning and picked up Judith Cuddy at the airport. It had been a long time since I'd see her. Although there were streaks of silver in her hair, she was just as regal as she had been twenty years ago.

She enveloped my hand in both of hers. Her voice was quiet, yet commanding. "Greg. It's good to see you again. Lisa tells me you've been quite busy lately."

She had a twinkle in her eyes, which told me that she knew all the details of my life.

I smirked: "Yes, keeping an eye on your daughter's pregnant rotundous ass has been a full-time job."

She gave me a small smile. "I see fatherhood hasn't changed you a bit. Your bride-to-be doesn't mind that you stare at my daughter's tush?"

"Not at all. Elle knows that Cuddy's tush has been in my life for more than 20 years. She understands that I can't just throw a relationship of that longevity down the drain just because I knocked her up and plan to marry her in the not-so-distant future."

Judith smiled: "I look forward to meeting her. She sounds like an extremely tolerant young lady."

I found myself doing something that I had never imagined myself doing. I pulled out my cell phone and showed Judith a photo of Elle and Rachel.

Judith examined the image closely and smiled: "I was wrong. Fatherhood has changed you. She's lovely and your daughter is adorable."

I murmured 'thank you' and stuffed my cell back in my jacket pocket. No one else in the room seemed to notice my little photo flash, so I got to my feet and excused myself to head back to the office. I had my own relatives at home; there was no need to deal with anyone else's at work too.

Later that night, as we cuddled in bed, Elle dropped a bombshell on me. "Your Mom made an appointment at Taylor Studios."

That name meant nothing to me. "And?"

"She wants us to go and sit for a family portrait."

I grimaced: "You are joking, right?"

"No I'm not. She wants a family portrait of the five of us and then she wants extra photos of us with Rachel and the two of them with Rachel and Rachel by herself. She says she is going to pay for all of it."

I sputtered: "It's not the money; it's just. It's so."

I groaned, unable to get the words out of my mouth concerning my thoughts on a 'family portrait' with my Dad in it.

Slowly, Elle said: "I didn't think you'd be too excited about it. Neither did Blythe, really. That's why she asked _me_ to tell you about it."

My voice dripped with bitterness. "Great. Mom dumped the dirty work on you, how special is that?"

She stroked my back. "I know you don't want to do it, but it would mean a lot to your Mom. Your parents won't be with us forever and it would be nice for Rachel to have that photo as a remembrance in the future. Please consider doing it for her."

Elle snuggled into my chest and didn't say anything else. I wrapped my arms tightly around her and nuzzled the top of her head. Elle knew my soft spot. She knew that I would do anything for my daughter. I couldn't understand why having a portrait of the family would be a big deal for Rachel later on; I figured it was Elle's perception, something to do with losing her parents at such a young age. She absolutely cherished the few family photos that she had left.

I still hadn't figured out what was wrong with my Dad, but whatever it was, it probably was going to shorten his life. He may be gone before Rachel could make any conscious memories of him. She may not have a chance to twist him around her little finger and beg him to buy her anything she wanted at the toy store. Judging how my Dad was acting right now, it wouldn't take much twisting. I had a sudden vision of a pony under the Christmas tree, chomping on a branch, with a sign around its neck, stating: _'love from Opa'_. I wondered if he would always be loving and gentle with her, or would he change back to the tyrant that I had known? Would he be acting differently if I'd had a son instead of a daughter? Would the macho Marine be trying his best to make my son a 'man'?

I may not have all the answers, but I knew one thing. If _alien Dad_ ever left and _real Dad_ returned, acting like he had during my childhood, he would never be allowed around Rachel again. As long as _alien Dad_ was here, I thought I might be able to tolerate his presence for Rachel's sake.

In a grumpy voice, I asked: "When's the appointment?"

Her voice was muffled since her face was pressed against my chest. "Wednesday evening."

"I'm not wearing a suit."

"I thought you would look nice in your sky-blue shirt. It really brings out your eyes."

I looked deeply into her blue eyes. "You should wear blue too. It's a good color for you."

She smiled and kissed my cheek. "OK. I will. Does this mean you'll do it?"

I rubbed my pelvis against her and nipped her earlobe. In a husky whisper, I said: "You owe me."

"You want payment tonight or after the photo session?"

"Both."

She slipped her hand inside my boxers. "You drive a hard bargain."

I pushed a certain part of my anatomy against her hand. "You love it when it's hard."

As she tugged my boxers down, she whispered: "You got that right."

Cuddy and BJ got discharged on Tuesday. I think half of the hospital staff showed up to see their departure. Behind their backs, money was being exchanged as the winners got their share of the pot. I saw Chapman stick a decent side roll of bills in his back pocket as he headed back to the OR. I guessed the closest on the weight pool and pocketed $300 for my effort. Elle called me later to report that she had gone over to their place to help out, but with three grandparents in residence, she felt superfluous and came back home.

Tuesday was also the Yahrzeit for Elle's family. When I got home from work, Elle and Rachel were all dressed up and getting ready to leave for the 6:00 service at the synagogue. I didn't really want to go, but I didn't want her going alone either. Having my parents go along was not an option, even for Elle. This was one occasion where substitute parents would not do. I wasn't sure why she insisted on taking Rachel instead of leaving her with my parents, but it wasn't worth an argument. I drove us there, and even wore the stupid beanie for the short service. At sunset, when it was time to light the 24-hour Yahrzeit candle, Elle explained the tradition to my parents and instructed them to not blow out the candle, but to leave it burning until it extinguished itself. After we went to bed, she cried a little but not as much as I had expected.

We went for our photo shoot on Wednesday evening. As Elle had requested, I wore my sky-blue shirt. Elle wore a sleeveless blue dress that matched her eyes while Rachel looked cute in her little blue flowered dress. The appointment seemed endless to me. Naturally there was the shot of the five of us. I had hoped it would be only one pose, but that was not to be. First Elle and I were seated, holding Rachel while my parents stood behind us. Then my parents sat, holding Rachel while we stood behind them. After several poses of my parents with Rachel, then it was our turn for photos of the three of us. Finally there were several shots of Rachel by herself. Behind my parents' back, I mimed tying a noose around my neck and hanging myself. Elle clapped her hand over her mouth and her shoulders shook as she laughed silently. It was almost 8PM by the time we were finished. The photographer told Mom that he would have a disc of the poses ready tomorrow, so she made plans to return tomorrow afternoon.

_**Elle**_

Greg handled the photo shoot better than I thought he would. He didn't start to lose his patience until the very end when the photographer was taking the photos of Rachel by herself. Behind his parents' back, he mimed tying a noose, throwing it over a branch and hanging himself. It was rather funny and I managed to not laugh out loud. Greg stopped his actions right before his father turned around, a talent that I'm sure he mastered in his childhood.

While Greg was at work the next day, the four of us returned to the photography studio in the afternoon. Blythe and I went through the shots while the Colonel played with Rachel, after saying that he would be happy with whatever we chose. We picked out two shots of the five of us, one with Greg and I holding Rachel and the other one with her grandparents holding her. We ended up picking five different shots of Rachel; they were all so cute that we couldn't decide between them. There was one shot of the three of us that I just loved. Greg was holding Rachel in one arm and he had his other arm around me. His cheek was pressed against my forehead and there was a small smile on his face. He looked proud and happy. I had a big smile on my face; Rachel was looking right at the camera and laughing. The picture could not be more perfect. Blythe and I agreed that it was the best one of the three of us. We placed our order and headed for home.

That night I put the disc in the computer and showed the photos to Greg. I didn't tell him which ones we'd ordered; I just waited to see which ones he would like best. After zipping through the photos and pronouncing most of them as 'lame' or 'cheesy', he finally landed on that particular photo of the three of us. He looked at it for a long moment, but didn't say anything.

Finally I had to ask: "You like that one?"

He smirked: "It's less lame than the others."

"Good. I got you a 5 x 7 for your desk."

He rolled his eyes. "Do I look like the kind of guy who puts family photos on his desk?"

"Well, if you don't want it on your desk, you can hide it in the bottom drawer with your scotch, but you are getting a copy for your office."

He smirked but didn't say anything else.

When we received our copies of the photos, I framed the ones that I liked and hung them in various places around the house. I hung one of Rachel with her grandparents in her room. I wanted her to be able to see them when they weren't around and remind her who they were. When I handed Greg his 5 x 7 of the three of us, he just rolled his eyes and accepted it from me in silence. It was a few weeks before I went back to the hospital again, for one of Rachel's checkups. When I walked into his office to see if he was available to go with us, I saw the photo on his desk, next to the computer monitor. He had actually bought a decent frame for it and displayed it in such a way that he could see it while working at his desk. I grinned inwardly; he really liked the photo although he would never admit it. I certainly wasn't going to draw any attention to it, as I knew it would just embarrass him.

He had been typing an e-mail when we walked in. I left him finish and hit 'send' before asking: "Are you free to come with us?"

Greg nodded and logged off of his computer. I took his hand as we walked towards his office door and in a soft voice, I said: "I love you."

He smirked: "What brought that on?"

"What? I can't just say it when I feel like it?"

"Meh, you usually have a reason. You probably just want to get in my pants."

I squeezed his hand as we walked down the hall. "Yup, that's it. You got me all figured out."

_**HOUSE**_

I closed my phone. "We're invited to a tip snipping party."

Elle rolled her eyes. "It's called a _bris_."

I smirked: "Yeah, that."

Mom asked: "What's a bris, dear?"

I replied: "It's the ritual mutilation of a Jewish baby's penis. They throw a party for it."

Elle turned to Mom and said: "The baby is circumcised when he is 8 days old. There is a special ceremony when the circumcision is done and then there is usually a small party afterwards."

I chuckled: "Yup, snip the tip off and have some beef tips for lunch afterwards."

Elle rolled her eyes again.

Mom asked: "At eight days old? So that's Monday, right? Oh dear, we're supposed to leave on Monday."

I replied: "No, Wilson said it's on Sunday. Something about BJ being born before sunset, so the eighth day is technically on Sunday."

Elle said happily: "Oh, good. You'll still be here. You don't want to miss this. It is a very special occasion."

I smirked: "Yeah, nothing like watching a screaming baby get the end of his dick cut off."

Mom gave an exasperated sigh: "Oh, Greg, don't be so vulgar. The only reason you weren't circumcised is because you were born in Italy and they didn't routinely do that over there. If you had been born in the States, your tip would have been snipped too."

I muttered: "Well, the Marine Corp did me one good turn."

So now we had plans for Sunday and I just needed to get through Saturday with my parents. I still hadn't figured out what was going on with Dad. He still had the tremor from time to time and I saw him swallowing some tablets early one morning, but he claimed that they were vitamins that Mom was insisting he take. They looked too small to be vitamins, but I let it go, although I wished I had gotten a better look at the tablets before he swallowed them. He didn't seem quite so fatigued on this trip. Maybe the 'vitamins' were helping.

Mom solved the Saturday dilemma for us. At breakfast, she announced that they were baby-sitting for the day so that we could have a 'date'. Elle and I looked at each other and nodded, instantly deciding to take advantage of the free baby-sitting deal. Elle pumped a couple of extra bottles and off we went.

It had been a long time since we had had a free day like this. We weren't quite sure what to do with ourselves. I was tempted to just check into a hotel; having a long hot bath, some sex and a nap without any interruptions sounded really good to me, but I thought it would be nice for Elle to get out and do something fun.

We took the motorcycle. We had not ridden together in almost a year, since very early in Elle's pregnancy. I had missed the feel of her thighs pressed up against mine and her arms wrapped around me as we leaned into the curves together. We started out with no particular destination in mind and then as we headed south on Route 206, I decided to head to New Hope, PA. It was a pretty drive on the back roads and we could have a nice lunch in New Hope and wander around the antique shops and art galleries for a while. It wasn't a long ride, only 20 miles or so, but I took it slow and easy, enjoying the ride and the scenery. We took a detour at Washington Crossing State Park and rode through the park for a while, before continuing up River Road towards New Hope. The scenery along the river was spectacular and judging by the big squeeze that Elle gave me, I knew she was enjoying it too.

New Hope is a small village right on the Delaware River. It is full of 'charming' little B & B's, restaurants, antique shops and art galleries. I had taken Stacy here once, years ago, for a romantic weekend that didn't end so well. I pushed those thoughts out of my head as we cruised down Main Street looking for parking. I found some motorcycle parking next to the Information Center, right in the middle of town, so we left the bike there and headed out to explore the place.

I'm not really into shopping, but I had to admit that it was kinda fun to poke around in these shops. We wandered in and out of art galleries, antique shops and spent a long time in a cool leather store. The place smelled so good that it gave me a bit of a buzz. We each bought a new pair of boots and arranged to have them mailed home, since transporting them on the bike would be a bit dicey and I didn't want Elle's backpack weighed down with them.

We ate a late lunch at The Landing restaurant, managing to score a table on the terrace overlooking the river. The view was lovely; Elle looked so happy and relaxed and I was pleased with myself for giving her such a nice day. This was probably a better choice than just shacking up in a Princeton hotel.

We had fried calamari and lobster/shrimp spring rolls for starters. We each tried one of their specialty beers, but agreed to only have one since we were on the motorcycle. I tried the Victory Hop Devil Ale which was outstanding, and Elle had a bottle of Pete's Wicked Ale that she rated a B plus. I had an excellent meatloaf sandwich on French bread while Elle decided on a chicken and vegetable wrap. Both sandwiches came with fries, but I ended up eating half of hers anyway. The desserts all sounded so delicious that it was difficult to decide amongst them. I finally went for the strawberry-rhubarb cobbler with vanilla ice cream while Elle had a very Decadent Brownie with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce on top. I conned her into sharing with me and after feigning reluctance, I did give her a few bites of mine.

We were completely stuffed after that huge lunch. We took our time strolling back to the bike, wandering into Farley's bookstore and into 2 or 3 more art galleries, before starting our ride back to Princeton. We took a different route back via Lambertville Hopewell Road. It wasn't quite as scenic, but it was a slightly shorter distance. Elle was starting to get anxious about getting back to Rachel; this was the longest time she had been away from her since the night we spent at the Hilton.

Rachel was crying when we walked in. Mom was heating up a bottle while Dad bounced her on the sofa. When our Rug-rat saw her Mama, she held up her little arms for Elle to take her. I saw a soft smile creep across Elle's face as she hurried across the living room to pick up our child. Elle plopped down on the couch, opposite Dad, who quickly averted his eyes as Elle lifted her shirt and opened the milk bar for Rachel. Elle let out a contented sigh as Rachel started to suckle. Her breasts had felt heavy, pressed into my back during the ride home, and nursing was undoubtedly giving her some relief.

Mom came out of the kitchen and put her arm around my waist. She gave me a squeeze and asked: "So how was your date? Did you have a good time?"

I put my arm across her shoulder and gave her a return squeeze. "Yeah, we had a great time."

Elle piped in: "We rode over to New Hope, wandered around in the shops and had a nice lunch. It was very relaxing. Thank you so much for baby-sitting."

Mom smiled at her and said: "Our pleasure, dear. We have to get in as much baby time as we can before we go home."

Mom and Dad exchanged a look and I wondered what that was about. But Mom abruptly changed the subject by announcing that she had made chicken cacciatore for dinner and that it would be ready in 30 minutes. I headed off to our bathroom to wash the grime of the road off of me before dinner, pondering all the while about the various signs and symptoms that I had seen during the course of their visit. I was no closer to figuring out a diagnosis and there were only two days left of their visit. I needed some answers, but I wasn't sure how to get them.


	76. Chapter 76

Chapter 76

**_HOUSE_**

The bris was scheduled for 11AM, with a buffet luncheon to follow. When we walked in, I was startled to see so many people in Cuddy's living room. It looked like Wilson had invited the entire oncology department along with all the board members. I was just wondering if staying for the food was going to be worth putting up with this crowd when more people arrived, including all three of my ducklings. Great. It was bad enough that Elle wanted to invite them to our wedding, citing how helpful they had been during her pregnancy and they were my team, after all, blah, blah, blah, but here they were at the Cuddy-Wilson bris too. The food had better be outstanding to put up with this crap.

Naturally, Cameron spied my parents right away and dragged Chase over to say hello to them. I managed to ease around the corner of the credenza and eavesdrop on the conversation without being seen.

Cameron, gushing: "Mr. and Mrs. House. Hi, I don't know if you remember me or not. I'm Allison Cameron and I work with your son."

Dad: "I never forget a pretty face. Nice to see you again."

Cameron: "And this is Robert Chase."

Mom: "It's so nice to meet you, dear. Elle told us that you two were dating. She wasn't sure exactly how to address the invitation."

Chase: "Invitation?"

Mom: "To the wedding, of course."

Cameron, sounding confused: "What wedding?"

Mom: "Why, Greg and Elle's wedding, of course. I was helping her address the invitations this past week. She wasn't sure if she should send each of you an invitation or send just one with both of your names on it. But I told her that proper etiquette states that unless the two people are engaged or living together that they should receive separate invitations."

Chase, sounding happy: "And we're invited? To their wedding?"

Mom: "Yes, of course, dear. And Dr. Foreman too."

I could hear Chase chuckling and I suppressed a groan. I heard him calling to Foreman who apparently walked over to join the jolly group.

Chase: "Mr. and Mrs. House, I'd like to introduce Eric Foreman, the other member of our team. Foreman, these are House's parents."

Foreman: "Very nice to meet you both."

My parents in unison: "Nice to meet you."

Chase: "I have some very interesting news. House and Elle are getting married and we're invited."

Foreman, sounding shocked: "Really?"

There was a pause while I'm sure he was digesting the news and trying to come up with a polite response.

Foreman: "Well, that's great. You must be very happy to see your son getting married. Elle is a lovely woman."

Mom: "She certainly is. Greg is very lucky to have met her."

Cameron: "So when is the happy day? We need to mark it on our calendars."

Mom: "Saturday, Sept 6th, down in Cape May at a lovely B & B. There will be rooms reserved for you. Elle assumed that you two would be sharing a room."

I figured Mom meant the two who liked to screw in the janitor's closet. And then Cameron stammered out an answer: "Yes, that would be fine."

Mom: "Wonderful! Oh, there's James' parents. We haven't had a chance to say hello to them yet. If you'll just excuse us."

Chase, politely: "Of course, Mrs. House. It was lovely meeting both of you and we look forward to seeing you again at the wedding."

Dad: "It should be a lot of fun. I've never been to a wedding on the beach before. No suit required! We don't even have to wear shoes."

I wanted to slink out the door and head on home, but we had all come together in the Caddy and it wouldn't be fair to Rachel if I took off with the car seat. I sighed and prepared myself to deal with the fall-out from that conversation in the weeks to come.

Apparently the ducklings were too shell-shocked to mingle. Just when I thought they were gone and about to move from my hiding spot, I heard Foreman say: "They seem so normal, don't they? How did House get the way he is?"

Chase: "Dunno. Maybe he was dropped on his head as a child. Can you believe that we are invited to their wedding?"

Cameron: "I'll believe it when I see the invitation. I hope we didn't have any other plans that weekend cuz we are definitely canceling them and going to this wedding."

Foreman: "It should be very interesting. I can't see House standing up before a judge or minister and reciting words of love in front of an audience. You are right, Cameron, this is a no-miss event."

This time they did wander off and I was able to escape from my hiding spot. Foreman's departing words made me groan. I wondered if it was too late to convince Elle to just elope instead.

The living room had been rearranged. The kitchen table had been moved in front of the fireplace and was covered with a white tablecloth. On the table were 2 silver candleholders containing long white tapers, a small bouquet of flowers, a silver goblet and four framed photographs. I found out later that the photos were of baby Wilson being held by his parents, at his own bris, baby Cuddy with her parents, a photo of Cuddy's dad and a photo of Wilson's uncle, the baby's two namesakes. There was also a watch on the table that I found out later had belonged to Cuddy's dad. Next to the table was a sturdy high backed chair with 2 bed pillows.

Precisely at 11:30, Wilson and the mohel, Dr Goldblatt, stepped behind the table. Wilson's dad sat down in the high-backed chair, one pillow at his back, and the other on his lap, while Miriam stood behind the chair. Goldblatt called: _"K'vatterin"_ and Cuddy stepped into the room, carrying her son who was wrapped in a white blanket. There was a collective 'ah' from the crowd. Cuddy smiled at everyone and handed the baby off to her mother. As Judith carried the baby to the front of the room, several people called out: _"Baruch Haba_." Judith handed the baby off to Wilson who stood there, beaming proudly while Goldblatt recited some more Hebrew.

Wilson gently handed the baby over to his dad who held BJ on the pillow. Elle explained to me that Pete was the _sandak_, the one who holds the baby during the circumcision. It is considered to be the highest honor and is usually reserved for the grandfather. A wine-soaked gauze pad was placed in the baby's mouth for a minute and then removed. The actual cutting part didn't take long, but I swear that every man in the room had his hand over his own genitals during that moment. BJ screamed, of course, but that was to be expected. I glanced at Cuddy; she had her hand over her mouth and tears in her eyes. As soon as that part was done and his little penis bandaged, BJ was wrapped up in the blanket and handed back to Cuddy, who tried to soothe him. Two servers walked around the room with small tumblers of sweet wine and each guest took one. Once everyone had a glass, Wilson's older brother walked to the front of the room and picked up the silver goblet. He said the _Kiddish_ and we all drank our wine.

After another spiel of Hebrew, Goldblatt switched to English. "Our G*d and G*d of our ancestors, let this child's name be known in Israel as _Binyamin Yaakov ben James v'_ _Leila. _May the entire family derive joy and pleasure from him, and may G*d endow his parents with understanding and love that they may raise their son with an appreciation for Torah and for all the Jewish traditions. In turn, may his heart forever express kindness to all of mankind and all of creation. Let us say, amen."

There was a murmuring of Amen's, some more Hebrew and then Cuddy's sister stepped forward and said the _Motzi_ over a loaf of Challah. After one more prayer in Hebrew, all the Jews in the room started singing and clapping. _'Simen Tov und Mazel_ _Tov'_ was a tune I had heard before and I knew it was sung at times of celebration. Thankfully, the singing didn't last long and then it was time to eat.

The event was catered; I assumed since Goldblatt was there, he was the reason for the kosher meat buffet. There may not have been any cream cheese for the bagels but the rest of the spread more than made up for it. Serving platters containing brisket, carved turkey, meatballs, cold poached salmon, bagels, lox, three kinds of potatoes, kugels, salads and multiple assorted vegetables were crowded onto a long buffet table.

I gave Wilson a nudge: "What, no shrimp cocktail or lobster salad?"

He flipped his hand at me: "It's from a kosher caterer. What can I tell you?"

Elle and Rachel had disappeared upstairs with Cuddy, BJ and the grandmothers, presumably for a quiet nursing session. My dad was occupied talking to Wilson's dad, so I made myself a plate and found a quiet spot to eat. Just as I was tucking into the tender brisket on my plate, Chase sat down in the empty seat next to me.

We ate in silence for a few minutes and then he said: "I hear you're getting married."

I swallowed my current mouthful and answered: "That's the rumor."

"Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials. I feel honored to be amongst the invited."

"That was Elle's doing. If I'd had my choice, we would have eloped weeks ago."

"Ah, women. They always want to make a big thing out of tying the knot, don't they? My sister's wedding had almost 200 people."

I rolled my eyes. "Christ. That's huge. Twenty-five people is 21 too many for me."

He chuckled and continued eating.

After a few minutes, he went on. "You know, I've heard that both parties have to be Jewish to have a Jewish wedding."

Wondering where he was going with this, I said: "So I've been told."

"That means you'd have to convert. And if you're converting, you'd have to have _that_ done." With his fork, he pointed towards the front of the room where the ceremonial table still stood.

I frowned at him: "Well, _that_ ain't happening."

He grinned: "What? You wouldn't have your tip snipped for the woman you loved?"

I snorted: "Any woman I loved would _not_ ask me to do that. What about you? Would you do it for your little woman?"

His eyes flew open. "Snip the end off of my willy? Oh, hell, no."

I forked up another bite of brisket. "Finally we're finally in agreement on something. Good thing for you that Cameron isn't Jewish. If she were, your willy would be in for a trim."

**_HOUSE_**

We stayed at their house most of the afternoon. When we got home, Elle and I managed a short nap while my parents kept an eye on Rachel.

After supper, while Elle and Dad were in the living room playing with Rachel, Mom beckoned me into their bedroom. Thinking she needed some help with the packing, I followed her without thinking about it. She shut the door behind me and said: "I wanted to talk with you about something, dear."

The closed door indicated that she didn't want to be overheard by Dad or Elle or both. My interested piqued, I flopped down on the bed and said: "Sure, Mom. What's on your mind?"

She sat on the bed next to me and stared at her hands for a moment. "Your father and I have been talking. And. Well. You know we are just crazy about Rachel."

I chuckled: "Stating the obvious, Mom. You two are going to be on the cover of next month's _'Doting Grandparents'_ magazine."

Mom sighed: "It's been a long time since I've been around a baby. I'd forgotten how much fun they can be. Especially when they are not your own and you can hand them back when they start crying."

I had to chuckle at that comment.

Mom went on: "We live so far away that I'm concerned Rachel won't get to know us."

"She'll know you. You'll come and visit and we'll talk on the phone. You know, you could get a web-cam and we could call on the computer and then we could see each other while we talk."

"That would be nice, dear, but I was wondering about a different solution."

"What's that, Mom?"

In a soft voice, she said: "We were wondering how you would feel about us moving to New Jersey."

I was taken aback. "Move here? But Dad always said he wanted to retire near a base and there's no Marine base in New Jersey."

"Things have changed now. You have a family and we want to be near you. Plus if something happens to one of us, the other one wouldn't be all alone and across the country from you."

My antennae went up immediately. Maybe I'd find out what was going on now. I played it cagey. "Mom. What aren't you telling me? You're not sick, are you?"

"No, dear, I just had a check-up and I'm in great shape for a 70 year old broad."

"Then it's Dad, isn't it? He tries to hide it but I've noticed the tremor in his hand and he seems to fatigue easily."

With a hint of sarcasm in her voice, she said: "You know your father. Once a Marine, always a Marine. The few, the proud, the strong. Semper fi and all that. Be tough. Never show your weaknesses."

"Mom, you're evading."

"Drop it, Greg. He doesn't want you to know. The only reason he told me was because I had to drive him to a few of the appointments. He's on medication and he's fine at the moment. Discussion closed. Getting back to my original topic, what do you think about us moving to New Jersey?"

I frowned; this wasn't the conversation that I wanted to continue. "You really want to move all the way across the country?"

She waved her hand at me. "After so many moves over the last 50 years, what's one more? Especially knowing it will be the last one."

"You said it was the last one when you moved to Camp Pendleton. And the climate is completely different here. Southern California is balmy year-round and you'll have to deal with ice and snow again in New Jersey."

"I know what cold weather is like, dear; we've lived in plenty of cold places. Remember that year we spent in Japan? That was a brutal winter. And I still have my heavy coat and other winter clothes."

"There's no base, so where would you live? Would you buy a house?"

"We were thinking more along the lines of an apartment or a condo. At our age, we don't want to have the upkeep of a yard and your Dad shouldn't be out shoveling snow."

"And Dad is willing to move away from the base?"

Mom took a deep breath and sat up straighter as if she were about to deliver a lecture. "If your father needs some cronies to swap war stories with over a few beers, he can go hang out at the local VFW. Meanwhile, I'll be _hanging _with my granddaughter as often as possible."

I stared down at the floor, tapping out a staccato rhythm with my cane. I had never considered that the appearance of a grandchild would make my parents want to move closer to us.

Mom went on: "And whenever you and Elle want to go out, you have a free baby-sitter that is completely trustworthy."

I thought about how happy that this would make Elle, to have Rachel's only set of grandparents near-by. She adored my Mom and she and Dad seemed to be getting along pretty well these days, especially when you consider that rocky start back when I first introduced her to them. And I couldn't deny that the baby-sitting offer wasn't appealing. Having Mom near-by would be nice, and I supposed that I could tolerate _Alien Dad_ for short periods of time. This version of Dad seemed to have much more patience with Rachel than he ever had with me. And while a part of me would never be able to forgive him for all the things he did when I was a kid, another voice in my head told me that it was time to let go of that anger and let my Dad enjoy his granddaughter for whatever amount of time that he had left. That voice sounded amazingly like Elle's, with a touch of Wilson and a smidge of Mom thrown in.

I was silent for so long that Mom finally interrupted my thoughts. In a sad voice, choked with emotion, she said: "But if you'd rather we didn't, I understand."

She turned her face away from me, but not before I saw the glimmer of tears forming in her eyes.

I couldn't tell her 'no'. I knew Dad was sick and I wondered how long he had left. Mom didn't want to be left all alone on the other side of the country and I didn't want that either.

I put my arm around her shoulder and gave her a little squeeze. "I think we should go tell Rachel that her Opa and Oma will be seeing her a lot more often."

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Naturally Elle squealed with joy when she heard the news. "Oh, this is great. It will be wonderful having you nearby. Rachel will get to see you all the time. But it's too bad you're leaving tomorrow. We could start looking for your new home."

Mom said: "I know dear, but we need to get back."

"Well, I'll start looking around for a nice condo for you. Plus, you can do an Internet search and when you see something you like, I can go check it out for you."

Mom and Elle chattered away about condos versus apartments while Dad and I just listened. Finally, he looked at me and said quietly: "We won't be in your hair all the time. I'll try to keep her confined and only let her out once a week or so."

I snorted: "Keep Mom penned up when her granddaughter is in such close proximity? Good luck with that."

Later that night when Elle and I were in bed, I relayed the rest of the conversation to her.

"I know there's something wrong and he's taking meds for it, passing them off as 'vitamins'. Why don't they tell me what's going on? I'm their son and a doctor, after all."

"I guess your Dad has his reasons. He's not going to show his weak side if he can help it. He wants to maintain that illusion of being strong and tough. He may not be active duty anymore, but he'll be a Marine until the day he dies."

"Which may not be very far away."

She pleaded: "Don't say that. I want them to be around for Rachel."

I pulled her into my arms. "I know that, sweetheart, but if I don't know what's wrong with him, it's hard to know how much longer he has."

She looked at me in alarm: "You don't think it's so bad that he won't live until the wedding, do you?"

"I think if he were that bad, then Mom would break down and tell me."

She snuggled deeper into my embrace: "I hope so."

"But I also don't think he has years left because the subject of moving came up rather suddenly."

"Good point."

I pondered out loud: "He's in the VA system, so it will be really hard for me to snoop there and find out. It's very hard to hack into their system. There must be another way. Maybe I can get Chase to call his doctor for a consult or something."

Elle sighed: "If your Dad wanted you to know, he would tell you."

"Why doesn't he want me to know?"

"Cuz he is still the 'dad'. Dads can't show weakness, they have to be strong for the family. Even your Mom eluded to that."

Now that I was a Dad, I could grasp that concept a little bit better. It seems like biological design for the male of the species to protect his mate and offspring from potential predators, whether they threaten with spears, knives, teeth, claws or disease. Mom said that she only found out because she had to drive him to a few of his appointments, otherwise I'm betting he would have kept it a secret from her too.

Elle leaned up and gave me a kiss. "I'm driving them to the airport tomorrow after you go to work. Let me see what I can find out."

I kissed her back. "Good girl. You snoop in the hand luggage for his meds while they are busy with Rachel."

She raised one eyebrow at me: "That's one way to find out."

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Around 3:30, my cell phone starting singing _'Sex Bomb'_ by Tom Jones. I smiled; it was Elle.

I flipped the phone open: "They get off, OK?"

"Just a few tears from your Mom when she was saying good-bye to Rachel. Otherwise, no problems. I had to rearrange the luggage in the trunk a little bit to make room for the stroller while your parents were getting Rachel buckled into her car seat."

"Oh, clever woman. Tell me you got a look in Dad's bag."

"He's on Coumadin, digoxin, and amiodarone. What does that tell you?"

I thought quickly. "Cardiac arrhythmia with a need for a blood thinner. He's at risk for throwing a clot. He's got atrial fibrillation. Well, that explains why he cut down on his beer intake. He must not have been on meds when they came to visit the first time. That would explain the fatigue and the shortness of breath. In between visits, his doctor must have stabilized him on meds, cuz he did seem better this trip."

"What are you going to do now that you know about it?"

"What can I do? Tell him my wife snooped in his bag to find out what meds he's on? At least I know what's going on now. The puzzle is solved."

"But he's more than just a puzzle. He's your Dad and Rachel's Grandpa. There are some other treatments that might help him more than just meds alone. Maybe a cardioversion would help."

"We don't know that he hasn't already had one, sweetheart. They could have put him on the meds afterwards. Besides, how am I going to talk to him about something that I'm not supposed to know about?"

Elle started to cry: "I don't want him to die. I want Rachel to know her Opa."

I closed my eyes in frustration. I didn't want to be having this conversation over the phone; this subject was too emotional for Elle. "Sweetheart, with meds and the lifestyle changes that he has already made, he can live a long time with A Fib. Please don't cry. I can drop a few hints to Mom and see if she bites. If I can't get anywhere over the phone, I'll see what happens when they come back for the wedding. OK?"

She sniffed: "OK. Thank you."

"I'll be home soon. If you haven't started dinner yet, can we have pizza tonight?"

"Sure. We'll call for delivery."

"Great. I'll be home in about an hour."

She blew me a kiss and we ended the call. I leaned back in my chair and thought for a moment. Atrial fibrillation is the most common heart arrhythmia. Dad could live a long time on meds or he could have a life-threatening heart attack or stroke at any moment. When I thought back over all the years that I wished my Dad were dead, now at age 49, I found myself hoping, for Elle and Rachel's sake, that he would live just a little bit longer.

Elle stayed busy in the week following their visit. If she wasn't finalizing wedding plans, or checking in with Wilson and Cuddy, she was scouring real estate ads looking for a condo for my parents. Mom and Elle spoke almost every day, comparing notes on the places they had seen on-line. Elle had started a list of the condos that she wanted to check out in person for my parents. When I had the chance to talk to Mom, I dropped a few hints about Dad's 'vitamins', but it was to no avail. Mom just told me not to worry, that Dad was taking his 'vitamins' and doing just fine.

Elle's maternity leave was officially ending on July 11 and she still had not decided if she was going back to work or not. She seemed to be avoiding the subject, so finally on Thursday night, I bought it up over dinner.

"You know, you have to let Kirby know tomorrow if you are going back to your job or not."

She bit her lip. "I know."

I waited a few minutes, but Elle didn't say anything more. "You're really procrastinating about this. What's up? You don't want to go back to work?"

"I don't want you to be mad."

"Why would I be mad that you don't want to go back to work? Hell, I don't want to go to work most of the time."

"I didn't know how you would feel if I continued to stay home for a while."

She was worried about my feelings. I still hadn't gotten used to that. In an encouraging tone, I said: "Why don't you tell me what you want to do?"

Elle leaned across the table and took my hand, her thumb stroking my palm. "I don't want to work full-time while Rachel is still so young. I was thinking of maybe waiting until she was 6 months old and I start to wean her and then going back part-time just to do pain management. Maybe by then, your parents will be here and they could baby-sit her while I go to work."

I didn't want Rug-rat in daycare. Too many germy kids that would give her who knows what diseases. My parents could handle being part-time baby-sitters; in fact, they would love it. They could get a lot of their 'baby fix' while I was at work and perhaps I wouldn't have to see them so often. Seemed like a win-win solution to me. I nodded: "OK."

Her face lit up. "Really? You don't mind?"

"No, I don't mind. I was thinking that you should at least wait until after the wedding. It's less than two months away and you'd have to take time off for it, so you may as well wait to go back. And if you want to take longer, that's fine too."

She squeezed my hand. "Thank you cowboy."

I smirked: "Did you really think I'd mind?"

Elle shrugged: "I was afraid that if I stayed home too long that you would start to find me boring. You know, only talking about the baby and stuff like that."

I stood up and walked around the table. Taking her hand, I tugged her onto her feet. Embracing her tightly, I looked her right in the eye and said: "You could never be boring."

My lips crashed down on hers. She tangled her arms around my neck, our tongues tangoed and we became completely lost in each other.

When we finally came up for air, she whispered: "I can't wait to marry you. I can't wait to be your wife."

My mind flashed back to the ducklings' conversation at the bris. I murmured: "There's no need to wait. Let's just go to Virginia this weekend and get married. We don't need a big wedding."

Stroking my cheek, she said: "Oh, it's not that big a wedding. It will be fun and everyone's looking forward to it. Plus I already mailed the invitations. It's too late to call it off."

I groaned inwardly; I was on the hook for the wedding after all.

_**CHASE**_

We stopped in the lobby so that I could grab my mail. When I unlocked my box and removed the mail, I noticed that there was a thick white envelope on the top of the stack. Cameron seized it immediately.

Excitedly she said: "You know what this is?"

I shook my head.

"I bet this is the wedding invitation."

Once we got inside my apartment, she tossed everything else on the table and ripped open the envelope. She was correct; it was the invitation to House's wedding. She read it quickly and then handed it to me, smirking: "You know Elle picked this out. It's too cute for House."

As I read the invitation, I said: "I have a feeling that Elle did most, if not, _all_ of the work for the wedding."

The invitation consisted of a drawing of a barefoot bride and groom standing on the shell-strewn sand with the blue ocean behind them and the following words:

_Rachel Rose House_

_requests the honor of your presence_

_At the wedding of her parents,_

_Arielle Kaplan and Gregory House._

_The ceremony will be held on_

_Saturday September 6__th__, 2008_

_At 4 PM, beachside_

_At the Rhythm of the Sea resort_

_Cape May, NJ._

_Reception immediately following the ceremony._

_Hawaiian/Beach attire requested._

_Shoes optional._

Directions to the wedding, an RSVP card and return envelope were enclosed with the invitation.

Cameron started frantically rummaging in her purse.

I stared at her for a moment and then said: "What are you doing?"

Triumphantly, she held up a pen. She grabbed the RSVP card and started writing.

"Accepting, of course. Like Foreman said, this is a no-miss event. It should be very entertaining."

_One week later._

_**HOUSE**_

I glanced at the little pile of envelopes on the coffee table. "Are these the RSVP's?"

From the kitchen, Elle answered: "Yes."

I shuddered as I stared at the pile, almost afraid to find out just how many people would be there for the public reciting of love vows between Elle and myself. "If most of them are regrets, we'll save a lot of money on the food bill."

Elle walked into the living room with a smirk on her face. "No such luck, cowboy. Everyone is delighted to attend. We only had two regrets."

"Oh, yeah? Who is not attending the social event of the season?"

"Bill Arnello sends his regrets. He and his family will be in Italy. And Tony and Nancy can't make it either, although Tony says he is sending us a gift after the wedding."

I frowned: "Why specifically after the wedding?"

Elle shrugged: "Don't know. That's all he said."

As I pondered the significance of that, Elle went on: "Oh and guess who I saw today?"

I inquired hopefully: "A psychic who told you that we should elope right away and not have a big wedding?"

She laughed. "No, silly. I saw Paul."

"Who?"

Elle rolled her eyes. "You know. Paul. Dry cleaner guy. He wanted to know when you are going to start up the poker games again. He said to call him or drop by and let him know."

We'd been so busy with the baby, the wedding plans and everything else that I hadn't had a poker game since we moved into the new house. I missed stealing money from my pals every week. I needed to put my man cave to more use than just the occasional porn viewing, ball game or monster truck rally.

Elle walked over and wrapped her arms around me. "Why don't you invite the guys over on Wednesday night?"

I rested my cheek on the top of her head, inhaling the comforting scent of her shampoo. "You don't mind?"

"No, we should get back to our usual routine."

I snorted: "We have a baby now. What is our usual routine?"

She stroked my back. "Even with the baby, there is no reason why you can't play poker on Wednesdays and I can't go to yoga on Thursdays."

"Sneaky woman. You have an ulterior motive. You'll let me play poker, so that you can go to yoga."

Elle tilted her head and gave me a look. "My yoga class lasts 90 minutes. Your poker games go on for half the night and I make snacks. Is that such a bad trade-off?"

For 2 hours of baby-sitting, I could have my poker games with no other strings attached. Damn, I had a good woman. I kissed the top of her head. "As long as you make snacks, I think I can live with that."

The following Wednesday, all the regulars showed up for a night of poker. Even Wilson had been released from baby duty for the evening. As promised, Elle provided plenty of snacks. We had pepperoni pizza rolls, pigs-in-a-blanket, chips and pretzels. There was not a vegetable in sight.

I had installed a mini-refrigerator in my room to keep the beer cold and it was fully stocked. There was also the usual selection of scotch and bourbon available. The room's ventilation system seemed to keep the cigar smoke out of the rest of the house. Elle swore that the only time she could smell it was when she walked into the room. I was pleased about that, as I would have hated to give up my weekly cigar.

I started out with beer and as the night rolled on, I switched over the Maker's Mark. The game ended at midnight and I was five hundred bucks richer. After showing the guys out, I headed off to bed, a little tipsy and extremely happy about my night's winnings.

I stripped off, slipped into bed and pulled a sleeping Elle into my arms. By nibbling on her neck, stroking her back and squeezing her ass, I managed to wake her up. My lips crashed down on hers, but she pushed me away.

"Oh, Greg, you smell like a cigar factory."

"That's the smell of victory, sweetheart. I was smokin' hot tonight. Won five hundred bucks."

She murmured sleepily: "That's nice."

I rubbed my growing erection against her thigh. "How 'bout you making me happy?"

Elle reached down and gave Mt. Gregory a gentle squeeze. "You seem pretty happy already, but if you go brush your teeth, I'll make you even happier."

I jumped out of bed as quick as a gimpy old man could. On my way to the bathroom, Elle called out behind me. "And use some mouthwash too."

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A month after BJ was born, Wilson returned to work. I was secretly glad to have him back. I had missed my bestest bud and I was tired of buying my own lunch every day. It was amusing to see him looking sleepy and rumpled in the mornings, quite the change from his usual wide-awake, well-groomed self. I teased him about his appearance, but also dropped a few hints about the methods Elle and I had used to get sufficient sleep. I also started buying two cups of coffee at the kiosk in the morning and dropping one off in his office. Gratitude poured out of every cell in his body, but I waved him off before he could speak. After all, he was still buying me lunch every day. I supposed I could spring for a cup of coffee.

About three weeks after Wilson's return, he casually mentioned over lunch that Cuddy wanted to return to work by the end of September.

I swallowed my bite of Reuben and said: "Wow, that's fast. BJ won't even be 3 months old then. She'll be back to work before Elle will."

He shrugged: "That's what she wants. She is going to start interviewing nannies now."

I took another bite of my Reuben and pondered his words. After wanting a baby for so many years, I was truly surprised that Cuddy wasn't going to stay home longer with him, even though I knew that she considered the hospital her other baby. It would be interesting to see how she juggled motherhood with the demanding schedule of Dean of Medicine. I made a mental note to keep snacks handy for the show.

Wilson and I were returning from lunch when I saw her through the glass walls of my office. Although her back was to us, I would know that hair and the set of her shoulders anywhere. What I didn't know, was why she had come to see me. Before we reached the office, she stood up from the chair and wandered around behind my desk. It was at that moment that Wilson saw her and he gasped. "Holy crap! What's she doing here?"

I shook my head. "Have no idea."

We stood there for a moment, watching her poke around on my desk, but when she picked up the photo, I felt my ire rise. I didn't like anyone touching the photo of my family, but for some reason, having _her_ touch it, made me especially angry. With a tight grip on my cane and a stern look on my face, I limped briskly towards my office.

Behind me, Wilson called: "House? You want me to?"

I waved him off before he could finish his question. Stacy looked up when I entered my office. I'm sure the look I gave her could peel paint right off the wall. She quickly set the photo down and came around in front of my desk.

I wasn't interested in pleasantries. "What are you doing here?"

"Right to the point, as always. No _'hi, how are you?_' '_Whatcha been doing lately'?_"

I snarled: "Yeah, you know I'll all about the small talk. Why are you here? Mark have an appointment?"

"No, he's not here. He's at work."

I limped behind my desk but I did not sit down. "So why are you here? Looking for curry?"

She winced, but went gamely on. "I was thinking about curry."

"I've had lunch, thanks. The closest Indian place is Mehek, one-half mile away on Nassau. They do a mean Vindaloo. I'd suggest heading over there, cuz there's no curry here."

She sank heavily into the chair in front of my desk. "We had a fight."

"And naturally you came running to me? If you notice, my door says, 'Department of Diagnostic Medicine'. It does not say 'Marriage Counseling'."

She stared down at her hands for a moment and then asked in a soft voice: "Are you happy?"

I had no intentions of discussing my personal life with her. "Obviously, you aren't or you wouldn't be here."

Stacy pointed to the photo. "You look so happy in that picture. I can't believe you agreed to have such a formal photo taken. Elle make you do that?"

I had not been thrilled about having the photo made, but it had been Mom's idea to have family photos taken, not Elle's. I had not enjoyed sitting through a lengthy photo shoot with my parents, but I had to admit that I liked the result of this one particular picture of Elle, Rachel and myself.

I eased myself down into my chair as I spoke. "Elle doesn't _make_ me do anything. She says I'm a big boy now and I can make my own decisions."

She rolled her eyes. "And you made up your own mind to sit for that photo? Wow, I'm impressed. Still don't see a ring on your finger. Haven't decided to fully commit to her yet?"

Stacy could still be quite the bitch when she wanted to be. I gave her an evil smile. "The wedding is in two weeks. Sorry we couldn't invite you but it's a small venue. Had to strictly limit the guest list so ex-girlfriends were out."

She smirked: "Like you'd invite me anyway. You still didn't answer my question."

"You didn't answer mine either and I asked first."

"I came here to ask you that question."

"That's a stupid reason. You and Mark have a fight and you come here to ask if I'm happy? Why? Just in the off chance that I wasn't happy, you wanted to treat yourself to some curry?"

Quietly, Stacy said: "Mark wants to adopt a child."

I wasn't expecting that answer. I leaned back in my chair and stared at her. "I seem to recall that you never really wanted kids. Or was it just that you didn't want to have kids with me?"

She smirked: "I seem to recall that you didn't want them either."

I shrugged: "Changed my mind."

"Your daughter wasn't an accident? You wanted her?"

"Her conception was intentional. We both wanted a child."

"And you're happy?"

"How is the level of my contentment going to help you make a decision about whether or not you want to adopt a child with Mark?"

She rolled her eyes and sighed: "I don't know. We're the same age and here you are, just starting out in the parent thing. I thought if you were happy doing it, then perhaps I could be too. The thought of raising a child at my age seems overwhelming, so emotionally and physically challenging."

"It's challenging at any age. There is a lot of sleep deprivation in the beginning."

"We wouldn't be adopting an infant. Mark's been looking at agencies in Central America and the kids range in age from 2 to 8. Since he is fluent in Spanish, he thought it would be an easier transition for the child to have at least one Spanish-speaking parent."

I tilted my head and stared at her for a moment. "It's a big responsibility and I'm guessing you can't give the kid back if it doesn't turn out like you planned. If you're only doing this to save your marriage, you shouldn't. Do it only if you really want to have a child."

She nodded and we sat in silence for a few minutes. Then she said: "You still didn't answer my question. Are you happy?"

What is it with women and this question? First Cuddy asks me this and now Stacy. There are subjects that I prefer not to discuss at all and certainly not with the ex-girlfriend who was responsible for maiming me.

Like a good lawyer, she wouldn't accept my silence for an answer and simply rephrased the question. "If you could go back in time, and undo all of this, would you? If you could go back 10 years, and have your leg back, would you trade it for what you have now?"

There was no contest. As I stared at the photo of Elle, Rachel and me, I shook my head. "No."

She slowly nodded her head. "Thanks for answering my question."

I turned my gaze towards her. "It doesn't tell you what's right for you."

"Maybe not. But if you've found that level of happiness, perhaps it's not too late for me either. Maybe life can start over at 50."

I smirked: "You're 52, but I'm only 49."

"Thanks for the reminder. And you're still an ass."


	77. Chapter 77

Chapter 77

_**HOUSE**_

All the plans were finalized. The cake was ordered, the rings bought and sized and all the other million details squared away. My parents were arriving a few days ahead of time to help out and to also look at some of the condos that Elle had found.

Wilson threw me a bachelor party complete with strippers in a back room of Mickey's Bar. He invited a bunch of doctors from PPTH including Chase and Foreman, our poker buddies and the guys from Elle's band. I don't think Avi and Ricky enjoyed the strippers as much as the rest of us did, but they seemed to have a good time getting shitfaced anyway. Danny and Lenny bought me a lap dance with a sexy blonde named Brandi. She was hot, no doubt, but I had better waiting for me at home, so when she went for my zipper, I shoved her hand away and told her to find someone else to play with. She shrugged and went off to play with one of the ortho surgeons. We were all pretty well lit at the end of the night so it was good planning on Wilson's part to hire a limo to drive us home. I barely got in the door and shoes kicked off before collapsing on the living room couch where I spent the rest of the night.

When I woke up on Saturday, it was past noon. My bleary eyes fell on some items on the coffee table in front of me: a large glass of water, a can of tomato juice, a bottle of Vitamin C, my oxycodone and a note which read: _'Took Rachel out for a while so you could recover in a quiet house. See you this afternoon. Love, E.'_ I fell back on the couch, note clutched to my chest, reminded once again just how much I loved that woman.

My parents arrived on the Sunday night red-eye. Thankfully, I had recovered from my hangover by then. Over the next few days, while I was at work, Elle took them around and showed them some condos and apartments. They were still undecided whether to buy a condo or rent an apartment, so they were looking at both. Personally, I thought they should rent first and see how they liked living in Princeton before they bought anything. Besides the condo market was really stagnant at the moment. They could get a good deal on buying one, but resale was close to impossible. It seemed prudent to take their time on that decision. When I mentioned that to Dad, he actually agreed with me and said that they were going to postpone making a decision about living arrangements until after the wedding.

The five of us headed down to Cape May on Friday morning. Everyone else had planned to arrive either Friday evening after work or Saturday morning. Elle and I finalized everything with the owners, Wolf and Robyn, while my parents took Rachel down to the beach, joining them after we finished our business. Elle sat at the water's edge with Rachel in her lap, letting her feel the wet sand and the water as it splashed over their feet and legs. Rachel squealed with delight from the new sensations while Dad snapped a hundred photos or so. Mom tried to insist that Elle and I spend the night before our wedding apart, but Elle emphatically turned that suggestion down, saying _that_ was one tradition we were not participating in. I was definitely relieved.

It was only 10PM when we crawled into bed, but we were both exhausted from the long day. Elle snuggled into my chest and I held her tightly. I was just about to doze off when I heard her say: "Tomorrow's our wedding day."

I nuzzled the top of her head and let out a deep sigh. "Ummm, hmmmm. Seem to recall that was why we made the trip down here."

Her fingers played with my chest hairs. "I'm about to attach the ball and chain. Any regrets?"

I put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up. As her blue eyes met mine, I said: "Only that we didn't do it sooner."

Her face lit up with a big smile and she planted a tender kiss on my lips.

I stroked her cheek. "What about you, sweetheart? You have any regrets? Sorry you didn't get the chance to screw Hugh Jackman before we tied the knot?"

She smirked: "You didn't get to screw Angelina Jolie either."

"You're hotter than she is, but I'll make ya a deal. If either of them knocks on our door and wants a shag, we give each other permission to cheat just that once."

"A freebie? I can boink Hugh and you can shtupp Angelina with no repercussions?"

"Yep, but only those two people."

She chuckled: "Deal."

My lips found hers and we kissed for a long moment. When we finally came up for air, I asked: "Now if Angelina shows up and wants a three-way, how do you feel about that?"

She grinned mischievously: "You want to be the filling in a girl sandwich, huh?"

I waggled my eyebrows at her.

She tilted her head and considered for a moment. "As long as I can expect the same from you. Being sandwiched between you and Hugh."

Elle gave a faux shiver: "Oooo. Now that's hot!"

I growled and rolled her onto her back. "I'll show you hot."

She giggled at first, but within 30 seconds, I had her moaning.

Elle did want her privacy to get dressed for the ceremony, so I was hustled into Wilson's room to get ready with him and Dad, while Elle was sequestered with Mom, Cuddy, Gen, Audra and the babies. I wasn't sure how long it would take the ladies to get ready, but us men were dressed in no time. Hawaiian shirts, khaki pants and sandals were a piece of cake compared to the tuxedos, bow ties and cummerbunds that I had worn at other weddings.

Wilson was wearing a red shirt patterned with parrots sitting on palm fronds all over it. He looked liked the nerd version of Magnum PI or something. Elle had found me a more subdued shirt, dark blue with a row of white hibiscus going up one side. Naturally she thought the color brought out my eyes.

I gave Wilson the once-over. "As my best man, you are getting off way too easy. If you and Cuddy ever take the plunge, I will not wear a tux to your _fourth_ wedding."

He smirked: "I'll keep that in mind."

Dad seemed rather pleased with his ensemble. Mom had found him a dark blue shirt decorated with palm trees, a pair of khaki pants and dark brown leather fisherman's sandals. "I think this is a great way to have a wedding. No monkey suits, no big poofy dresses. Nice and relaxed."

I was still surprised by Dad's reaction to our informal wedding. He had always seemed to enjoy the formal occasions in the military when he needed to wear his dress uniform. I can remember a few holiday dances with him and Mom dressed to the nines and they looked like they were having a good time.

"Oh, here, son. Don't forget your boutonnière."

Dad picked up the single white orchid flower laying on the table and pinned it to my shirt.

He patted my shoulder. "Now you're all set. Let's go get you hitched."

_**ELLE**_

We sent the guys across the hall so that I could dress in peace. Of course there were four adults, 2 babies and a five-year old in our hotel room, all needing to get dressed so it wasn't _that_ peaceful, but we managed. Lisa and I decided to dress the babies first and then get ready ourselves. I had found Rachel a darling outfit consisting of a light blue dress with matching panties patterned with bright blue hibiscus flowers. Blythe tied a little blue ribbon in her hair and she looked just adorable. Lisa dressed Ben in a mini Hawaiian surfer dude outfit.

Gen had selected a blue tank dress decorated with a white hibiscus print. Audra's dress had the same pattern, but while Gen's had a straight skirt, Audra's had a full skirt that billowed out when she spun around. She was so excited about being the flower girl. She had her little basket of petals and was proudly marching around the room while the rest of us got dressed.

Lisa had picked out a short black tank dress decorated with tropical birds sitting on palm fronds. She tucked a bright red hibiscus in her dark hair and looked absolutely fantastic. I could not believe how great her figure looked only 2 months after Ben was born. I still had a poochy belly and 8 pounds to lose to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight.

But I wasn't going to worry about that today, not on my wedding day. I had found the perfect dress for our beach side wedding. It was a long sundress, tied at the shoulders with little spaghetti straps, white on white with a hibiscus pattern. I'd had it shortened to ankle length so that it wouldn't drag in the sand. My bouquet consisted of white orchids and I'd had a matching circlet made to go in my hair and a bracelet to go around one wrist. Gen and Audra also had matching white orchid bracelets. I intended to walk down the aisle barefoot and slip on some white sandals later for the reception. A little bit of makeup and I was ready to go. Blythe took Rachel, Lisa carried Ben and we all headed downstairs.

Avi was waiting for me in the living room. Blythe and Lisa headed outside to their seats, while the rest of us got ready for the march down the aisle. Wolf gave us the nod when everyone was in place and we lined up by the back door.

_**HOUSE**_

Danny and Lenny were off to the side, entertaining the crowd by playing soft music on their acoustic guitars. Billy was already waiting under the palm frond chuppah, so Wilson and I headed down there while Dad took his seat. After a few minutes, Mom and Cuddy appeared with the babies. They walked down the aisle and took their seats. Right after that, I saw Wolf at the door. He cued the guys; they quickly wrapped up their current number and started singing the song that Elle had requested for her walk down the aisle.

As they began playing _"There is Love"_ the wedding song made famous by Peter, Paul and Mary, Audra started down the aisle, carefully dropping flower petals with each step. The photographer snapped a few pictures and the little ham smiled and posed for each shot. She walked straight up to me and dropped the last of her petals at my feet. She stage-whispered: "Mazel Tov, Uncle House!" and hurried over to sit with her father.

I looked up to see that Gen was already halfway down the aisle. She smiled as she took her spot opposite Wilson.

As Danny started singing the words _"For a man shall leave his mother and a_ _woman leave her home"_, Elle and Avi started their walk down the aisle. My heart swelled with love as I watched my beautiful woman coming towards me, Avi's arm protectively entwined with hers. They arrived under the chuppah just as Danny and Lenny finished the song. Avi took Elle's hand and placed it in mine. He clasped both of our hands and said: "Take good care of my little sister." Then he kissed Elle on the cheek and headed to his seat between Adam and Ricky.

Once everyone was settled, Billy started the ceremony. "Good afternoon, everyone. We are here on this glorious day to unite our two friends, Elle Kaplan and Greg House, in the bonds of matrimony. Marriage is an honorable estate. It is not to be entered into lightly or unadvisedly, but discreetly and soberly."

I muttered: "I'm sober now. I won't be later, so let's get this over with."

Wilson snorted and clapped his hand over his mouth. Elle bit her lip and her shoulders shook slightly in suppressed laughter. Billy was grinning as he went on: "These two people come now to be joined in marriage. If anyone knows any reason why they should not be joined in matrimony, I ask that you make it known at this time."

All you could hear were the waves crashing on the beach. No one said a word. I was slightly surprised that no one in our audience objected to a wonderful woman like Elle marrying a grumpy gimp like me, but I was pleased that there were no objections and thankful that Tony wasn't present. I gave Billy a look that said 'keep going'. I wanted to get the ceremony over with and move on to the more entertaining part of the party.

Billy went on. "The bride would like to read a poem to her groom."

He handed Elle a piece of paper and she turned to face me, the hand holding the page, shaking ever so slightly.

In a soft voice, she read:

_In your eyes, I have found my home.  
In your heart, I have found my love.  
In your soul, I have found my mate.  
With you, I am whole, full, alive.  
You make me laugh. You let me cry.  
You are my breath, my every heartbeat._

_I am yours.  
You are mine.  
Of this we are certain.  
You are lodged in my heart.  
The small key is lost.  
You must stay there forever._

She looked me in the eyes as she recited the last line. I could see her love reflected there and I hoped she saw the same in mine. She gave me a smile and handed the page back to Billy. He opened his mouth to start the next part, but I interrupted him.

"Wait. I have a poem to recite as well."

Elle turned to me with a surprised but pleased look on her face. This wasn't planned; I was totally winging it, but after that lovely poem, I had to say something. The only thing I could come up with off the cuff was a ditty by Ogden Nash.

_To keep your marriage brimming,  
With love in the loving cup,  
Whenever you're wrong, admit it;  
Whenever you're right, shut up._

I could hear laughter from the audience but I didn't care what they thought. Only Elle's reaction mattered to me. A smile lit up her face and her eyes twinkled. I breathed a sigh of relief that I hadn't screwed up.

When the laughter died, Billy went on. "Please join hands."

Elle handed her bouquet to Gen; I handed my cane to Wilson and then I took her small hands in mine.

"Do you, Elle, take Greg to be your lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love, honor and cherish him, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, forsaking all others until death you do part?"

Elle looked me in the eyes, squeezed my hands and said: "I do."

"Do you, Greg, take Elle to be your lawfully wedded wife? Do you promise to love, honor, protect and cherish her, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, forsaking all others until death you do part?"

I rubbed my thumbs over the backs of her hands as I said: "I do."

Billy said: "May I have the rings please?"

Wilson fished the rings out of his pocket and handed them to Billy, who held them in his outstretched palm. "Rings are exchanged as a token of love and as a symbol of the promises that you have made to each other here today. Greg, you may give Elle her ring."

I picked up Elle's ring and said: "Elle, everyone wonders how you put up with me. Despite the fact that I'm a _god_ in bed, even I don't know the answer to that."

I heard a few chuckles and I paused, waiting for it to die away.

"But I am profoundly happy that you do. I have considered you to be my wife for a long time; today it becomes official."

I slipped the ring on her finger and said. "With this ring, I take you to be my wife. I promise to try to share the remote and not hog all the covers, but I can't guarantee that I'll always remember to put the toilet seat down, so be careful in the middle of the night. You already know that I'll change diapers so that's brownie points in my favor. My clothes will not always make it into the hamper and it's doubtful that I will ever learn how to properly load the dishwasher. I hope you know what you're doing by marrying me cuz you are now stuck with me for the rest of our lives."

By the time I finished my little speech, there was a glimmer of tears in Elle's eyes. She blinked them away and picked up the other ring. She held it in her hand for a moment as she looked into my eyes, then she slipped the ring on my finger and kissed it. "With this ring, I take you to be my husband. I promise to love you, feed you and keep your bed warm, but I will not clean up after your poker buddies. I promise not to nag you about the toilet seat or the dishwasher, but the necessity of using mouthwash after smoking cigars is non-negotiable. You're not fond of dinner parties, so I promise not to throw one more than once a month. I know you hate it when I cry, but it's gonna happen, so get used to it. I also know you'll comfort me until the mood passes. I know exactly what I'm doing and I'm ten miles beyond happy to be stuck with you for the rest of our lives. _Ani l'dodi v'dodi li._ I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine."

I squeezed her hands and whispered to her: "Mine."

Hands still clasped, we turned to face Billy again.

He proclaimed: "In front of witnesses, Elle and Greg have recited their vows and exchanged rings. By the power vested in me by the state of New Jersey, I now pronounce you husband and wife. In keeping with the Jewish tradition, the groom will break a wineglass as a reminder that love is fragile and must be cared for so that it does not become broken."

Wilson placed the cloth sack containing the wineglass on the ground next to me and I stomped it with my right foot. It shattered with a satisfying sound.

There were cries of _"Mazel Tov"_ from the crowd and Billy had to shout to be heard: "You may kiss your bride".

I took Elle into my arms and muttered: "Finally."

My lips brushed hers teasingly and then more urgently. Her arms wrapped around my neck and pulled me closer. The kiss deepened and our tongues began exploring. I'm not sure how long we stood there, lost in our own little world, but suddenly I became aware that we had an audience and pulled away. Elle's lips were swollen from our passionate kiss, but she looked happy.

"Husband."

I extended my arm. "Wife."

Elle entwined her right arm through my left and with my right hand I accepted my cane back from Wilson. We turned to face the crowd and they were on their feet, applauding. All the attention was rather embarrassing and I tried to concentrate on stepping carefully in the soft sand to prevent falling on my ass. We started up the aisle, but as we drew even with the first row, I stopped and motioned towards Mom.

"Get Rachel." I whispered.

Elle extended her arms and Mom handed our daughter to her. When Rachel was securely settled on Elle's left hip, she entwined her arm in mine again and smiled up at me. My heart swelled with love for my girls.

I whispered: "Ready to party, wife?"

"For the rest of our lives, husband. Lead the way."

The three of us walked up the aisle together.

We went into a small sunroom for a few moments of privacy before the big party began. My ass landed on a large rattan love seat and I pulled Elle down onto my good leg. I did not enjoy being the center of attention and Elle tried to ease my trepidations by planting loving kisses all over my face.

"Wolf is going to crack the champagne right away, the best man will make a toast and we'll hit the buffet. Later on there will be honeymoon sex."

I nuzzled her neck, inhaling her comforting familiar scent. "Mmmmm, I like the honeymoon sex. Can we skip right to that?"

"You wanna miss the food and the booze?"

"Sex with you is better than anything in the world. Although a glass of good bourbon is a close second."

Elle laughed and kissed Rachel on top of her head. "Your daddy is sooooo romantic."

I rubbed my nose against Rug-rat's cheek, causing her to squeal at the sensation. I kissed her delicate cheek and said: "Explain to Mama that I am a romantic. I made up that poem right on the spot. If _that_ isn't romantic, I mean, _really_."

"You _didn't _make it up. Ogden Nash wrote that poem. However, I was impressed by your amazing ability to recall it under pressure. Your memory for detail is so incredible."

I gave her ass a possessive squeeze. "Flattery will get you right into my pants, sweetheart."

"Right after the party, my love. C'mon, let's go. The sooner the party is over, the sooner I can unzip your fly."

I grumbled: "I don't suppose that they will even _start_ without us."

"No, they won't."

Elle took my hand and the three of us walked into the reception room together.

The dining room of the inn had been given a makeover for our wedding reception. Several of the tables had been removed so that there was room for a large buffet table. The tables had been laid with bright blue linens; a tall glass vase filled with seashells and topped with a sprig of bird-of-paradise sat in the center of each table. In the far corner were the DJ and his sound system. As soon as we walked into the room, he announced: "And here's our happy couple. Ladies and Gentlemen, their first appearance as man and wife, I give you, Mr. and Mrs. Gregory House."

Everyone applauded and I groaned. "Is he going to be this obnoxious all night?"

Elle directed me towards our table. "Gad, I hope not. He didn't sound that bad when I hired him."

As soon as we were seated, corks popped and the servers poured champagne for everyone. _This was more like it._ I was about to guzzle my first glass and ask for more, when Elle stopped me by saying: "Don't drink yet. Remember, Jimmy is making a toast."

Remembering toasts that I had made at his previous weddings, I groaned: "Oh crap. I really need a drink before he does that. This is his chance to wreak revenge on me."

Elle smiled serenely: "He won't do that."

"Oh, ye, of too much faith."

When everyone was served, Wilson tapped his knife against his water glass for silence and stood up. "Thank you all for coming. As best man and the groom's best friend, I have the honor of making the toast tonight. House has actually had this honor at two of my three weddings."

There was a chuckle in the crowd and Wilson let that die down before continuing. "It was quite a challenge for House to come up with what to say, considering that he didn't like either of my two brides. However, I don't have that problem today. Elle is a wonderful woman. She is smart, funny, loving and kind; she is devoted to House and has an amazing ability to put up with all of his antics without losing any sense of her own self. Elle, you've just married my best friend. Some would say that you got the short end of the stick. I say you have found an intelligent man with his own peculiar sense of integrity, who is loyal to a fault, and marches to his own drummer. He loves you deeply and would do anything for you, but I must warn you. Life with House will never be boring. Frustrating, exasperating, often exhilarating, but never, ever boring."

Wilson paused while the crowd laughed and then he went on. "In the two years that House and Elle have known each other, there have been some serious ups and downs, but they persevered. The deep love that they have for each other pulled them through the darkness and back into the light. They are very lucky to have found each other. Please lift your glasses to the happy couple. To Greg and Elle."

The room cried out: "To Greg and Elle."

I caught Wilson's eye, tilted my glass at him as a way of thanks, and then downed my champagne.

Elle smiled mischievously at me. "Told ya he'd do OK."

"Little minx. I'll get you later."

The sound of silverware tapping against glasses interrupted my chain of thought.

Elle said: "That's the signal. Every time they do that, we are supposed to kiss."

I leaned in closer: "Now that's a tradition that I can go along with."

I was surprised to see the servers fill everyone's champagne glasses again. Wilson's toast had been planned, but I wasn't expecting another one. I shot Elle a quizzical look, but she shook her head, indicating that she wasn't expecting anyone else to speak either.

My heart sank when my Dad stood up. What the hell was he going to say? Elle gripped my hand tightly but all I could do was hope that it was _Alien_ _Dad_ giving the speech, not _Real Dad_.

"How do you do, everyone? I'm John House, Greg's dad. I wasn't planning on talking tonight, but I just had the urge to said something."

My mind was pleading: _"No, no, please don't. It's embarrassing enough being the center of attention like this. Please don't make it worse by telling stories of what a horrible kid I was."_

Dad went on: "I'm real happy to be here tonight. I'm happy that I have lived long enough to witness the major events in my son's life, graduation from college and medical school, now marriage and the birth of his child. I never went to college. I went straight from high school right into the Marines and while I never regretted that decision, I'm pleased that my son found his own career path that has brought him professional satisfaction and recognition from his peers."

My jaw dropped. It was _Alien Dad_ in his finest form. _Real Dad_ would have never said anything like that. _Real Dad_ had been royally pissed that I hadn't followed in his footsteps and joined the Marines.

He went on. "And now you are married and have a child. It took ya a while to find the right woman, but Elle was worth the wait. She's good as gold, loves you to pieces and yet won't take any crap from you. And together, you have given me the most perfect granddaughter that any man could ask for."

He paused for a moment, and then went on: "I'm very proud of you, son. Your mother and I love you very much and wish you and your bride many years of happiness. A toast, everyone! To Greg and Elle."

The crowd cried out again: "To Greg and Elle."

I was so stunned that I couldn't lift the glass to my lips. Next to me, Elle whispered: "Wow." Then she knocked back her entire glass of champagne.

**_HOUSE_**

I couldn't believe it. After years of belittling, demeaning remarks, Dad just told me, in front of an audience, the words that I had longed to hear as an adolescent. _"He was proud of me"._ Now? Now he tells me? It's only 30 fucking years too late. Does he think he can make up for all those years of pain just like that?

Elle knew that I was about to boil over and tried to soothe me, but she couldn't crack through the hastily raised walls that his words had caused me to construct. I could see the hurt in her eyes, but I couldn't calm down, even for her.

When Dad got up and headed to the men's room, I followed him.

He was standing at the urinal when I slammed into the room. "What the hell was that all about?"

He looked blankly at me. "What was what all about?"

"That pile of lies you just spouted off out there."

"Not lies, son. I meant it."

"Yeah, _right_. After all these years of you telling me what an asswipe I am, suddenly you're proud of me? Mom tell you to do it or are you trying to impress my wife? Oh, I know. You're trying to score points with the big man upstairs before you kick off."

He ducked his head and concentrated on zipping up. "No, I just, I should have told you these things long ago."

"_Bullshit_, Dad. Those were lies. You were _never_ proud of me. You always said that I was _too damn smart for my own good_ and you were so royally pissed when I refused to join the Marines that you didn't speak to me for an entire summer! Remember that? You'd slip notes under my door, telling me to clean the garage or whatever other assignment you had for me. And every single note started out with _'Hey Hot-shot. Ready to be a man and join the Marines yet?'_ You said I thought I _was too high and mighty_ to be a Marine like my old man. You said I was an _embarrassment_ to you. Straight A's, Dean's List, honors in track, captain of the lacrosse team and I was an _embarrassment _to you. You took cheap shots at my manhood every chance you got."

In the middle of my tirade, Chase walked in. His eyes popped wide as he caught a bit of my venomous spew. I pushed him out of the room, snarling "Private party. No wombats allowed."

Dad exploded: "I just didn't know how to handle you. You were just so damn smart. From the time you could talk, you were always so inquisitive and wanted the answers to everything. Answers I didn't have. I'm just a dumb hick high school graduate. How was I supposed to explain physics and crap like that to you?"

"We could have looked it up together. It could have been a Hallmark father/son moment instead of just one more opportunity to belittle me."

Just then Wilson burst into the room. Hands gesturing in a placating manner, he started: "Hey, look."

I snarled at him: "Shut up and get out. This isn't any of your business."

He grabbed me by the shoulders; I tried to pull away, but he had quite a grip. "House don't do this, not today, not on your wedding day. Do it tomorrow, next week, whatever, just not today. _Elle's_ out there. Your _bride_ is waiting for you. Go to her and enjoy the day. Whatever is going on between you two; leave it for now. Don't ruin the day for Elle."

Wilson's words changed the expression on Dad's face from anger to contrition, but my fury wouldn't die. I managed to pry myself out of Wilson's grip, stabbed a finger at Dad and said: "This isn't over."

I stalked out with as much dignity as I could muster, grabbed two flutes of champagne from a server and quickly downed them both. I was so angry that my hands were shaking.

My bride was across the room, talking to Lenny's girlfriend, the one with the name that I could never remember. I could see Elle's eyes scanning the room as she talked. When she caught sight of me, I could see a relieved smile cross her face. That wasn't right. My pent-up anger had taken her from joyful to anxious in 5 minutes. I couldn't do this to her. She deserved better.

I walked over to the DJ. "Did my bride request a first dance number?"

He shook his head. "No, she didn't. She didn't request any particular dances at all."

How like Elle. She was probably concerned that I wouldn't want to make a fool of myself in front of everyone we know with my limited dancing ability.

I turned back to the DJ. "Change of plans. There will be a first dance. You got this one?"

I gave him the title and artist.

"Oh sure, I got that one. When do you want me to play it?"

"Right now."

As I strode across the room towards Elle, the DJ announced: "Ladies and Gentlemen. It's time for the couple's first dance. Please clear the dance floor for the bride and groom."

I dimly heard applause in the background, but my focus was on Elle. Her eyes looked puzzled, but before she could speak, I extended my hand and said: "May I have this dance?"

She took my hand and said: "Yes, of course."

I thrust my cane at Lenny's girl. "Hold this for me."

We moved slowly to the middle of the dance floor, Elle, as always, matching her step to my cane-less limp.

The opening bars came through the speakers. Elle's face softened when she heard the first words of Etta James singing _'At Last'_ and I pulled her into my arms. Despite all the swimming, I still couldn't dance that well, but I was determined to give this moment to my wife. We swayed together to the song and I pretended that we were all alone, dancing in the Hyatt's Presidential Suite and not in front of a crowd.

Elle's head was resting on my shoulder. She whispered in my ear: "Greg, what happened? Your dad?"

"Shhhhhh. Not now. It's our first dance as man and wife."

I nuzzled her cheek and after a moment, I felt her body relax against mine.

She let out a small sigh. "Mmmmm, I like this song. It's a perfect choice."

I squeezed her a little tighter. "I can be a little romantic."

"More than a little."

We continued to sway until the end of the song.

**_ELLE_**

I hadn't meant to guzzle the whole glass of champagne. I'd only planned to have a few sips tonight. But I was so stunned by the Colonel's speech, that I downed it without thinking.

The Colonel's words were incredible, and for anyone who didn't know the family history, I'm sure it was a lovely moment. But I could feel the Greg's fury simmering beneath the surface, and I wondered how long it would take for the lid to pop off the boiling pot.

Apparently, not very long. When the Colonel headed towards the men's room, Greg jumped up and followed him. I wanted to stop him, but I didn't want to make a scene in front of everyone. Instead I started mingling and hoped for the best.

I was chatting with Lorraine, keeping one eye peeled for my husband, when he walked back into the room. He was in one piece, no sign of a black eye or any other violence and I was hit with a wave of relief, hoping his dad was in a similar state. I gave him a small smile, but his expression was unreadable. Lorraine distracted me for a moment with a question about our honeymoon, and then the next thing I knew, Greg was heading towards me and the DJ was saying that it was time for the bride and groom's first dance. _What? I hadn't arranged that. _It was one thing for Greg and I to dance alone, or in a bar full of strangers, but in front of everyone we knew? I hadn't even wanted to ask him about that, yet there he was, hand extended, asking me to dance and I wasn't about to say no. He tossed his cane to Lorraine and led me onto the dance floor.

He took me in his arms and we swayed together on the dance floor. I tried to relax, but I couldn't help wondering what had happened between him and his Dad.

I whispered in my ear: "Greg, what happened? Your dad?"

"Shhhhhh. Not now. It's our first dance as man and wife."

He nuzzled my cheek, his hand stroked my back and after a moment I gave into the pleasant sensations and relaxed against him.

I let out a small sigh. "Mmmmm, I like this song. It's a perfect choice."

He held me a little tighter. "I can be a little romantic."

"More than a little."

About halfway through the son, Greg kissed my cheek and then started to softly sing along.

_I found a thrill to press my cheek to_

_A thrill that I have never known_

_You smiled and then the spell was cast._

_And here we are in heaven._

_And you are mine at last._

As the music swelled to its ending, he squeezed me tighter and whispered in my ear. "You are mine, aren't you?"

The tone in his voice was that of a scared little boy who needed reassurance. Whatever happened with his Dad had taken some of the wind out of his sails and threatened to topple his carefully constructed emotional fortress.

I grabbed his hand and tapped on his ring. "I've attached the ball and chain. You're stuck with me now, for the rest of our lives."

He took my hand and placed in on his chest, right over his heart. "There's no one, not even Angelina, that I would rather be chained to than you."

I gave him a big loving smile and then I tiptoed up and threw my arms around his neck. I pecked his mouth and whispered: "You're way sexier than Hugh Jackman and I bet your dick is _much_ bigger."

He actually laughed and squeezed me tighter. I couldn't believe he was doing that in front of everyone. The DJ had started another slow romantic song, _'The Way You Look Tonight'_, and people were joining us on the dance floor. We swayed to this song, along with Adam and Gen, Lisa and Jimmy and Billy and Theresa.

As we danced, Greg whispered in my ear: "Like my big dick, do ya?"

"You know I do. My screams of pleasure don't lie."

"You horny little minx. You just wait until I get you all alone."

"I can hardly wait. My panties are already wet."

"Damn, woman! I'm taking you upstairs _now_."

I managed to distract him with the buffet for now, wanting to enjoy another hour or two of the party before heading upstairs for our wedding night. As I had been explaining to Lorraine before the dancing started, Greg and I weren't really taking a honeymoon. Neither of us wanted to leave Rachel for longer than one night at this point and we had mutually decided to take a real honeymoon when she was a little older. Blythe and John were going to keep Rachel in their room tonight so that we could be alone.

We decided not to have a seating chart, allowing everyone to sit wherever they wanted. As people went to the buffet and replenished their plates, dining companions changed and everyone had a chance to mingle with everyone else. Greg and I had a table for two but we didn't eat alone. I had reclaimed Rachel from Blythe, and Audra had dragged a chair over to eat with us. Audra was completely fascinated with Rachel, and took every opportunity she could to 'play' with her. Gen tried to dislodge her from our table, but Greg waved her off. He liked Audra's company, and it reminded me once more how much fun it was going to be watching Greg interact with Rachel when she's was old enough to talk.

The food was fantastic; the buffet gave everyone lots to choose from. I had decided on island style cuisine, so for entrees we had beef teriyaki over rice, Hawaiian style BBQ chicken and coconut shrimp. There was corn on the cob, a tossed green salad, potato salad, macaroni salad and a huge fruit salad with no strawberries, as Chase is deathly allergic to them. One table held just appetizers; Audra selected most of her plate from that table. She nibbled on bite-sized pizzas, pigs in a blanket and sweet and sour meatballs, while ignoring the mini-quiches, shrimp cocktail and smoked fish dip. Greg, of course, ate a lot of everything and pretended to try to steal Audra's meatballs. She knew this game, of course, and defended her plate with an upraised fork.

Jimmy returned from a trip to the buffet and joined us. He held Ben in one arm and a plate in his other hand. Audra was thrilled to have two babies at the table and she chatted away, expressing a wish that her mommy would give her a baby brother or sister. Greg and I exchanged a look, wondering if that was in the works. Jimmy let Audra hold Ben and she carefully held the baby, keeping up a constant chatter to him. The photographer snapped some cute pictures of the two kids.

I saw Jimmy shoot a couple of worried looks at Greg, which Greg, naturally ignored. I was still curious as to what had happened in the men's room, but I knew that I wasn't going to find out tonight. This night was for us; hopefully Greg would open up and tell me about it tomorrow.

The servers starting cleaning up the remnants of the buffet; we only had the cake cutting part left to go before we could call it a night and steal off to be alone. I had bottles pumped so that Blythe could feed the baby overnight, but my breasts were feeling heavy so I decided to nurse Rachel one more time. I excused myself and headed upstairs for some privacy.

_**HOUSE**_

Elle headed upstairs to nurse Rachel and I remained at the table with Wilson, Audra and BJ. Wilson had been shooting me looks ever since he sat down. I knew he was in his worrying mode, but I was not in the mood to discuss my feelings with him, not that I ever was. I'd rather have my toenails forcibly extracted with pliers before doing that. I owed it to Elle, to tell her what happened, but I wasn't doing that tonight. We were going to enjoy our wedding night with no demons from the past interrupting our passion.

Wilson, as usual, couldn't take a hint. With a glance towards the kids, he said: "Sooooo?"

I replied heartily: "So how did you like that buffet? That coconut shrimp was excellent, doncha think?"

He smirked: "You don't want to talk about it."

"Are you kidding? I love talking about food."

"That's not what I meant and you know it. You're deflecting."

"Damn right I am."

He admonished me: "Don't use that language in front of the kids."

Before I could open my mouth, Audra piped in. "I know that word. Daddy says it is a grownup word and I can't use it until I'm 13 and have my bat mitzvah."

I chuckled: "Your daddy is a very smart man. Oh and here's your Uncle Avi, coming to join us."

Wilson wouldn't go back to that subject with another person at the table, so I was particularly glad to see Avi.

Audra squealed when she saw him. "Look, Uncle Avi. I'm holding baby Ben."

"I see that, Princess, and you're doing a great job. I know that Uncle James appreciates your help with Ben."

She gave him a huge smile and cuddled the baby closer to her.

Avi looked at me and wagged his eyebrows while pulling two cigars out of his shirt pocket. "Interested in a Montecristo number 2?"

My mouth fell open. "Cubans? You've got real Cuban cigars? How did you do that?"

"Don't ask. Care to join me on the patio for a little celebratory smoke?"

I stood quickly. "You bet. Excuse us, Wilson. See you later, Audra."

We were already heading to the door as she called out: "Bye, Uncle House."

We lit up and stood there, staring out at the ocean and enjoying our smoke. No one makes cigars like the Cubans do; I could only hope that the embargo would be lifted after Castro croaks and Cuban cigars would be readily available in the States again.

"You buy these off the Internet?"

"Naw, a friend drove up to Canada. Smuggled back a couple of boxes and passed them around. You're sworn to secrecy or I'll have to kill you."

I smirked: "I'm your _little sister's_ husband. You wouldn't kill me."

"Good point."

We smoked in companionable silence for a few minutes and then he said: "So, that speech from your Dad? That came out of left field, didn't it?"

_How did he know? Did Elle say something to him?_ I snorted and shook my head. "What makes you think that?"

"You mask your face really well, but you slipped at one point. When he said he was proud of you, the shock showed for just a brief moment and was gone again. But it was Elle's face that really gave it away. I could tell that she was just stunned."

I tapped the ash off of my cigar and muttered: "I need to give her pointers on keeping a neutral expression."

"Naw, don't do that. She's perfect the way she is."

I silently agreed.

After a moment's silence, he went on. "My dad was a well-respected, highly published professor of medieval Jewish history and philosophy at NYU. My older brother Aaron is a Rabbi. He has four kids, lives in Brooklyn. Adam's married, he's got one kid and they are talking about having another one. And then there's me."

"The gay black sheep of the family?"

He nodded. "I came out when I was 18. Dad was furious. No son of his could _possibly _be gay. I told him it was all the time I spend in the womb staring at my twin's penis that did it to me. He did _not_ appreciate the joke."

I chuckled: "Shame, that was a good one."

"Glad you liked it. He hoped it was a passing phase, a college experiment. I tried to explain to him that it was biology; there was no way that I could stop being attracted to men, any more than I could stop breathing. His solution was to send me a subscription to Playboy, which I gave to Adam, of course. After several horrific arguments, he stopped speaking to me. I could be right there in the room and it was as if I were invisible to him. He would look right through me and talk around me. If I spoke to him, he wouldn't answer. My mom played translator; it was ridiculous. After college, I basically stopped going home. I'd meet Mom out for lunch in order to see her."

"When I was about 30, Dad received a prestigious award from Ben Gurion University in Israel. It was a huge deal; a black tie affair and my mother wanted me to attend. Like a good son, I rented a tux, didn't bring a date and was on my best behavior. I thought, maybe, after all these years, he would acknowledge my presence again."

"I take it, that didn't happen."

He shook his head. "Nope. Not only did he completely ignore me, I heard him scolding Mom in the other room as to why she had invited me, that I was nothing but a little _feygele_, and an embarrassment to the family. When he gave his acceptance speech, he mentioned my mother and both of my brothers, but I had ceased to exist for him. He died two years later, never acknowledging me again."

"Jesus, what a prick."

He just shrugged and we stood there, silently smoking for a while. One of the servers came by and I asked her to bring us two glasses of scotch. I knew I needed one and I figured Avi could use one too. After the scotch arrived, we moved over to the rattan chairs and sat down.

Avi swirled the scotch in his glass, staring at it as if it held the secrets of the universe. "I don't know what your dad did to you. It's none of my business. All I know is that Elle really likes having your parents around. Losing hers was so traumatic. I guess I'm trying to say, if you can tolerate his presence, for Elle's sake, it would be nice for her."

I rattled the ice cubes in my glass, wishing the server would pass by and pour us a refill. I didn't like Avi's words, but he spoke the truth. I took a deep breath and said softly: "The speech was a lie."

His head snapped around. "Which part?"

"The whole thing. He _only_ wanted me to be a Marine. He hated that I didn't want to follow in his footsteps and join the Corp. And he was _never,_ _ever_ proud of me."

Avi stared down at his glass and muttered: "Fuck."

That little brunette server came by with the bottle of scotch, checking to see if we wanted a refill. I noted her name was Deb, and planned to leave her a decent tip. We both accepted a double.

Avi took a decent sized swallow and said thoughtfully: "Maybe he wasn't proud of you then, but perhaps he means it now. Maybe _he's_ matured and has accepted you for the man you are, not the carbon copy of him that he wanted you to be. At least, he's trying. It's more than my old man ever did."

I rolled his words around in my mind for a while and then asked: "If your old man had started speaking to you, would you have forgiven him?"

He emphatically shook his head. "Absolutely not. If anyone tells you to forgive and forget, tell 'em to fuck off. Some things can't be forgiven, but I would have been willing to put it aside for the sake of family harmony."

He took a big swallow of his scotch. "All those wasted years when we could have been a family. His attitude kept that from happening. It would have been nice to be accepted at family gatherings, be able to bring my boyfriend. Hell, it would have been nice for him to just talk to me again. But that didn't happen."

As I pondered his words, the door opened and Elle peeked out. "There you are. Oh, Avi, you brought Greg one of the Cubans, didn't you?"

Cheerfully he replied: "Guilty as charged."

She shook her head, but didn't look pissed, only amused. "Well, I'm not surprised. You both do love a good cigar. Greg, I thought we could go ahead and cut the cake. You know, get that part over with and kinda wrap up the party."

My left eyebrow went up. Cake and then sex? I was sooooo there. I held out my hand: "Come here, sweetheart."

She came over and took my hand; I pulled her down on my good leg. "After the cake, we can leave?"

She lovingly stroked my cheek: "Yep, then it's time for our own private party."

"'Bout time. I want that honeymoon sex you promised me."

I leaned forward for a kiss and she pulled back. "Please go brush your teeth before we do the cake. They'll be expecting us to kiss and I'd like you to have clean breath. It was in my vows, remember?"

She kissed my forehead and went back inside. I watched her go and then muttered: "Crap. I have to drag my ass upstairs and brush my teeth."

Avi reached into his pants pocket, pulled out a travel size bottle of Scope and handed it to me.

"You always carry mouthwash with you?"

"Ricky hates cigar smoke too."

I smirked: "We are so whipped."

He grinned: "Yeah, but the sex makes it all worthwhile."

My brain was mulling over Avi's words as we walked inside, but the crowd around the cake table distracted me immediately. Looked like everyone was ready for a slice. I maneuvered my way through the crowd but came to a screeching halt when I saw the cake. _She went with that cake topper?_

Elle had picked out the cake; it was three layers, topped with white whipped cream icing and decorated with fondant seashells. The cake was beautiful; it was the cake topper that was a shock. Elle had found the heinous item on Ebay. It depicted King Neptune, complete with trident, and his mermaid wife riding in a seahorse-drawn conch shell boat. When Elle had shown it to me, I had laughed, thinking it was the corniest thing I had ever seen. She never told me that she bought it; now it was sitting on top of our wedding cake.

She was standing by the table, waiting for me, with the cake knife in her hand. I stood behind her and put my hand over hers, so that we could jointly cut the cake.

Murmuring in her ear: "I thought that cake topper was just a joke. Didn't know you were going to really use it."

"I thought it was kinda campy. Anyway, I couldn't find anything else I liked for a beach wedding cake topper."

"You couldn't have used a surfer dude and a hula girl?"

She wrinkled her nose: "Too ordinary. I wanted something different."

"Well, it is _that_."

The photographer snapped a few as we cut the cake. It was difficult since we were both holding the knife, but we managed to get a slice on a plate without dropping it. Elle picked up a fork and fed me the first bite.

In a soft voice, she said: "I promised to feed you."

I murmured: "I promise to eat."

Her eyes twinkled: "That wasn't part of your vows."

"It's an addendum."

I took the fork and fed her a bite.

She sighed: "Mmmm, this is really good."

"I know. I'm eating the rest. Get your own piece."

She giggled and I fed her some more anymore. The servers took over the cake slicing duties and soon everyone had a piece. Elle and I shared a second slice.

While people were eating their cake, the DJ started the music back up again. A few couples headed back to the dance floor. I nudged my wife: "So when can we make our exit?"

"I was thinking right about now. Why don't we just stroll towards the stairs and say good-night to everyone on our way out?"

"Sounds good to me."

We stood up but before we got two steps, the DJ started playing one of our favorite Eric Clapton's songs. We looked at each other and I knew what I had to do.

"One more dance?"

"I'd love to."

We moved towards the dance floor and after hooking my cane over a near-by chair, I took her in my arms. There was just something about this song, it was soft and sensual and I wanted her in my arms every time I heard it.

Elle hummed happily along with the song, singing when she got to this part: _"Do you feel alright?"_

I responded by whispering the next line. _"Yes, I feel wonderful tonight."_

We held each other tightly as we swayed through the next verse. I managed to block out everyone else in the room and concentrated solely on my wife. I smiled as I nuzzled her hair. _My wife._ I really liked saying that.

When Clapton got to the last verse, I sang along softly in Elle's ear, paraphrasing just a bit.

_It's time to go home now and I've got an aching leg._

_I give her the room key; she helps me to bed._

_And then I tell her, as I turn out the light,_

_Oh my darling, you are wonderful tonight._

The last word was barely out of my mouth when Elle tiptoed up and kissed me hard on the mouth. Her need matched mine and I returned the kiss with equal passion. Unfortunately we weren't alone; reality was twenty people surrounding us and applauding. I glanced up to see Wilson with a huge grin on his face. I groaned inwardly; I was never going to live this down. Too many people had now seen my softer side. I'd have to work extra hard to maintain my reputation as PPTH's crankiest doc.

Elle looked at me with a twinkle in her eyes. "The bride and groom always leave the reception first."

I grabbed her hand. "And who am I to break with tradition? Let's get out of here."

**_Credits:_**

There is Love (Wedding Song) written by Paul Stookey (sung by Peter, Paul and Mary)

Elle's poem: Frau Ava (Ava of Melk) (circa 1160), translated by Willis Barnstone

House's poem: Ogden Nash


	78. Chapter 78

**Chapter 78**

**A/N: Mature audiences only! Honeymoon Sex ahead!**

**_HOUSE_**

We made our getaway, saying goodnight to everyone as we passed them. Mom was holding Rachel and we each gave her a kiss before heading upstairs. Dad gave us a wave, but didn't say anything. Elle tightly clasped my hand and as I squeezed back, I told myself that I'd tell her about it tomorrow. Tonight was for us.

As soon as we entered our room, I tossed aside my cane, set down the bottle of scotch that I had snagged from the bar, and backed her up against the closed door. Her eyes smoldered with lust as my lips crashed down on hers. Our tongues tangoed in a lovely familiar dance. Her hand slipped under my shirt and stroked my bare back while my hands grabbed her ass and pushed her against my throbbing pelvis. Considering that we had danced the horizontal mambo just last night, it was amazing how incredibly hot we were for each other. Part of me just wanted to rip her dress off and take her right up against the door. I reached behind her and started tugging on her zipper.

I nibbled her neck and muttered: "Gonna unzip my fly, my lovely wife? You _promised_ to unzip me when the party's over."

Her hand cupped my erection. "_Our_ party's just beginning. I won't let you down. But, hmm, I had something that I wanted to wear for you."

I smiled against her skin. She wanted to dress for me. "A sexy little bridal number?"

She blushed and whispered: "Yes."

I warned: "You do realize that it won't stay on for very long."

"I know, but I wanted to wear it for you, even if it's just for 5 minutes."

"Five minutes is a long time for a horny man on his wedding night."

"OK, two minutes. Shall I go put it on?"

I nuzzled her neck. "Sure. I'll pour us a scotch."

"That sounds nice." Elle walked over to the dresser, pulled something white out of a drawer and disappeared into the bathroom.

I smirked and limped over to the dresser. I, too, had bought something to wear for our wedding night. Since I didn't have to wear a tux all day, I thought a pair of tuxedo boxers would be appropriate for our wedding night. I stripped off and slipped on the black satin boxers with the ruffled white 'shirt' and bowtie. Mt. Gregory was already tenting up the shirtfront. I glanced at myself in the mirror and shook my head at my image. I looked like an idiot, but I knew Elle would appreciate the gesture.

I took the scotch and two glasses out to the table on the balcony. The night was balmy for September with just a light breeze. I figured we wouldn't be out here long enough to get cold. I limped back in for my I-Pod and selected a romantic shuffle of soft music.

At the sound of the bathroom door opening, I turned around. Elle walked out of the bathroom wearing a sexy white baby-doll nightie. The lace and satin pushup bra barely contained her plump breasts. Sheer panels hung down from the bra, leaving lots of exposed skin. Underneath she wore a tiny white lace g-string. Around one creamy thigh she wore a white garter.

In a low husky voice, I growled: "Oooo, there's my sexy bride. Come here, baby."

I held out my arms and she drifted over.

She rubbed her hand over the shirtfront, causing my cock to twitch. "I love the tux. Cute bowtie."

My mouth covered hers as I ran my hands over her body. Finally we came up for air and then I led her to the balcony.

Our chairs pulled close together, I poured a double shot for me and a single for Elle, knowing that she wouldn't want to drink a lot after all the champagne she'd had tonight.

I lifted my glass to my bride and said: "A toast on our wedding night.

_To my beautiful wife_

_Who has given me a wonderful life._

_Before I met you, I had a lot of strife,_

_But now I feel like playing the fife._

_My love for you is abundant and rife._

_I'm so glad you became my lovely wife._

I smirked proudly: "That one, I really made up."

Her face softened and I thought I saw a glimmer of tears in her eyes. "Oh, that was wonderful."

Her compliment made me grin. We clinked glasses and both took a sip of scotch.

She placed her hand on my knee. "I need to toast you too."

She thought for a moment; then she raised her glass and said:

_To my wonderful husband,_

_ Who I love more than words could e'er express_

_May we have years of happiness and bliss between the sheets_

_And our love grow ever stronger._

Her sentiment made me smile but I protested: "Hey, that didn't rhyme."

"I'm not much of a poet, but it came from my heart."

She clinked her glass against mine: "_Je t'aime_, _ma moitié."_

_When Elle spoke to me in French, it was as if she were showing me her deepest soul. I wanted to return the same. __"Moi aussi, je t'aime."_

We stared into each other's eyes as we knocked back the rest of our scotch. With perfect timing, the song I wanted, '_Unchained Melody'_, started to play.

I stood, picked up her hand and bent down to kiss it. _"Danser avec moi?"_

She smiled with delight: _"Oui."_

I helped her to her feet and pulled her into my arms. We swayed together for a moment and then she flung her arms around my neck and let out a joyous laugh. "_Oh,_ _ma moitié_, _je t'aime_. _Je t'aime autant de!"_

Her happiness infected me and as I pulled her tightly against my body, I felt the grin spread across my face. No one could see it, so I let myself enjoy the moment. I hooked my arm under her ass, and lifted her off her feet, encouraging her to wrap her legs around my waist. I swayed in a slow circle, while holding her in my arms. The feeling was sensational, the warm contact of our nearly naked bodies and the cool breeze hitting my bare back. I felt powerful, holding her like that. I felt like a man.

With my hand on her ass, I pressed her closer so she could feel my need.

My lips, mere millimeters from hers, whispered: "Are your panties wet?"

Her answer was a sigh: "Yes."

I squeezed her again and then patted her ass. Elle understood that as much as I wanted to carry her to bed, that it wasn't possible. She unwrapped her legs and I gently set her on the ground.

Her hand went to my crotch and gave Mt. Gregory an affectionate squeeze. Then she gave me a look of unbridled lust, and scampered into the bedroom. I grabbed the bottle of scotch and followed.

_**CHASE**_

After House and Elle took their leave, the party wound to a close. Everyone started saying goodnight and heading off to their rooms. I wasn't quite ready to end the evening so I asked Cameron if she'd like a walk on the beach and she agreed. I rolled my pants up to mid-calf and we left our sandals on the porch. It was a lovely night; the stars were out and the moon was a Cheshire Cat's grin in the sky. We walked out to the water's edge and let the incoming tide cool our feet as we strolled south for a bit.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of white in the darkness. I stopped and took a good look; and then chuckled.

Cameron asked: "What is it?"

I pointed back towards the B & B: "Look, over there."

Her jaw dropped: "Oh, my. House and Elle are out on their balcony. They don't seem to be wearing very much, either."

The dark balcony was backlit with the light from the bedroom. Although there were a lot of shadows on the balcony, I could see that Elle was wearing a short white nightie and House seemed to be wearing only a pair of boxers.

"They probably think no one will be on the beach to see them. And of course, they're not wearing much. It's their wedding night."

Even in the darkness, I could see Cameron roll her eyes. "Well, it's not like they haven't seen and done it all before. After all, they have a child and have been living together for quite a while."

I put my arm around her and gave a squeeze: "Where's the romantic in you, Cameron? It's their _wedding_ night."

The faint hints of a song bounced over the dune to us and we watched as the couple got up and swayed to the music.

Cameron murmured: "Who would have thought that House could be such a romantic?"

I tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. "I suppose he just needed the right woman to bring it out."

There was a bit of sadness in her voice as she said: "I guess you're right."

She still wasn't quite over him yet. I knew it but I hoped that my love and House's marriage would hasten the departure of her feelings for him.

Laughter and a few French words floated across the sand and I smiled.

"What are you smiling at?"

"How happy they look and what Elle said."

"Some of us don't speak French. Care to translate?"

My smile grew wider: "She called him _'her half'_, it's a term of endearment, you know, like together they are a whole. And she told him that she loves him very much."

She sighed and then cried out: "Look! He's picked her up. I didn't think his leg would let him do that."

"The right woman can make a man feel like he can do anything."

She tilted her head at me and smirked: "Oh, yeah, and what does the right woman do for you?"

I smiled at her and then I said: "She gives me the courage to tell her that I love her and if she'll give me the chance, I'll love her more than any other man."

In the darkness, I saw her bite her lip and I turned back to the balcony just in time to see House and Elle going into their bedroom. I chuckled inwardly; it must be time to consummate the marriage.

Suddenly a small voice said: "It's Tuesday."

My attention still focused on the now empty balcony, I absentmindedly said: "No, love, it's Saturday."

She cupped my face with her hands. "No, Robbie, it's _Tuesday_."

It took a moment, but then I grinned when I realized what she was saying. I had been telling her every Tuesday that I loved her and that I wanted more than just sex from our relationship. Those words had become a code between us, despite the fact that, up until this very minute, she had rebuffed my desires. Slowly I said: "You're right, Allie, it is Tuesday."

I wrapped my arms around her. After a hug and a quick kiss, I tossed over my shoulder and headed back across the sand.

She struggled and squealed: "What are you doing?"

I stopped, lowered her to the ground and pressed up against her, wanting her to feel my need. "It's either here in the sand or back in our room. Which would you prefer?"

She gasped, eyes wide, mouth open. The word came out as a breathless sigh: "Our room."

"That's what I'd thought you'd say."

I kissed her soundly and threw her back across my shoulder. She squealed, but didn't struggle this time. Only the servers, cleaning up, were still around at this late hour as we tramped through the dining room; they merely grinned as they watched me carry Allison across the floor and up the stairs.

_**ELLE**_

Greg looked as eager as a kid on Christmas Day. He sat on the bed and pulled me over to stand between his spread knees. His hands rested on my hips, his thumbs lightly caressing my skin, as he looked me over.

When he looked up at me, his face had softened, as if he had suddenly become shy. He licked his lips nervously and then said softly: "You're so beautiful. Do I get to unwrap you now?"

My voice was equally soft: "Yes, please."

He peeled my nightie off slowly, kissing each inch of exposed skin until the garment fell to the floor. By that time, my breathing had become swallow from excitement; I could barely stand and clung to his shoulders for support.

Clad only in my tiny G-string and garter, he again gave me the once-over. His shyness was gone, replaced by a look of pure lust. The front of his boxers were tented with his excitement.

"My sexy bride."

Before I realized what was happening, he scooped me up and laid me on the bed. Hovering above me, push-up style, his lips brushed over my face, stopping here and there to nibble a bit before finding their way to my mouth. His lips hovered mere millimeters from mine, his breath warm and exciting and after a long minute, he licked my lips before gently snagging my lower lip between his. I whimpered and his mouth covered mine completely. I became completely lost in the sensations; there was nothing else in the world except the pressure of his lips and his tongue dancing with mine.

The feeling was so overwhelming that I actually gasped when we broke apart. As he nibbled on my ear, he whispered: "Are your panties wet?"

My answer was a low moan. "Soaked."

He let out a delighted hum. After a thorough tongue washing of my ear lobe, he started nibbling on my neck. My body felt like rubber; I wasn't sure I could move if I had to. And apparently, he didn't want me to, because next he grasped both of my wrists and pulled them above my head. "Keep your hands here. Be a good little bride and don't move."

I murmured my assent and he started kissing his way down my body with agonizing slowness. He licked my collarbones and nuzzled his face between my breasts. His tongue circled my areolas and lapped up the small drops of milk that had leaked out. His tongue left a wet trail down my abdomen where it darted in and out of my belly button. I ached to move, to touch him, but I managed to keep my hands where he wanted them. I moaned my desire and thrust my pelvis up towards his; he chuckled and held my hips down. I responded by spreading my legs wider, encouraging him to move into the desired position.

He finally kissed his way down to the scrap of material that covered my most sensitive area. Ever so slowly, he untied the strings and finally exposed me to his view. After nuzzling my soft hair, he blew lightly on my clit and I thought I would explode. My hands grasped the headboard tightly and I begged: "Greg, please."

His tongue gave my clit one quick lick; I cried out in pleasure and thrust my pelvis higher. "Please."

He chuckled: "Please, what, my bride?"

"Lick me, kiss me, fuck me."

"All good things in time, my bride."

He positioned himself between my spread legs and started kissing and caressing my inner thighs. As nice as that felt, the area that really needed attention was being ignored except for the occasional swipe of his tongue.

I felt his finger probe my entrance and I thought I would go mad with desire.

"Someone's wet for me."

"Oh, yes, cowboy, I'm wet for you. Take me. Fuck me please."

"Patience, my love. I need a snack so I have enough energy to fuck you properly on our wedding night."

His finger withdrew and was replaced with his tongue. I cried out with pleasure and tried to thrust against him for the pressure I needed to come, but he continued to hold my hips in place and tease me with his fingers and tongue.

Again and again he would take me right to the edge and then back off. I moaned in protest, even though I knew, in the back of my mind, that when the release finally came, it would be incredible and well worth the wait.

Finally his own desire must have overwhelmed his enjoyment of teasing me. He quickly shucked his boxers, dressed himself with a condom, and positioned himself at my entrance. He wiggled his eyebrows at me. "Ready to consummate the marriage, my bride?"

In a prim tone, I answered: "Yes, my husband. Make me yours."

He growled as he slowly entered me: "You are mine."

When he was balls deep inside of me, he paused as he sometimes did, enjoying the feel of being deep inside of me and giving my body a moment to accommodate to his large girth. He whispered: "Mine."

My walls squeezed his cock. "And you are mine. Please, may I move my hands? I want to touch you."

He hissed at the pleasurable sensation: "Yes."

My hands flew to his body, anxious to touch him. One hand stroked his back while the other played with his hair. My walls squeezed him again and he started to slowly thrust in and out of me.

Our excitement grew quickly and he pumped harder and faster. The pressure was building and I could feel that my explosion wasn't far off. Suddenly Greg lifted my left leg and put it over his shoulder, stabbing into me even deeper than before. I cried out in pleasure; he gasped out in short bursts: "Is this. What Billy meant. By being _joined._ In the bonds. Of holy matrimony?"

"Oh, God, _Yes!_"

My body exploded; fireworks went off in my head. My toes curled and I clutched him tightly as my back arched to even more fully receive his cock.

My walls involuntarily squeezed him tighter and he stabbed into me only a few more times before his own orgasm hit him, my name a low moan on his lips as he came. A few more thrusts as he rode out his orgasm, and then he collapsed on top of me, quickly rolling us to the side.

In between gasps for air, we planted little kisses on each other's face. Eyes closed, he leaned his head back, exposing his throat to me. I kissed and licked his neck and Adam's apple, while he made small sounds of pleasure. Finally he let out a long sigh, and carefully pulled out of me.

As he rolled the condom off and took care of it, he smirked: "Damn, you're sexy. Glad I married you."

"The feeling is mutual, _stud."_

He pulled me into his arms: "You like my big hard cock, huh?"

"Just as much as you love my tight wet pussy."

He murmured as he nibbled on my neck. "I sure do."

Our lips met for a slow sensuous kiss. When we broke apart, I looked into his gorgeous blue eyes and said: "I love you with all my heart."

Emotions flitted across his face and his mouth twitched. He took my hand and pressed it to his chest, right over his heart. His voice cracked with emotion as he whispered: "The feeling is mutual."

It had been a long emotional day and it had taken a toll on him. It was time for rest.

"Ready for sleep, cowboy? Can you get the lamp?"

He nodded, then reached over and turned off the light. In the darkness, he gathered me into his arms again and stroked my hair. I snuggled happily into his chest, enjoying the warmth of his body and the scent of his skin. Just as I was about to doze off, I heard Greg sing, very softly, Eric Clapton's words.

_And then I tell her, as I turn out the light,_

_Oh my darling, you are wonderful tonight._

He embraced me tightly: "Not just tonight, but every night. I may never say this again, but thank you. Thank you for loving me, thank you for marrying me. Thank you for giving me a child and thank you for having enough faith in us to get us through the bad patches. I won't say this often enough, but I do love you. I hope you'll remember this in the future, for all those times when I'm an ass and you want to kill me."

I felt a tear in the corner of my eye and I hastily brushed it away. It had taken the darkness and a lot of courage for him to say those words to me. "I love you too. There will be times when you're mad at me and I hope that in the midst of your anger that you'll remember my words too. Thank you for loving me and marrying me and giving me the child that I never thought I would have. Thank you for coming after me when I ran off to the Keys and telling me that you wanted to work things out. Thank you for everything. I love you."

He kissed the top of my head and held me closely. Our silence was peaceful. It seemed that we had said it all and words were no longer necessary.

Just as I was dozing off in his arms, I heard his murmur: "And only one dinner party a month?"

I smiled against his skin: "Only one. I promise."

_**HOUSE**_

We must have forgotten to close the drapes last night. The invading sunlight woke me; when I glanced at the clock, I groaned when I saw that it was just past 7AM.

A sleepy voice inquired: "Whazzamatter, baby?"

I burrowed my head deeper into the pillow and murmured: "Too bright."

She stroked my chest: "Poor baby. You wanna sleep some more?"

"Mmmm, hmmmm."

Suddenly her warmth was gone. My eyes popped open and I glanced around to discover her padding across the room towards the sliding glass door. "What are you doing?"

"Closing the drapes."

"Why?"

"You said it was too bright. You'd rather I leave them open?"

She had gotten out of bed to see to my comfort. Christ, would I ever get used to the fact that she loved me and wanted to take care of me? In some ways, I hoped not; I never wanted to become complacent about her love.

"No, close them, sweetheart. Then get your naked self back over here."

She giggled and after closing the drapes, crawled back into bed. Once she was snuggled up in my arms again, the giggling returned. "You said you wanted to go back to sleep, but part of you is wide awake."

"It's your fault. Prancing naked around the room like that woke Mt. Gregory up."

"Well, if it's my fault, I guess I better take care of him."

Before I could say another word, she slipped under the covers and took me into her mouth. I groaned loudly at the wonderful sensations and became rock hard very quickly. Desire overwhelmed any rational thought and with my hand on the back of her head, I started thrusting into her mouth. I was close to the edge when she suddenly pushed my hand away and withdrew my cock from her mouth. I moaned at the loss, but not for long. Elle quickly grabbed a condom off of the nightstand, tore the wrapper open with her teeth and dressed me. Once I had my raincoat on, she straddled me and teased me by rubbing my cock against her slit. She let it slip in just a little bit and when I moaned or started to thrust, she'd withdraw again.

I grabbed her hips and tried to maneuver her where I wanted her. Mt. Gregory needed his warm cave. "Baby, please."

She reached back and fondled my balls. "Please, what?"

She was playing my game. I slid my hands up to her breasts and said in a low voice: "Slide your warm wet pussy down over my dick and fuck me, baby."

Ever so slowly, she rubbed my cock against her slit again, down to the base and back up to the head. She lingered at the head, pleasuring herself by rubbing him around on her clit and then suddenly slid my full length inside of her.

I moaned with pleasure. My hands flew to her hips and I stabbed up into her. Elle cried out and started riding me hard. She was so tight and wet that I knew I wouldn't last long. I wet my thumb and circled her clit a few times before applying the pressure that she wanted. She threw her head back and let out a loud cry, her wetness flooding my cock and her hands gripping my shoulders so tightly that I was sure I would have bruises later. I grabbed her hips with both hands and pumped up into her. It only took a few more thrusts before I also fell over the edge, releasing a strangled cry while I held her hips still, my cock erupting deeply within her. Our breathing was ragged as our eyes locked on each other. Her hand stroked my cheek and I pulled her down to my chest, engulfing her in my arms.

We laid in sweaty post-coital bliss, her head resting on my shoulder while I gently stroked her back. I savored the feeling for a few more moments, not wishing to interrupt it for anything, least of all with a conversation about a certain subject. But I knew that this was our last chance to have a private moment, before Mom returned Rachel to us and before we started the long ride home with my parents in the back seat.

I gave her a gentle kiss and then said slowly: "I guess you wanna know what happened in the men's room."

Her fingers toyed with my chest hair. "I'd like to know, if you want to tell me."

I told her about the encounter, including the interruption from Chase, who had undoubtedly reported in to Wilson who had come running to the rescue like a nerdy white knight minus the horse. I did not tell her how I felt when I spied her across the room looking anxious and that it was the precipitating factor in arranging for our first dance.

She pondered my words for a few minutes and then asked: "So you kinda just left things hanging with him?"

I nodded.

"How do you feel about it now, since you've had a bit of time to think about it?"

I possessively squeezed her ass: "I haven't had time to think about it. I've been busy consummating my marriage."

She gave me a gentle kiss: "And a damn fine job you did too."

I embraced her tighter, enjoying the warmth of her body. She snuggled in and I could feel her smile against my skin. The comfort of her body gave me the courage to speak again.

"I don't know how I feel. How am I supposed to feel? All those years of telling me what an asswipe I was, gone in one fell swoop? He lied, but what does it matter? Everybody lies. It's not going to change anything. Can't change the past. One little speech doesn't make up for a lifetime of."

I faltered, unable to go on. Elle continued for me. "Hurt. He hurt you all those years and you're right. One little toast doesn't even begin to make up for it. He should have loved you unconditionally, encouraged your career choice and supported you whole-heartedly. He shouldn't have belittled you and dumped on you every chance he got. He's your father and he should have guided you gently into adulthood, not treated you like a raw Marine recruit. Hell, he probably treated those recruits better than you. Bet they never had to take ice baths."

I shivered at the memory and buried my face in her shoulder. She held me tightly and stroked my back.

Slowly she whispered: "I'm sorry."

I tensed; the one thing I did not want from Elle was pity and an apology was sounding an awful lot like that.

In a gruff tone, I asked: "What are you sorry about?"

"I feel like I pushed this interaction with your parents, you know, having them visit, getting so excited about them moving closer, helping them look for an apartment. I was so excited about Rachel having her grandparents near by that I didn't stop to think about how you would feel. It's one thing to put up with your dad for a weeklong visit, but to have him living in the same town is another story. I guess I thought it would be OK, as you seemed to be kinda getting along with him. I was wrong; I'm sorry."

I closed my eyes in relief; it wasn't pity that she was feeling. "There's no need for you to apologize. It wasn't your idea for them to move here. Mom dreamed that up. And you like Mom and you want Rachel to know her grandparents especially since she only has the one set."

"I know, but I wasn't taking your feelings into consideration."

"Elle, stop. I told Mom that it was OK for them to move here before I even had the chance to tell you about it, remember?"

She nodded.

"When she asked me about moving to Princeton and I didn't answer right away, she looked so incredibly sad. I thought she was going to cry and I couldn't do that to her. When I was a kid, she tried to be there for me and give me the support that he wouldn't, but she could only do so much. And I don't want her to be all alone and across the country when he kicks the bucket."

"I don't want that either. So, you're kinda OK with them moving here?"

I thought back to what Avi had said to me. "I can't forgive him, Elle. But I don't want to deprive Rachel of her grandparents or you from a mother-in-law that bakes cookies."

Her eyes shone with love. "You're willing to put up with him for us?"

I buried my face in her shoulder again. _You're my girls, my family. I love you and I'd do anything I could for you._ I couldn't say those words to her, so I simply said: "Yes."

She hugged me tightly: "Oh, Greg, you are the most wonderful, amazing man in the whole world."

I smirked: "Well, naturally. That's why you married me and picked out that particular ring-tone for me." In a sing-song voice, I warbled: "_Whatta man, Whatta man, Whatta mighty good man."_

She giggled. "It does fit you perfectly."

I gave her ass an affectionate pat. "Come on, wife. Let's have a quick shower before the wee one gets here and wants to suckle at the milk bar."

After we got out of the shower, Elle rang Mom who brought Rachel to our room. Rachel was happy to see her Mama and immediately started rooting around for a nipple. Elle settled back on the bed to open the milk bar while cooing endearments in French to our child.

Mom glanced at me with a worried expression on her face. Of course, Dad would have told her what had happened last night in the men's room. Hesitantly she asked: "Everything OK, dear?"

"Of course, Mom. It's the morning after my wedding night and that went screamingly well, if you know what I mean. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink."

She gave me a small smile: "Well, that's probably not the kind of conversation a mother has with her son, but I'm happy for you, dear."

I touched her shoulder: "Everything's fine, Mom. We'll be down to breakfast as soon as Rachel has hers."

She nodded and left the three of us alone. I cuddled up next to my girls and watched as Rachel nursed. I stroked her soft skin with a finger and smiled as she kicked and squirmed with excitement, all the while remaining attached to her mother's breast. These quiet moments were some of the best parts of my day and I longed to make them last. But all too soon, Rachel had finished. I burped and changed her while Elle cleaned up and then we headed down to breakfast together.

It seemed like everyone was in the dining room at the moment that we walked in. They all turned and stared at us as we strolled through the doorway. I noticed smirks on a few male faces and decided to meet the mockery head-on.

I announced in a booming voice: "Good morning, everyone. I hope our screams of passion didn't keep you awake last night."

Elle blushed and looked away. There were a lot of snickers heard throughout the room and Cuddy, naturally, rolled her eyes. In a voice, loud enough for the whole room to hear, she asked: "Elle, why _do_ you put up with him?"

That brought a fresh round of chuckles across the room.

Elle settled the baby on her hip and secured her with her elbow. Then she looked right at Cuddy, held her hands out, parallel to each other, about 10 inches apart and didn't say a word. After a minute, everyone got her meaning and starting laughing, except for Cuddy who blushed and rolled her eyes again. "Why did I ask? You two were meant for each other."

Breakfast was laid out buffet style. I asked Elle to make me a plate, took Rachel from her and sat down at the table where my parents were sitting. Dad looked nervous and picked at his food.

In a calm tone, completely hiding my inner tension, I asked: "How was Rachel last night? Any problems?"

Dad saw the opening and took it. "She was good as gold. We gave her a bottle around 11 and she slept straight through until 5:30."

I nodded: "That's her usual pattern at the moment. And six hours of sleep sure beats the hell outta three."

Dad agreed: "No doubt."

There was silence at the table. I never was very good at small talk and I had run out of topics. Dad looked too nervous to say much and Mom seemed on pins and needles at our tenuous truce.

Thankfully Elle arrived at the table with our plates. She set one down in front of me and said: "French toast and bacon OK for a start?"

"Oh yeah." I picked up my fork and started to dive in, but Rachel made a grab for my plate. I pushed the dish out of her reach and said: "Hey, that's mine. And no bacon until you get teeth, kid."

Dad held out his arms: "I've finished eating. Let me hold her while you eat."

I reluctantly handed her over to Dad; Rachel squealed with delight as Dad propped her up on his lap and tickled her feet.

Elle speared a piece of sausage and asked: "So have you two thought any more about condo versus apartment?"

My parents looked at each other; Dad nudged Mom and she answered: "Well, dear, we think an apartment would be best for now. That way, if we don't like the neighborhood or something, we can easily move when the lease is up."

Dad piped in: "Yeah, and like Greg said, the condo market is flat right now. If we buy one and then want to sell, we could have a lot of problems. I think Greg's right; renting an apartment makes the most sense right now."

I almost choked on my food. Dad said I was _right_? For the second day in a row, _Alien Dad _was freaking me out by saying things that I wished he had told me years ago. I stared down at my plate, trying to regain my composure. Elle's knee pressed against mine; I relished the small comfort and pressed back. Maybe Avi was right; maybe Dad had matured and saw me in a different light. Maybe he was just happy to be a Grandpa; maybe he was trying desperately to make amends before he met his Maker. Whatever the reason, he was now treating me with the respect that a man should give another man. For my family's sake, for Elle and Rachel, I would try to put aside my anger for now.

I swiped a bite of Elle's banana pancakes. "So you've decided. Great. Did you see any apartments that you liked?"

There were two apartments that my parents had liked. When we returned to Princeton, Elle took them to both places for a return visit. They finally decided on a place called the Carriage House. It was advertised as a 'luxury active adult rental community for adults 55 and over'. It had a clubhouse, an indoor heated pool, state of the art fitness center, billiards room, library, a golf putting green and more. There was a wide assortment of social clubs and they both expressed an interest in joining the bridge club. It was more expensive than the other place, but the amenities seemed to be worth the higher price. The heated pool was an amenity that I was looking forward to using when we came over to visit.

The apartment was a 2-bedroom, 2-bath model with a balcony. Mom was especially thrilled about the balcony so that she could have her plants out there. The master bedroom had its own en-suite bathroom and a large walk-in closet. The next one would be available on November 1. They put down first month's rent and a deposit and signed a year's lease.

They were scheduled to fly home on Thursday. I could have just let Elle take them to the airport, but I decided to tag along. I didn't want her to feel like she always had to do the airport schlepping alone. We got them checked in and walked with them to the security gate.

Mom was all teary-eyed saying good-bye to Rachel. I had to turn away as I hated to see her cry. I guess Dad felt the same way because he came over and stood by me.

"Your mother has a hard time saying good-bye. She used to cry every time you'd go back to college."

"I didn't know that."

"She didn't want you to know. She'd hold her tears until you drove away and then she'd let loose. It's my fault she's like that."

I shot him a questioningly look.

He shrugged: "Every time I left on a mission, who knew if I'd return? I could have gotten shot down or something. She'd seen other wives get bad news and knew it could happen to her too. She'd cry every time I left."

He looked over his shoulder at the ladies: "She still like that, crying every time she has to say good-bye. And she sure hates saying good-bye to Rachel."

"Well, pretty soon, she won't have to do that any more."

He smiled: "No, we won't. I can't believe that we'll be back in less than two months. We've got a lot of packing to do and arrangements to make."

Thinking of his ticker, I said: "Don't stress yourself out too much about it. If it takes longer than two months to get it all done, it's not a big deal."

"Yeah, you're right. As long as we get here by Thanksgiving, that will be fine with me. I'm looking forward to a big turkey dinner with all the trimmings with you and your girls."

I smirked: "Knowing Elle, Wilson, Cuddy, BJ and half the band will be here too."

He chuckled: "Good thing you have a large dining room table."

I glanced over my shoulder at the ladies; Mom was wiping her eyes. "Mom seems to be calming down. Maybe we should rejoin them."

He nodded, and as we strolled back, he said: "Hey son, maybe when we get all settled in, you and I could catch a ball game once in a while."

With football and a few beers, I could probably tolerate _Alien Dad_ for a few hours, especially if Wilson was around for a buffer. "Sure, Dad. We can watch the Jets on Sunday afternoons. Maybe even get up to Giants Stadium once in a while for a live game. Wilson knows a guy that we can get tickets from. And Elle will be happy to introduce you to the phenomenon of Gator football. It's almost a cult."

"That will be great, son. I'd like that."

We rejoined the women and Dad took Rachel so that he could say good-bye to her. "Bye, Punkin. Opa is going home to pack up and move over here near you. Then we'll get to see you a lot more often. Oma and I will take you to the zoo and the park and give your Mama and Daddy some private time once in a while."

He gave her a couple of kisses on her forehead and reluctantly handed her over to me. Mom gave Rachel and I a big hug and a few kisses. I put my arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze.

Dad gave my wife a big hug and said: "Elle, take good care of my boy and my granddaughter."

She hugged him back. "You know I will, Colonel."

"Greg says you are gonna introduce me to Gator football when we get back. I'm afraid I don't follow college ball very much."

"Oh, I'll teach ya all about the SEC and the Gators, Colonel. You'll love it."

Mom gave Elle one more hug while Dad squeezed my arm. He still had a decent grip for an old man. "See you soon, son."

"See ya, Dad."

We said our final good-byes and after one more kiss for Rachel, my parents headed to security. We watched them go, waving until they were out of sight.

Elle sighed: "Don't be mad, but I'm sad to see them go."

"I know, sweetheart. It's ok. They'll be back soon. Dad's already looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner."

"Oh yeah, we can have a really nice dinner. We'll invite Jimmy and Lisa, Avi and Ricky.

I interrupted her: "But that will be our one dinner party for the month, right?

She smiled up at me: "Yes, cowboy. That will be our one party for the month."


	79. Chapter 79

**Chapter 79**

_**HOUSE**_

Dad died three weeks later. Mom found him slumped over a box that he had been packing in the spare bedroom. She called the paramedics, but it was too late. He'd had a massive heart attack and they were unable to revive him.

I was numb when I hung up the phone. I knew I was supposed to feel sad, but I didn't. It's as if there were a bridgeless moat surrounding me, keeping me apart from my emotions and I had to admit that I preferred it that way. I got plenty of sympathy from Wilson, Cuddy and the ducklings, which I brushed off and headed for home.

The three of us flew out right away to be with Mom. She was holding up fairly well; it was Elle who was outwardly grieving. She cried when I gave her the news; she wept again that night in bed. She cried so much on the plane that the flight attendant kept checking on us and bringing drinks and Kleenex. I knew this was just a painful reminder of the loss of her own parents and I just tried to comfort her as best I could. I would have slipped her a Valium, but since she was still breastfeeding Rug-rat, I couldn't do that. I tried to get her to have a few sips of my Scotch, but she refused.

Mom wanted me to speak at the funeral. I protested, but she insisted. As I lay in bed with Elle the night before the funeral, my face buried in the crook of her neck, I told her: "I don't wanna give an eulogy. What am I gonna say that won't make me feel like a complete hypocrite?"

She stroked my back and said thoughtfully: "Mention any positive thing that you can think of. What a great soldier he was. How much he loved the Corps. What a wonderful grandpa he was. Don't talk about your childhood; just keep it short."

I muttered: "You should give the speech instead of me."

"Your Mom wants _you_ to do it. You're their son; it's your place. I know this is hard for you, but I know you can do it."

Her caresses soothed me and the words came out before I realized what I was saying. "No one has ever believed in me the way you do."

She hugged me tightly. "I can't understand why. You are the most amazing man I've ever known."

Tears stung my eyes and my chest tightened. I had never felt so loved and cared for as this woman made me feel. I had to deflect before I got all girly and started to cry. "You just love my big dick."

Softly she replied: "Not just your dick."

I clung to her like a drowning man clings to a life raft. In a choked voice, I begged: "Tell me."

"I love you, Greg. I love you with all my heart."

It was all too much, my confused feelings over Dad's demise and the unflinching love and faith that my wife had for me. My emotions rose up like a tidal wave and threatened to overwhelm me; I needed the comfort that only Elle could give me. I rolled her onto her back and settled between her legs. We made love gently and quietly in that small double bed in Mom's guest room, with Rachel sleeping near-by in a borrowed crib. The few tears that leaked out went unmentioned by either of us; Elle merely kissed them away. Afterwards, wrapped up in my wife's arms, I was finally able to sleep.

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

The room was filled with people in dark-hued clothes or Marine Corps uniforms; the only bright spot was Rachel in her little blue flowered dress. Elle put her in that outfit deliberately because Dad had liked that dress on her so much.

The funeral started off as typical Protestant services do, with a hymn and the Lord's Prayer. Then Mom got up to address the crowd: "Thank you for coming. It means more to me than I can say to have you all here today. And now our son Gregory would like to say a few words."

I froze, like a deer in the headlights. I couldn't do it.

Mom saw my hesitation and said: "Greg?"

Elle squeezed my hand and I managed to rise and slowly limp towards the podium. Mom gave me a hug in passing and then I took my place behind the lectern.

I tried to remember everything that Elle had told me to mention, but my mind went blank. I gripped my cane tightly and said: "Thank you all for coming."

That seemed a reasonable start; what most people would say. I slipped my left hand into my jacket pocket as I pondered what to say next. I frowned as my fingers found a stray piece of paper; I pulled it out and placed it on the lectern. I quickly read it over and then glanced up to see Elle giving me a small smile.

I chuckled and held up the paper. "Apparently my wife thinks I need a little help with my speech."

There was a small tittering through the audience; I scanned the room while waiting for silence from the audience.

"There are a lot of people here from the Corps. Dad would have liked that. Dad loved being a Marine. He saw his work as some kind of a sacred calling. He had wanted me to follow in his footsteps, but I chose a different path. It created some tension in our relationship over the years; actually it created a lot of tension. The two of us butted heads on a fairly regular basis."

_Where was I going with this?_ I looked down at the paper and scanned Elle's bullet points again. _'Avoid childhood'_ she had written. Time to veer off that subject.

I noticed that Elle had slid over into my seat next to Mom and she had her arm around her. Mom was dabbing at her eyes with a tissue and Elle was patting her shoulder. My little daughter was curled up in the crook of my wife's other arm. Rug-rat gave me my new direction.

"Dad found a new calling late in life, the one of _Grandpa_. He relished that new role and completely adored his granddaughter. I'm sorry that he only got to play that part for 5 months, and that he won't be around to watch our daughter grow up. I was hoping that _he_ would be the one to buy her a pony when she turns 10."

That got another laugh from the audience.

"Rachel will miss out on having his influence in her life. I am what I am today because of him, for better or for worse. I guess I didn't turn out too badly. I managed to snag a wonderful woman for my wife, and the last time I saw my Dad."

I had to pause for a moment, to keep my emotions in check before continuing: "The last time I saw my Dad, he said he was proud of me."

I glanced at my family. Elle was beaming proudly. Mom was smiling through her tears. I guess I was doing an OK job after all. I did a half turn and took one last look at my father. I still couldn't forgive him for the things he did to me as a kid, but it was time to bury them along with his coffin.

I turned back to face the crowd. "My final words to you are what I think Dad would close with. Thanks for coming; now, where's the beer?"

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

The gravesite service was much harder on my girls. I had been to military funerals before and knew what to expect, but Elle had no idea and I had neglected to warn her.

When the hearse pulled up, fifteen white-gloved Marines in their dress uniforms were waiting, standing at attention. When the Maine chaplain walked in front of them, they presented arms and saluted him. He saluted back and barked instructions. Eight of the men, led by the Chaplain, carried the flag-draped casket from the hearse to the burial site. The other seven men, carrying rifles, followed behind.

The casket was set down and the flag straightened. The Chaplain led us in the 23rd Psalm and then a prayer. He had actually known my Dad and had a few nice words to say about him.

Then he backed away from the casket and barked out: "Fall in!"

The seven men with the rifles fell into formation at a short distance from the crowd.

"Present arms!"

Elle gasped and Rachel wailed when the first volley was shot. I put my hands over Rachel's ears, but it was too late. She screamed through the last two volleys of the gun salute.

I could see the tears in Elle's eyes during the gun salute, but when the bugler started playing 'Taps', she completely lost it. There is probably no sadder sound in the world than listening to that. Her face crumbled; I grabbed Rachel with my left arm and wrapped Elle up in my right. I held her tightly and she sobbed on my shoulder until the last notes faded away.

As the pallbearers started the ritual flag folding, Elle managed to compose herself, wiping her tears away with some tissues. Rachel was still fussing a little but at least she had stopped wailing. She wanted her Mama, so I handed her over to Elle, who whispered soothing words to her.

When the flag was folded into a perfect triangle, the corpsman handed it to the Chaplain. He turned, walked over to Mom and presented it to her. After a closing prayer, we were escorted back to the limousine. A Marine would guard the casket until it was interred.

It was a quiet ride back. Rachel had fallen asleep, and Elle rested her head on my shoulder. We were each lost in our own thoughts. Mom finally broke the silence by saying: "You did a nice job today, Greg. Your father would have liked it. I know he didn't show it, but he really was very proud of you."

I wish I had known that, 30, 20, hell, even 10 years ago. But the past was gone now. There was nothing to be done, but to leave my pain behind in the cemetery with Dad's casket. I softly thanked Mom, and we remained quiet for the rest of the ride back.

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After the funeral, we stayed for a few days and helped Mom deal with some of the details surrounding Dad's death. I helped her with some of the paperwork involving his pension and other benefits while Elle packed up most of Dad's clothes, which were to be donated to charity. We tried to convince Mom to fly back and stay with us until her apartment was ready. I argued that we could hire movers to do all the packing and shipping and she wouldn't have to be bothered. But she refused, saying there were some things that she preferred to take care of herself. She would pack what she could, leave the rest to the movers, have the car shipped and fly out at the end of October. I hated to leave her, but she was adamant. It was only for three weeks and she stated that she could handle being alone for that length of time. Elle was quite distressed at leaving Mom behind and kept trying to convince her to change her plans, but Mom stood firm. The only way that Elle finally agreed to leave her behind was when Mom promised to phone every day, so that Elle wouldn't worry. That appeased Elle to a certain extent, but not completely.

Elle had trouble bouncing back from the emotional upheaval of the funeral. I would come home from work and discover that her eyes were red and swollen. I knew that she had been crying and trying to hide it from me. She was calling Mom at least twice a day, supposedly just to check on her. Finally Mom called me at work because _she_ was worried about Elle.

"She's taking Dad's death so hard, Greg."

"I know, Mom. I think it reminds her of losing her own parents. It's like an emotional flashback or something. And she is very sad that Rachel is going to grow up and not know her Opa_. And_ she worries about you being alone and so far away. She'll feel better when you get to New Jersey."

"Well, I'll be there as soon as I can. I arranged for the movers to come on the 23rd and I'll fly out on the 24th. That's only eight more days."

"She'll be ticking the days off on the calendar. I'll call her and tell her the good news. Better yet, you call her and tell her."

Elle was in a much better mood when I got home. The news that Mom would be in New Jersey in just eight days lifted her spirits immensely. So I carefully broached a rather sensitive subject: "Does this mean that Rachel can go back to sleeping in her room again?"

At four months of age, when the 2AM feedings were no longer necessary, we had transitioned her from sleeping in the porta-crib in our room to the big crib in her own room. However, when we came back from the funeral, Elle suddenly had anxiety about Rachel sleeping all the way across the house alone and had moved her back into our room. I really didn't mind for a few days, but I wanted Elle to relax and feel comfortable about having Rachel in her room again. The news that Mom would be here in only eight days seemed to have tipped the scale.

Elle gave me a big hug. "You've been so understanding. I've just been, oh you know, feeling so anxious about everything. I just wanted my family all around me and not far away."

I kissed the top of her head. "You wanna wait until Mom gets here to put Rachel back in her room?"

"No, I'm feeling better now. I think she can go back in her room tonight. The monitor will be on and we'll hear her if she cries. I was just being all girly and emotional."

"That's OK. You're gonna cry and I'm going to comfort you when you do; it's in the vows."

She laughed and tiptoed up to give me a kiss.

That night we settled Rachel in her crib. Elle made sure that the monitor was set so that we could hear her in our bedroom and in the living room, but she would not hear us. I made sure that the windows were locked and turned on her I-Pod. When we moved her into her room, I got her an I-Pod with speakers. Wanting to develop her taste in music at a young age, I filled it with classical music, jazz and soft rock. It went on shuffle every night so that she slept to music. After clicking on a small night-light, we left our little Rug-rat to sleep in her own room while we went to ours. Elle seemed much more relaxed, so much so that she jumped my bones as soon as we got into bed. It was the first time we had made love since the night before my Dad's funeral. As we cuddled in our sweaty, exhausted yet blissful post-coital state, I dozed off thinking how nice it was for everything to be back to normal.

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The doorbell rang on Saturday afternoon in the middle of the Gator football game. I was all comfy in the recliner with Rug-rat on my chest, so Elle went to the door.

"Tony! What are you doing here? Why are you home watching the Gators kill LSU?"

There was a hug and a double cheek kiss-kiss that made me frown.

"I had some business that I needed to tend to. The game's on the TiVO. The family knows not to mention the score to me until I've had a chance to watch it myself. I can't stay long but I wanted to express my condolences to your husband on the loss of his father. I also wanted to give you your wedding present."

She waved him into the room. "Come on in."

Tony entered the room, looking, as usual, as if he had just stepped off the pages of _GQ_. Who wears Armani on a Saturday afternoon? I, of course, was in my usual tee shirt and blue jeans.

Tony glanced once at the TV and then at me. He walked towards me, arm extended: "House. I'm very sorry for the loss of your father."

Wanting to be cordial to the man from the mob, I shook his hand. "Thank you. Mom got the flowers. I'm sure she sent you a card."

He waved his hand. "She didn't have to do that, but it was a lovely reply."

He smiled down at Rachel who was eyeing him with frank curiosity. "Your daughter is gorgeous. No doubt you'll be fighting the boys off."

I waggled my cane at him and smirked: "I am prepared."

Elle, ever the polite hostess, said: "Would you like to sit down? Let me get you something to drink."

"Thank you, but I can't stay. I'm afraid I have business to tend to. Frankie is outside with your wedding present. Shall I have him bring it in?"

Elle smiled: "Well, sure, but you really didn't have to get us anything."

"When I saw this, I knew it was perfect for you. I just hope House likes it."

As he walked to the door, my mind spun with the possibilities of what this gift could be.

I didn't have to wait long. Tony opened the front door and signaled. After a moment, Frankie the goon walked in with a puppy on a leash.

Elle squealed: "OHMIGOD! Tony! You shouldn't have. OHMIGOD. She looks just like Rocco."

She knelt down on the floor: "Hello, sweetie. Aren't you the cutest thing?"

With an effort, I kept my face neutral. I knew Tony was watching to see my reaction and I was not going to give him the satisfaction of my less-than-delighted feelings about his 'gift'. The stocky four-legged beast was mostly black except for a white blaze on her chest that extended up to her neck; her toes looked like they had been dipped in white paint. She had a block-shaped head, a huge mouth and a whip-like tail.

Tony said: "Her name is Layla and she's a six month old pure bred Staffordshire Bull Terrier. She's been fully trained and socialized. She's passed her Canine Good Citizen test with flying colors."

Elle was giddy with joy. The dog was sitting in her lap and licking her face, her tail going 90 MPH, while Elle laughed and petted the dog all over. Her happiness over the puppy was just amazing. I was kicking myself that I had not thought of this, but I wasn't a big dog person. We had moved too much when I was a kid to have a dog, although I had asked for one when I was eight. Request had been denied. Aside from a hamster that lived for about six months, and Steve McQueen, I had never had a pet.

Tony went on: "I would have brought her over a couple of weeks ago, but that's right when you needed to go to California. So she stayed at our place. She's been around my kids and she's been great with them. By the way, we adopted her sister, Cannoli. If Layla ever needs some doggie play-time, we can get the girls together."

I got out of the recliner and hobbled over to take a closer look. Rachel squealed happily when she saw the puppy.

Tony laughed: "Looks like your girls like the dog, House."

I cocked an eyebrow at him: "Fully trained? You mean she's housebroken?"

"Oh, much more than that. She has a full range of commands."

He snapped his fingers. "Layla, sit."

And just like that, the dog sat.

"Elle, move a few feet away. Call her and then put her through her paces. I bet she knows every command you can give her."

Elle moved away: the dog was panting with excitement, but didn't move.

"Layla, come!"

The dog ran to her feet.

"Sit. Down. Roll over."

The dog knew every command that Elle tried on her. It actually was rather impressive.

I smirked: "Layla, get me a scotch."

To my surprise, the dog ran to me and put her front paws on my knees.

I snarked: "Bring me a scotch means jump on me in 'dogese'?"

Elle commanded 'off' and the dog did just that. She said at my feet and stared up at Rachel.

Tony grinned: "She wants to see the baby. She just loves kids."

That dog had a mouth that you could fit an entire ham into. The thought of putting my child anywhere near those teeth seemed like a bad idea to me. Before I could respond to Tony's comment, Elle walked over and took Rachel from me.

"Let's get these two introduced. Tony, you said she's six months old? She's the same age as Rachel. Wow, these two can grow up together."

And just like that, I knew the dog was here to stay and I had better get used to it. Elle put the dog in a sit-stay and I nervously watched as she crouched down in front of her with Rachel in her arms. The dog excitedly wagged her tail but didn't break her command. Elle let her cautiously sniff Rachel and then the dog licked her little feet, which made Rachel squeal delightfully. Elle guided Rachel's hand to pet the dog's ear, and I don't know who was more excited, the baby or the puppy. Rachel squirmed and kicked with excitement and actually clipped the dog's jaw with her left foot, but it didn't seem to phase the pooch one bit.

Tony grinned: "Well, looks like she's a hit. Frankie, bring in the other stuff. She's crate-trained, so I got you a crate. There's also a leash, bowls and some food."

Elle said: "Oh, Tony, thank you so much. It's really going to be great having a dog again."

I puffed out my cheeks and swished the air from side to side. "At least this six-month-old is already house-broken and doesn't need diapers."

After Tony left, Elle completely forgot about the football game and showed the puppy around the house and the yard. She explained that the dog needed to sniff her new territory and get used to it. The dog quickly learned where the back door was located and what it led to. She would stand there and whine whenever she needed to be let out. Elle set up her crate in the kitchen and sent her in there a few times for a little time-out. The dog seemed to handle it well, although she did whine a bit when everyone was out of her sight. She seemed to adore Rachel, and stuck as close to her as possible. If Rachel was in her swing, the pooch was laying on the floor underneath it. She seemed calm and pretty damn smart, but I still felt somewhat uneasy about her presence around the baby.

That night, before we went to bed, we settled the dog in her crate in the kitchen. By the time, we reached the bedroom, the dog was already whining. Elle walked back, put a light on for the dog and came back to bed. The whining didn't let up; we tried to ignore it, thinking she would get tired out, but after twenty minutes, Elle decided to try something else. This time, she took a radio into the kitchen and put on some soft music for the dog. That didn't help either.

I pulled the pillow over my head: "How long do you think this will go on?"

"Maybe she needs to go out. I'll let her out back and see if that's what she wants."

Elle wandered back to the kitchen. I could hear through the monitor when she slid the bolt back on the crate and the dog's toenails as she ran across the tile floor. I could also hear Elle exclaim: "Layla! Come!"

I wondered what was going on, but not enough to get out of bed. Elle would call me if she really needed me. After a few minutes, I heard the command: "Crate."

The metal bolt slid home and by the time Elle got back in bed, the whimpering had started again.

Elle groaned: "You know what she did? I opened the crate, thinking she is going to run to the back door and she runs to Rachel's room instead. By the time I got there, she was curled up under the crib, like this is where she's supposed to sleep.

The whimpering continued. Suddenly Elle said: "What if we move the crate into Rachel's room? Maybe she'll be happy enough in the same room as the baby and will let us get some sleep."

"It's worth a try."

I wasn't entirely thrilled with leaving the dog in the room alone with Rachel, but she would be safely locked up in the crate and Rachel would be out of reach. This time I got up with Elle and helped her move dog and crate into Rachel's room. The pup went immediately into the crate upon command and curled up on her blanket. We went back to bed and the sound of silence filled the house. We snuggled together listening, waiting for the whining to start again. After fifteen minutes, it seemed all would be quiet for the night.

Elle said: "Huh. Layla just wanted to be with Rachel. Isn't that sweet? She's really attached to her already."

Was it just a few nights ago that I was thinking that life was back to normal around here? The dog added an entirely new dimension to our lives and in a week, Mom would be here too. I mumbled: "Fabulous. Just fabulous."

The dog seemed devoted to all the humans in the household, but her greatest love was reserved for Rachel. If Rug-rat napped in her crib, the pooch would lay underneath it. When Elle sat on the couch to breastfeed, the pup would sit at her feet, with her head on Elle's knee. The dog's greatest joy seemed to be the moments that she was allowed to get close enough to Rachel to lick her toes. Elle was excited and happy about the dog, but was being cautious and keeping the physical interactions between dog and baby short and under her control. I wasn't so keen about the dog, but was pleased at how Elle was handling things. The dog slept quietly in her crate in Rachel's room every night. We had no further issues with the whining.

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So it came as a huge shock, three nights later, when loud, furious barking awakened us

I snarled: "What the fuck?"

The barking naturally woke the baby who was now screaming her head off. Elle jumped out of bed, pulling a nightgown over her head as she ran towards Rachel's room. Grumbling, I had just started pulling on my pajama pants when I heard Elle scream over the monitor.

"Greg! Call the police! Someone's trying to break in!"

That got my heart racing. I got my pants up, grabbed cane in one hand and phone in the other, dialing 911 as I hurriedly limped across the house. By the time I got there, Elle had released the pup from her crate, snatched Rachel out of her crib and was hurrying out of her room. Her finger pointed shakily at the side window, where the dog was currently up on her hind legs, barking furiously at whoever was outside the window. A circle of glass had been cut out and pushed onto the floor beneath the window. The dog actually stuck her head out through the circle, sniffed a few times and continued to bark.

Finally the 911 operator came on and I spit out my name, address and the need for immediate police presence. When I turned around, Elle was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, pale and shaking, tightly clutching our crying babe.

Her words came out in hiccupped sobs: "Someone tried to break into our baby's room."

I was shaken by the intrusion, but tried to remain calm for her sake. I put my arms around her: "I know. They're gone now. The dog scared them away. Remind me to give her a steak. The police are coming. C'mon, let's go to the living room and sit down. OK?"

She nodded woodenly: "OK."

She let me lead her to the sofa and I parked her right in the curve where she liked to sit when she nursed Rachel. I stroked her cheek and gently kissed her and Rachel, whispering soothingly words to them. Rachel's cries died down to a whimper, but Elle remained pale, staring straight ahead, almost catatonic. That worried me more than if she had been crying hysterically.

When the doorbell rang, she jumped and let out a half-sob, clutching my arm tightly.

I tried to soothe her: "It's the police, sweetheart, just the police."

Wild-eyed, she looked around: "Rocco! Where's Rocco? He's going to kill him."

Oh, crap. She was flashing back to her own real life nightmare. "Layla's fine sweetheart. Layla is barking in the bedroom, keeping the bad guys at bay."

She sobbed: "He's going to kill him."

There was a pounding at the door. "Dr. House! Princeton police. Are you OK? Please open the door."

I shouted: "Coming."

Elle was in a state; Rachel was whimpering and the cops were at the door. I didn't know where to turn first. Finally I barked out: "Layla, come!"

The dog ran into the room. I patted the couch next to Elle and said: "Up!"

The dog looked as happy as a pig in shit; we had never let her on the furniture before. She jumped right up next to Elle and lay down with her head in Elle's lap. I took Elle's hand and placed it on the dog. "Look, sweetheart, the dog is right here. She's fine."

Her gaze remained fixed straight ahead, but her hand starting petting the dog, which I took to be a good sigh. I hurried to the door to let the cops in.

Two of Princeton's finest flashed their badges at me. The taller one spoke: "Dr. House. Everyone alright in here? Anyone hurt?"

"No one's hurt, but I think my wife's in a state of shock. I need to get my medical bag out of this closet."

I grabbed the bag and limped back to the couch, sitting down next to Elle, who was still staring straight ahead, clutching a whimpering Rachel. I had never seen her like this; she should have been cooing to comfort our daughter. I found what I needed in the bag. I hated to do it to her, but I felt I had no choice. I motioned to the taller cop: "The liquor cabinet is over there. Could you please pour my wife a shot of scotch?"

As soon as he set the glass down on the coffee table, I broke open the ammonia ampule and waved it under her nose.

"Ugh!"

She immediately pushed my hand away and I lifted the glass to her lips, urging her to have a couple of sips. After she managed to drink half of it, I set the glass down on the coffee table and checked her pulse. "How do you feel?"

She nodded, color returning to her face. "Better, I guess. Still shaky."

She looked down at Rachel and said: "Oh, my poor baby. Oh, my god, I can't believe someone tried to break into our house, and into Rachel's room, of all places."

In a casual manner, the taller cop said: "That corner of your yard is rather dark. You may want to look into getting some motion detector lights back there."

Elle glanced at me and I nodded. "Tomorrow."

The shorter cop had roamed down the hallway, I presume to check out the scene of the crime. He returned carrying a blanket that he must have found in the linen closet.

He gingerly laid it across her shoulders. "Here ya go, Ma'am.

Elle sighed: "Thank you."

I took the ends of the blanket and wrapped it more securely around her. The dog grabbed a corner and playfully tugged on it. Then she rolled over on her back, head lolling just a breath away from Rachel's feet. A couple of sniffs and then a few licks caused Rachel to laugh and playfully kick her feet. Then the dog rolled back over onto her belly and let out a sound that sounded like a sigh of contentment.

Rachel's laughter and the dog's antics seemed to relax Elle even more. Her color was back and her pulse was normal again. She sighed, gave Rachel a kiss and cuddled her closer.

The taller cop asked: "Mrs. House, are you feeling well enough to answer a few questions now?"

Elle nodded: "Yes, I think so. Please have a seat."

The officers sat down and the taller guy took out his notepad. "We checked the perimeter and found the broken window. We didn't see anyone still prowling around."

I said: "The dog was sleeping in the baby's room. Her barking must have scared them away."

"Lucky for you that you have a dog. There have been 8 attempted or completed burglaries within a 3-mile radius of your home within the last month. The completed ones were homes without dogs or without alarm systems. You got an alarm system on this place?"

Jaw clenched, I replied: "There will be one tomorrow. The dog was pretty effective tonight."

He glanced down at the pup. "Cute little thing. Pit bull?"

"Staffordshire bull terrier."

"Ah, a mini pit bull. Same tough dog in a smaller package. They are good dogs. Bet she loves your kid."

"That she does. She won't sleep anywhere else except in the kid's room."

"Lucky for you."

I looked down at my girls and echoed his words. "Yes, lucky for us."

"So, just a few questions and then we'll be out of your hair."

I gave a weary sigh. There would be no sleep tonight. "Of course."

Layla kept her head in Elle's lap, her nose pressed up to Rachel's little feet. Every now and then, her tongue would reach out and give her a lick. I no longer felt concerned about the nearness of the dog to my daughter; it seemed that the pooch had nothing but love for the smallest human in the household.

Elle described what had happened when the dog woke us. While I was still pulling my pants on, she had run into Rachel's room and actually seen an arm sticking through the hole in the window, shining a flashlight around the room. She had screamed, heard a muttered _'shit'_ and the arm withdrew. She had grabbed the baby, released the dog and fled back into the hallway where I met up with her.

I silently cursed my leg. If I had been able to run, I would have been the one to see that, and not my wife. Of course, at the time, I had no idea what the dog was barking at and the need for speed.

Elle shed a few tears during the recitation of her story and I scooted close enough so that I could put my arm around her. I gave the cops my version of the events; they gave us a case number, telling us that if we needed a copy of the report for insurance purposes, that it would be available in a few days.

The shorter cop suggested that we duct tape some cardboard over the hole in the window until morning. It wasn't secure, of course, but at least it would keep out the elements. He predicted that the burglars would not return, now that they knew we had a dog.

After they left, I went out to the garage for a cardboard box and some duct tape. Elle, Rachel and the dog followed me. Then they followed me back to Rachel's room and watched silently while I taped over the hole in the window. It was obvious that Elle did not want to be left alone. It was also obvious where everyone was sleeping tonight. I scooped up the dog's bed, carried it to our room and laid it right next to the porta-crib. Rachel was still a little fussy, so Elle nursed her before settling her down in the crib. Layla took a good sniff around the bedroom and then settled down on her bed. At Elle's request, I locked the bedroom door and left the bathroom light on. It was 4AM by the time I pulled the covers over us; I planned on calling in tired tomorrow. Cuddy would have a fit, but too bad.

Layla was barking, Rachel was crying and Elle was screaming. I was trying to get to them but my leg felt like it was encased in thick mud. The hallway seemed a mile long as I struggled to get to the end. Suddenly the dog's barking ended with a sudden yelp and Elle screamed even louder. I dragged myself down the hallway, finally arriving in Rachel's room. There I saw the reason for Layla's silence; she had a knife stuck in her gut. Half naked, bleeding and hog-tied, Elle was screaming and trying to inch her way across the floor. I glanced in the direction that she was moving and saw a shadowy figure escaping through the window with my wailing child over his shoulder. I lunged towards the window, screaming: "NO!"

I woke up with a jerk, drenched in sweat. I sat up and looked around. In the dim light, I could make out that my family was all near by and perfectly safe. Elbows resting on my thighs, I buried my face in my hands and let out a deep exhale. What a fucking nightmare.

And it seemed I wasn't alone with the bad dreams. Next to me, Elle suddenly twitched and moaned: "No, no."

I quickly switched on the bedside lamp. "Sweetheart, wake up. You're having a bad dream, Elle. Wake up, love."

I shook her shoulder and she woke with a gasp. "Oh, Greg, oh, Greg, I had a nightmare."

I pulled her into my arms: "I know, sweetheart. Me too. I'm sorry that I'm all sweaty."

She buried her face in my shoulder and mumbled: "Don't care."

"You wanna tell me about it?"

"Yes. No. I don't know. Where's Rachel? I need to see her."

I released her from my embrace and watched as she climbed out of bed to hover over the crib. She stood there for a moment, just staring down and then gave the dog a pat before snuggling back into my arms.

"She's still sleeping. We didn't wake her."

Stroking her back, I replied: "That's good."

"You wanna tell me about your dream?"

I grimaced: "It was ugly."

Her fingers played with my chest hair. "So was mine."

The most disturbing thing about the dream was that I had not been able to protect my girls from the intruder; I had failed them. I was determined not to let that happen in real life. Glancing at the clock, I saw that it was almost 7AM. I knew I wouldn't be able to go back to sleep now as I was too wound up. Time to take action and I could start by calling in.

I kissed Elle's forehead and said: "I'm staying home today. I'm calling an alarm company, an electrician and a glass guy. We'll have everything fixed by tonight."

Elle said hesitantly: "You don't have to stay home. I could do all that."

Her mouth was saying one thing, but her body language told me another story. She wanted me home; she wasn't ready to be alone yet. I held her tighter: "No, I'll take care of it."

The relief was evident in her face. "OK. Thank you."

My lips brushed her forehead. "You never have to thank me for taking care of you."

She whispered: "I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you do for me. I never want to take you for granted."

I buried my face in her neck. "_Moi aussi."_

We held each other for a few minutes, reveling in the feel of each other's body. Then Layla whined and broke the moment. We looked over to see her standing by the door, panting and wagging her tail.

"She probably has to go out. I'll let her out, and start the coffee, OK?"

"Sounds good to me. I'll call Cuddy and tell her that I'm not coming in today."

Elle and the dog headed for the kitchen and I picked up my cell phone. Hitting the speed dial for _Wicked Witch_, I put the phone to my ear and waited for her to pick up.

She answered: "Isn't it awfully early for you to be up?"

I rolled my eyes. "I have a baby; I'm up at all hours. Cuddy, I'm not coming in today."

Before I could say more, she interrupted: "What do you mean, you're not coming in?"

"Just what I said, I'm not coming in."

Again she interrupted: "You don't sound sick. You got a hangover or something? You better have a damn good reason for calling me at 7AM to tell me this."

She was in full-blown administrator mode. "If you give me a chance to tell you,"

But she wouldn't. "I know your mother is not arriving until Friday. You gonna want tomorrow and Friday off too, I suppose?"

The only thing that kept me from yelling at her was that Rachel was still asleep and I didn't want to wake her. I hissed: "Hell, yes, at this point, I may as well take the rest of the week off."

"Why should I let you have the rest of the week off at such short notice? I'm sure you are not going to the airport to get your mother. You'll get Elle to do that. And whatever your reason is for wanting the rest of the week off."

I hit 'end'. I just couldn't listen to her anymore. I speed-dialed Wilson and waited for him to pick up.

"What the hell did you say to Lisa to get her all riled up so early in the morning?"

"Doesn't anyone say 'hello' anymore? I was merely trying to explain why I needed today off, but she wouldn't let me get a word in edgewise."

He interrupted me: "So why do you need today off?"

This time I did yell: "Shut up and let me talk! Someone tried to break into our house last night."

That shut him up. There was a lengthy pause while my words sank in. "Are you shittin' me? Omigawd. Are you OK? Elle, Rachel, everyone OK?"

In the background, I could hear Cuddy asking what's going on. Wilson told her about the attempted break-in and she gasped.

"Yeah, we're OK. The dog scared him off before he actually got in the house, but there's a big hole in the window in Rachel's room. I need to stay home and take care of fixing things around here. I'm calling an alarm company too. Elle's pretty shook up."

"Yeah, I bet she is. He was trying to get in through the baby's room?"

"Yeah, that back corner of the house is pretty dark. The cops said we should install motion detector lights back there. Ask Cuddy for the name of that electrician that she uses. I'll call him today and get that set up too.

He relayed that info to Cuddy. "The number's downstairs. She'll be right back with it. Thank God you had the dog."

"No shit. I'm gonna give the little flea-bag a steak today."

He chuckled: "Better make it a porterhouse."

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By the time Elle padded back into the room, a mug of coffee in each hand and Layla trotting behind her, I had the numbers for an electrician, a glass guy and Cuddy's personal recommendation for the Fidelity Alarm Company. She thought they were the best in our area.

As Elle and I sat on the bed, sipping our coffee, I told her what I had planned for today. I'd get the glass guy to fix the window, the electrician to install motion detector lights and the alarm company to get us all wired up.

"Wow, you're going to be busy. What do you want me to do?"

I wanted her to relax and take it easy, but she probably wouldn't do that. "What were you planning on doing today?"

She shrugged: "Well, before all this happened, I was going to spruce up the guest room for your Mom and make some applesauce."

"Applesauce?"

"Yeah, did you notice the five pounds of apples that I bought? I thought I'd make applesauce for us and some baby food for Rachel. I think she's ready to try something besides the milk bar."

Making applesauce sounded like quite a project; that should keep her busy in the kitchen for a good part of the day. "Don't worry about the guest room; Lady can take care of that tomorrow."

She tilted her head and gave me a knowing look: "Want me to stay away from that side of the house?"

I stroked her cheek: "Just until they fix the window and get the glass cleaned up. I don't want you to see."

I stopped, not even wanting to say the words. I didn't want her to see that hole in the window where there had been an arm waving a flashlight around.

She seemed to get what I wasn't saying. Softly, she said: "Rachel and I will hang out in the kitchen today. Why don't we take a quick shower before she wakes up? Then I'll cook breakfast while you start making your calls."

That sounded like a good idea to me. After locking the bedroom door again, and leaving Layla to guard Rachel, we stripped off and headed into the shower. Bathing with my wife was sheer pleasure. It either led to sex in the shower or tub, or a dripping stumble to the bed to finish what we started. Today was an exception. We washed each other as we always did, but our touches were more comforting than sexual. We exchanged a few kisses, but they weren't the usual soul-searing type that we usually shared in the shower. After we were soaped and shampooed, we held each other for a few minutes under the warm spray of the shower. I felt a slight stirring of an erection and I rubbed against her slick wet body.

"He's not quite awake. Rain check?"

She breathed her answer in my ear. "Tonight."

We kissed with a bit more passion and then I turned off the water. By the time we dried off and got dressed, Rachel was awake and babbling in her crib.

Elle picked her up and cooed: "Good morning, _ma petite lapin_. Are you ready for breakfast? Oh, you're wet. Let's change you first and then eat."

She took care of the baby's needs while I wandered out to the kitchen and started making calls. By the time my girls joined me in the kitchen, I had contacted everyone and set up appointments for later on this morning. Elle put Rachel in her swing and positioned it next to me. As she busied herself with feeding the dog, I closely observed my daughter. Rug-rat was chewing on her fingers and drooling rather excessively. I tickled her cheek and she opened her mouth long enough for me to see what I had suspected.

"How was Rachel when she nursed this morning?"

Elle shrugged: "A little fussier than usual, but she was like that last night too. Maybe she's a little upset after what happened last night."

"I don't think that's it. I think she's fussy for another reason. C'mere."

When Elle came to stand next to us, I tickled Rachel's cheek again. When she smiled, I quickly pointed to my discovery.

"See that red bump? She's gonna cut her first tooth. That's why she's chewing, drooling and acting fussy."

Elle squealed: "Her first tooth! I didn't even notice that when I was feeding her. Oh, this is so exciting."

She glanced at the clock. "Five A.M. in California, I guess it's too early to call your Mom and tell her."

I chuckled and pulled her down on my good leg. This was the kind of happy news Elle needed to distract her from the events of last night. I gave her a loud sloppy kiss on the cheek: "Yeah, sweetheart, give her at least another hour to wake up, then call her."

She turned her head and kissed me back. "OK, I will."

Then she turned to Rachel: "And I have something better for you to chew on than your fingers, _ma petite lapin_. I've got a nice cold teething ring for you in the refrigerator. It's been waiting for this day."

Elle went to the refrigerator and whipped out a blue ring shaped like a fish. She showed it to Rachel and tickled her mouth with it. Rachel grabbed it with both hands and stuck it in her mouth. She eagerly started chomping on it. Elle slipped a tether through the ring and secured it to the swing, so that when Rachel dropped the ring, it wouldn't hit the floor.

"When the fish isn't cold anymore, there's an apple shaped one in there too. We can switch them out."

I observed: "Rather fancy teething ring."

"Yeah, they are made in Germany from a BPA-free, non-toxic type of plastic. I didn't want her chewing on ones made in China. Who knows what kinds of toxic chemicals are in those?"

I nodded with understanding, but cautioned: "You know she's going to put a lot of things in her mouth, especially when she starts crawling around."

"I know, but I'm still going to try to control what I can and buy her the safest products available."

I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her to me, burying my face between her breasts. My voice was muffled as I said: "You're a good mother."

Her fingers played with my hair and she kissed the top of my head. "And you are a wonderful father."

Elle rested her cheek against the top of my head; I tilted my head to kiss her right breast while my hand possessively squeezed her ass.

Happy gurgles from our daughter interrupted our intimate moment. We both turned to look at her. I remarked: "She seems happy now."

"Yes, she does. And what would her daddy like for breakfast?"

"Bacon and eggs."

"Toast, too?"

Before I could answer, the doorbell rang. Elle flinched at the sound.

I gave her a reassuring squeeze. "That's probably the glass guy, sweetheart. He said he'd be here right away. I'll get the door and yeah, toast would be good. We got any of that blackberry jam left?"

She gave me a small smile. "Yeah, we do."

"Great. I'll take care of the guy; you make your hardworking man some sustenance."

_**ELLE**_

Greg did take care of everything. While I made breakfast, he took the glass guy back to Rachel's room and got him started on that task. Just as we finished eating, the doorbell rang again. This time it turned out to be the electrician. Greg walked outside with him to discuss where he wanted the security lights to be installed.

After clearing the table, I sat down to call Blythe. After exchanging morning pleasantries, I asked: "I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?"

There was a moment's pause and then she said: "Tell me the bad news."

I detailed the attempted break-in to her. She gasped with horror when I told her about the arm poking through the window and my lip trembled as I pictured it in my mind all over again. I went on to detail Layla's bravery and Greg's protectiveness and how he was taking care of all the details concerning upgrading our home's security.

At the end of my recitation, Blythe sighed: "Oh dear, I am so sorry that you had this horrible experience. At least no one was hurt. That's the important thing. I can't wait to meet this remarkable dog of yours."

"You'll love her Blythe, she is so devoted to Rachel. Now you ready for the good news?"

I told her about Rachel's budding tooth; naturally she was thrilled, expressing a wish that perhaps it would wait 2 more days before erupting so that she would be here for it. After promising to call her later and tell her all the details of the day, we hung up.

The people from the alarm company were the next to arrive. Greg sat at the dining room table with them, reviewing the options and discussing what he wanted. I could hear the conversation, but tuned it out as best I could, concentrating on washing and peeling the apples. I had some Beatles tunes on the I-Pod; Layla was sleeping under the swing and Rachel was happily gumming the teething ring. In the midst of my preparations, my cell phone rang; I was surprised by the number appearing on the Caller ID and frowned, wondering about the ramifications of such an early morning call.

Quickly flipping the phone open, I said; "Hey, how are you?"

Tony's words came out in a rush. The tone of his voice conveyed his concern. "Are you OK?"

I tried to keep my voice light. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Don't be coy, Elle. I heard what happened. _Are_ you OK?"

"How did you hear about it already? It only happened a few hours ago. I haven't even told Avi yet."

"I have my sources; you know that. You still didn't answer my question."

I bit my lip. "I'm fine. We're all fine. Layla barked and scared the guy away. If it hadn't been for her, I don't know what would have happened."

My voice trailed off as I tried to block my mind from thinking about what could have happened. "If I haven't already thanked you for her, I'm thanking you now."

"You already did and I'm glad she is working out so well. Do you need anything? Is someone there fixing the window yet?"

"Greg is handling all of that. Someone is fixing the window; there's an electrician installing security lights around the perimeter and he's in the dining room right now talking to the people from the alarm company. I, on the other hand, am doing the womanly thing of staying in the kitchen and cooking while my big strong man takes care of all those details."

He chuckled: "Your husband's not so bad after all. He'd made a good Italian, handling all the important stuff, protecting his family and keeping the women in the kitchen."

I had to laugh: "Yes, Rachel, Layla and I are all in the kitchen. I am barefoot, but I'm not pregnant."

He laughed again: "Oh and speaking of that. Nancy's pregnant again."

"Really? Congratulations! But I thought you said you were going to stop at three."

"I thought so too, but once Luisa turned two, Nancy started dropping hints about having another one. She really wants two of each."

"What about you?"

"Me? I'm happy either way. If it's a girl, Nancy will have what she wants and our family will be complete. If it's another boy, I'll have _three_ sons to carry on the family name."

I warned: "If it's a boy, she may want to try again for another girl."

"That won't break my heart either. After all, look at the huge family I come from."

That was true. Each of his six sisters had at least three kids. I couldn't imagine how his mother kept track of all of the names and birthdays.

He went on: "I'm glad you're OK and House is beefing up security. If you need anything."

I broke in: "I know. I'll call you. Thank you again. Tell Nancy that I said congratulations."

I went back to my preparations. While the apples were cooking, I called Avi and told him the story. Naturally, he wanted to rush right over, but I placated him with the fact that Greg was taking care of everything. He held off on coming over, but admonished me to call if I needed anything. I assured him that I would. I hung up, thinking, how nice it was to have so many men who cared so deeply about me.

The man I loved and cared for the most was currently writing a check to the glass guy. The window was now repaired, but he admonished me to stay out of Rachel's room until he had run the vacuum cleaner to suck up any stray particles of glass. I had to sit down after that. Greg, vacuuming? The man had the most amazing ways of demonstrating that he loved and cared for us. I did what I could for the moment to return the love; I made him a big ham and cheese sandwich and plated it with BBQ potato chips. He devoured it with great enthusiasm.

By the end of the day, the window had been repaired and we had four new sets of motion detector lights. The electrician said that the lights were so sensitive that the neighbor's cat could set then off. The alarm company had started installing the system and would finish tomorrow. I made a quart of applesauce for the big people in the house and a pint of more finely ground stuff for Rachel's first try at solid food.

Greg got a big kick out of trying to feed her; he loved watching her as she tried to master something new. She seemed to like the taste, but her tongue wasn't quite getting the idea of pushing the food _into_ her mouth instead of out of it. Greg was very patient with her and after twenty minutes or so of trying, she managed to swallow a couple of spoonfuls. We declared it a successful venture, and I opened the milk bar for the remainder of Rachel's dinner. I had made pot roast for dinner and I noticed Greg sneaking Layla bits of meat when he thought I wasn't looking. I really didn't want her learning to beg at the table, but I figured that I would let it go for now.

The sleeping arrangements were a repeat of last night. There was no way that I was ready to let Rachel sleep across the house alone yet. By Friday, Blythe would be here and the alarm system would be completed. I figured that I might be ready by then. With Rachel sleeping in her porta-crib and Layla on her doggie bed, I locked the bedroom door while Greg switched on the bathroom light for me. Naked, under the covers of our king-sized bed, he pulled me into his arms and I immediately noticed that Mt. Gregory was fully awake now. Greg's fingers and lips enflamed my desires. When I was ready, he slipped between my legs and brought us both to the pinnacle of our passion. Completely sated, I fell into a dreamless sleep in the protective embrace of my husband's arms.

A/N: ma petite lapin = my little bunny


	80. Chapter 80

Chapter 80

_**HOUSE**_

I did take the rest of the week off; once Cuddy knew the reason, she seemed to think it was a good idea. Since we had no patient at the moment, my team did their clinic hours and helped out in the ER. Fidelity finished installing the alarm system on Thursday, but we decided to wait to move Rachel back into her room until Mom got here. Elle and Lady spruced up the guest room while I tried to feed more applesauce to my child. She seemed to have better control of her tongue today, and most of the applesauce ended up being swallowed instead of spit out. That little red bulge on her gum was getting bigger and it was only a matter of time before the tooth erupted. She was a little fussy all day, but chomping on the cold teething ring seemed to help.

The three of us went to the airport to pick up Mom. She had packed lightly, bringing only two suitcases on the plane, as the movers were bringing everything else. When we spied her across the concourse, Elle started whispering to Rachel: "Here's Oma. Oma is coming."

By the time Mom got to us, Rachel was squirming with excitement and went right into her arms. Mom gave her a big hug and kiss.

Elle beamed proudly: "And we have a surprise for you. Look at this."

She tickled Rachel's cheek until she smiled, displayed the tiny bud of tooth that had poked through her gum this morning.

Mom exclaimed: "Look at that! You waited for me to sprout that tooth. What a good girl. Oh, if only your Opa was here to see this."

I fumbled for something to say, but Elle beat me to it. She put her arm around Mom and said: "I know, Blythe, I feel the same way. There are going to be a lot of these moments where it is really going to hit home that he's not here. But he wouldn't want us to be sad; he'd want us to enjoy every moment, wouldn't he?"

"You're right, dear. I know he would want me to keep my chin up and I'm trying. It's just every now and then, I have these moments where I miss him."

"Well, of course, you do. That's understandable. C'mon, let's go get your luggage and we'll go home so you can meet the newest member of the family."

Mom and the dog took to each other right away, which was no big surprise to me. Mom had had dogs when she was a child and her two biggest regrets about our constant moving was the inability to drag around a piano or a dog. Of course, those regrets were never expressed in front of Dad. We managed to rent a piano in most places that we lived, but the dog had never been an option. Elle put Layla through her paces and impressed Mom with all of her tricks. As usual, the dog wanted to hang out wherever Rachel was and Mom was rather amused by Layla's utter devotion to her grandchild.

The apartment would be available on November 1, but as that was a Saturday, the movers were not coming until the following Monday. Elle and Mom planned to spend that weekend doing any necessary cleaning before all the furniture and boxes arrived. In the meantime, Mom settled into our guest room. She was easy company, always willing to help with Rachel or the dishes or whatever needed doing. In fact, the very next day, she shooed us out the door on a 'date'. With the dog and the alarm system in place, Elle felt fairly comfortable leaving Mom and Rachel home alone, only feeling the need to call home twice during our 'date'. We enjoyed a quiet dinner and a movie before calling it a night.

Elle had decided to go back to work after the first of the year. She had worked out a plan with Wilson and Guskiewicz to see pain management patients two days a week. So one evening, we had a long discussion with Mom about the possibility of her babysitting Rachel while Elle was at work.

Not surprisingly, Mom was thrilled to 'have something to do besides play bridge', and looked forward to starting her new 'job' when Elle returned to work.

The following Friday was Halloween. Of course Rachel was too young to participate, but that didn't stop Mom from getting her a costume. Even I had to admit that she looked adorable dressed up as a pink bunny, waving a toy carrot around. Wilson and Cuddy brought BJ over, dressed as a pumpkin, which I thought was a tad girly for the kid. Audra wanted to show us her costume, so Adam and Gen brought her over. The kid had been transformed into a five-year-old punk rocker, complete with shaggy wig, leather gloves and a guitar. After showing off her costume and strumming a few chords, Audra asked to be taken trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. There were a lot of kids out doing that, so it seemed safe enough. Mom took a bunch of photos of the three kids, and then the ladies took the kids around the neighborhood while us three guys hung back, smoking cigars on the porch and handing out candy to small costumed people. I found it interesting that I didn't mind the normalcy of it all. When our families returned, Audra happily exclaimed that people had given her extra candy 'for the babies'. Satisfied with her haul, she allowed me to swipe a handful of her lollipops.

The movers arrived on Monday as promised. Since Ricky had taken the day off to help out, Mom insisted that I go to work, which was fine with me. Interior design was much more his thing than mine. He helped Mom and Elle arrange the furniture and unpack boxes. By the end of the week, Mom had everything in place. The movers would not transport her plants so she had given them away before she left. After getting settled in, Mom, Elle and Rachel spent a day going around to the gardening shops for some new greenery.

After years of hearing stories about evil mothers-in-law, I considered myself fortunate that my wife and my mother got along so well. Mom would usually come over twice a week for dinner, which Elle reminded me did not count as a 'dinner party'. Elle would take the baby over to Mom's place to visit and they would go shopping together. Mom didn't want to invade our privacy so she waited for invitations before coming over; she rarely just dropped by.

Compared to just a couple of years ago, my life had taken on a somewhat different routine. Work was the same old same old; harassing my team, tricking Wilson into buying me lunch, arguing with Cuddy over clinic duty and costly tests that I wanted to perform on my patients. The new and different part was that I no longer went home to a small, silent apartment. I woke up with a gorgeous woman in my bed, one that made me breakfast and gave me a to-go cup of coffee to take to work. That same woman would cook me dinner and give me a big hug and kiss when I got home from work. My little daughter would be waiting for me to pick her up and spend some time with her. A playful puppy begged treats, nagged me to toss the ball and kept a watchful eye on our small human. After dinner, we'd laze around together, maybe watch some TV or play the piano.

The evening always ended with Elle reading a story to Rachel. Dad had bought our daughter a small bookcase full of storybooks, and Elle read one to her every night. Although she knew that Rachel didn't understand the words yet, Elle wanted to establish a nightly ritual of bedtime reading.

After selecting a book, Elle would settle herself in the curve of the couch with Rachel in her lap. I would usually sit next to them, my feet propped up on the coffee table, but occasionally, I would stretch out on the couch with my head on the unoccupied part of Elle's lap. Elle would read each page and show the pictures to Rachel. Then she would angle the book so that I could see the pictures too. The gesture made me feel strangely warm and fuzzy and I secretly loved that she did that for me.

The bedtime stories brought back both pleasant and unpleasant memories for me. Mom used to read me bedtime stories too. I remember the comforting feeling of cuddling up next to her as she read to me. When I hit the ripe old age of six, Dad decided that I was too old for that nonsense; he reasoned that I was in school now and learning to read for myself, so there was no longer any reason for Mom to read to me as if I were a baby. I found it somewhat ironic that he was the one who bought all the books for Rachel and had started reading to her when she was just two months old. Mom had told me that Dad had read to me as a small baby, but of course, I couldn't remember that. I swore to myself that we would continue to read to Rachel for as long as she wanted, even after she learned to read for herself.

After story-time, we would put Rachel to bed and Layla would curl up to sleep under her crib. Then Elle and I would have some time to ourselves. Some nights we'd have a nice long soak in the tub; other nights we'd just snuggle on the couch and watch TV or listen to music. We didn't have sex every night, but we always fell asleep in each other's arms, and I knew that I would never tire of that particular part of my new routine.

_**ELLE**_

It's funny how we fall into routines. I guess life is like that. Christine Lavin once sang that there is a very fine line between a groove and a rut. I had to admit that this particular routine did not feel like a rut at all, but a very pleasant groove.

When Greg comes home from work, he does the same thing every day. He drops his things on a kitchen chair and makes a beeline for me. He wraps me up in his arms and we share a lovely passionate kiss, often followed by a nibble on the neck, a squeeze of my ass or a grope of my breast. After a few lovely minutes of reveling in each other, his gaze would swing around the room, searching out the other girl in his life.

"Where's my Rug-rat?"

One last squeeze and kiss for me and he'd stride over to the swing. Rachel would squeal with delight as he approached, causing a small smile to appear on Greg's face. He'd bend over her and exclaim: "There's my Rug-rat", as he tickled her little feet. She would babble happily as he'd pick her up and take her into the living room, settling into the recliner with her for some _Daddy Time_. I called it that; he didn't and he didn't know that I did. But that's what it was, a little space of time that he carved out of his day for bonding with her daughter.

He'd lean back in the recliner and place her on his chest. She would bounce up and down on her hands and knees and play with the buttons on his shirt while he told her about his day. Greg would tell her all about his current case as if he were running a differential diagnosis past her. He would list the symptoms and the tests that the team had run that day, referring to them as _morons_ and _idiots_ when they couldn't figure out the diagnosis as fast as he wanted. He would tell her about his clinic patients and the idiotic things they had done to injure themselves. She would gurgle and stare at him as if she could really understand his words.

Greg rarely used baby talk with her; he spoke to Rachel as if he were addressing an adult. One time I asked him why he would have such serious conversations with a small baby, and he snarked that Cuddy told him that he needed to work on his _'people skills'_. He claimed to be practicing on Rachel because she wasn't old enough to give him any backtalk yet. I had to turn around to keep him from seeing the laughter on my face; if ranting to a baby about the inadequacies of his team was _'improving his people skills'_, Lisa was going to be sorely disappointed.

One evening after a particularly vehement discussion of the ducklings and their lack of brains, I strolled over to the recliner and said: "You know, I don't want her first word to be _idiot_ or _moron_."

He laughed: "It won't be. It will be _dada_."

Hands on my hips, I rolled my eyes at him. "How do you know? It could be _mama_."

"I bet you it will be _dada_."

I smirked: "What's the bet?"

"If Rachel says _dada_ first, I win a night of wild, unbridled sex."

"And if I win?"

"You can have a night of wild, unbridled sex."

I narrowed my eyes at him: "So you win either way?"

The left side of his mouth curled up. "That's the way to set up a bet, sweetheart."

**_HOUSE_**

The doorbell rang at 8AM. Elle was in the kitchen making breakfast, so I limped over to the front door, wondering who the hell could be here at this hour. I opened the door to see Wilson standing there with a large diaper bag over one shoulder and a car seat holding a sleeping BJ in his left hand.

I rolled my eyes: "Don't tell me you lost another one."

Cuddy had returned to work at the end of September. She had spent two weeks interviewing nannies before deciding on Fiona, a 25-year-old redheaded au pair who had just finished working a one-year stint of caring for Dr Silverstein's twins. He gave Fiona a glowing recommendation. Two weeks after she was hired, Cuddy had come home in the middle of the day with a severe migraine. Wanting nothing more than to lay down in a dark room, she staggered up the stairs and got a big surprise when she opened her bedroom door. Fiona and a scanky-looking guy were doing the deed in Cuddy's bed. BJ was discovered, whimpering in his crib and wearing a very dirty diaper. No surprise that Fiona was fired on the spot. The next day, Cuddy asked around and found out later the true reason why Fiona had left the Silverstein's employ. Mrs. Silverstein had caught the nanny in her bed with Dr Silverstein; she had promptly kicked the two of them out of the house. Wilson told me later that Cuddy had thrown out the sheets and comforter and demanded that Wilson flip the mattress before she would sleep in their bed again.

Wilson had stayed home from work for the next several days and interviewed nannies sent over from a local agency. He had hired Clara, a grandmotherly type who seemed unlikely to be caught _in flagrante delicto_ in her employer's bed. All went well for three weeks. One night, they came home and found BJ laying butt naked on a towel in his playpen. When questioned why, Clara had said: "Oh, he has a wee bit of diaper rash. It's nothing, but it's good to let the skin have a bit of airing out in between changes."

When I heard the story later, it didn't seem like a big deal to me. Every baby gets diaper rash from time to time, but Cuddy blew a gasket. Maybe it was partially my fault; earlier that day I had shot a bullet into a cadaver's head. I mean he was already dead, so what was the big deal? I had a patient who suddenly went blind and needed an MRI, but he had bullet fragments in his head. I needed to find out if bullet fragments would move around if we put the guy in the MRI machine. So I shot the stiff and put him in there first. Turns out that bullet fragments do move. The machine ripped them right out of the stiff's head and sucked them into the magnetic coils. An expensive repair was needed, the machine was out of commission for two weeks and I went on Cuddy's Naughty List again.

Cuddy tried to chew Clara a new one for allowing BJ to get diaper rash in the first place. Clara staunched defended herself, stating that all babies get it from time to time and his case wasn't that bad. Cuddy didn't let up and finally Clara threw in the towel. "I've been a nanny for 25 years and I have never been talked to like this in my entire career. I quit. There is a waiting list for my services and I'll be happy to find myself a new employer."

Wilson had called Clara the next day and begged her to come back. He offered her more money and stated that Dr Cuddy had been under a great deal of stress and was extremely remorseful for her behavior. But no apology or any amount of money could convince Clara to return to their employ and in fact, she had already secured another position.

Again Wilson had stayed home for several days and finally hired another nanny from a different agency. She had just started on Monday; now it was Friday morning, and Wilson was on my doorstep with BJ and a very abashed expression on his face.

I smirked: "So what happened this time?"

He sighed: "May we please come in? It's a little cold out here."

I opened the door wider and motioned them in. They followed me into the kitchen.

Upon seeing them, Elle exclaimed: "I thought that was your voice. Want a cup of coffee? What are you and Ben doing here so early in the morning?"

Wilson opened his mouth, but I answered for him: "His nanny quit."

Elle's eyes flew open. "Oh, no. That's the third one. What happened?"

Wilson dropped into a chair and blew out a big puff of air. "Lisa came home in a foul mood. It seems that someone had tried to put a 600-pound man in an MRI machine that had a maximum weight capacity of 350 pounds."

I interjected: "Hey, I thought that was just an estimate and my patient really needed the MRI. Who knew the guy would break the table?"

Wilson went on: "Anyway, our hugely expensive MRI machine, that was _just _repaired, is out of commission _again_. Lisa is threatening to take the repair bill out of your paycheck. So we're back to farming out our MRI's and you know how much Lisa hates sending our patients to other facilities for tests. Plus, JCAHO is coming in a few months and the planning meetings have Lisa under a lot of stress."

"Well, _that_ at least is not my fault. And if she was pissed at _me_, she shouldn't have taken it out on your nanny _again!_ Maybe she's the one who needs anger management courses."

Elle set a cup of coffee down on the table in front of Wilson and asked: "So what are you going to do?"

Wilson slumped back in his chair. "I don't know. I took several days off last week to find a new nanny. I had to reschedule so many patients and I can't cancel them all again. I have back-to-back appointments today."

"What about Lisa? Can't she stay home with him today?"

He shook his head. "She is already at work. Budget meeting started at 7:30 and then she has JCAHO planning meetings for the rest of the day. So I was wondering, ummm."

I growled: "My wife is not taking care of two babies by herself all day. That's too much."

Wilson grimaced: "I wasn't going to ask her to it by herself. I was wondering if your Mom or Lady might be around to help out."

Elle shook her head. "Lady is off today and I know she was going to visit her sister. Blythe went on a day trip with her apartment community. They are going up to New York to see the new exhibit at the MOMA. The bus was supposed to leave at 7AM, so I'm sure she's already left."

Wilson sighed: "Well, that's it, then. I'll just take him into the daycare at the hospital."

"Oh, Jimmy. You don't want to do that. He's only 4 months old. He'll pick up all the crud that's going around. I can do it, just for today."

I protested: "Elle, it's too much for one person to have two babies to feed, change and amuse all day."

She shrugged: "Parents of twins do it. Miss Mamie, my foster mother, used to have 2 or 3 crack babies at one time. I think I can handle two babies for one day. Just don't expect me to get anything else done around here today. Dinner is take-out and you."

She pointed her index finger at Wilson: "You totally owe us one."

He pointed his own finger at her and then at me. "I owe _you_, not him. If he'd stop pissing off the boss, I'd still have a nanny."

I growled: "Oh, so this is _my_ fault? If it is your opinion that you've lost two nannies and one marriage due to me, why are you still friends with me?"

He smirked: "You know all those lunches that I've brought you over the years? I consider them a business expense and write them off on my taxes. Saves me hundreds of dollars every year. Plus you always have excellent single-malt scotch around."

He turned back to Elle. "Seriously, I can't thank you enough for doing this. We'll buy you dinner tonight and baby-sit anytime at your request."

I snarled: "We have my mother for that now."

He smirked: "Yeah, when she's not off gallivanting in New York."

Wilson left the diaper bag and a piece of paper detailing Ben's daily routine.

After he left, Elle and I stared at that sheet in wonder.

"Omigawd, Greg, look at this. He gets 4 oz of formula at 9AM, then a diaper change and then he naps from 9:30 to 11:30. Then he watches a Baby Einstein DVD until noon when he gets another 4 oz of formula, another diaper change and another nap from 1 to 2:30PM. Then it's 'tummy time' until 3PM when he gets another bottle and so on and so forth. What if he doesn't wake up at those times? Am I supposed to wake him or let him sleep? Is it me or does this seem a little OCD?"

I shrugged: "This is Cuddy's kid, what can you expect? Just go with the flow and let him sleep as long as he wants. Are you sure that you can handle two rug-rats at the same time?"

"It's only one day. I'll be OK."

"Famous last words. I have my 600-pound patient to deal with, but I'll call you and see how you're doing."

The kids were arguing about our patient when I walked in. They had managed to MRI his head yesterday before he broke the table so at least we had ruled out blood clots in his brain as the cause of his coma. Each member of my team had a different theory so I told them to run all the tests and see who wins. I was glad that Cuddy would be busy in meetings all day, as I didn't want to face the _Wicked Witch_ again after yesterday's chewing out and I was rather aggravated at this whole baby-sitting deal. I checked on Elle just before lunch and she seemed to be holding up fairly well. Instead of popping in the Baby Mozart DVD for BJ to watch, she placed both kids on a big blanket on the floor and played some Mozart on the piano for them. Layla had lay down between the kids and seemed to be listening too. There was no applause but she seemed to think that her audience enjoyed the concert.

"I'm warming a bottle for Ben now, but you should have seen them. Rachel was bouncing on her hands and knees to the music and Ben kept trying to grab Layla's ear. He finally managed to snag it and he just laughed. Then Layla gave him a big lick and he laughed even more. I took a couple of pictures; if I get the kids to nap at the same time, I'll e-mail them to you."

"Don't worry about it. I'll see them when I get home if you don't have time. I'm glad it's going OK so far."

Wilson managed a quick 20-minute lunch and I reported on what Elle had said. He breathed a sigh of relief: "I'm glad it's going well. You have no idea how grateful I am that she agreed to do this."

"What are you going to do with BJ next week?"

He took a bite of his tuna fish sandwich and swallowed it after only three chews. "I had my secretary clear Monday, so I can do the nanny search again, but I really need to be here the rest of the week. Lisa is going to have to take a few days off, but with JCAHO coming, she's not going to want to. She is going to want me to take more time off, but I really can't do that to my patients. Neither of us wants him in daycare, so we'll have to figure something out. What we need is another Clara. She was great."

"What you need is a muzzle for Cuddy's mouth so she doesn't drive off any more of them."

He just shrugged and took another bite of his sandwich while I stole a handful of his fries.

After lunch the team and I reconvened. All the tests turned out to be negative and Foreman reported that the patient wanted to be discharged.

I shook my head in bewilderment. "Doesn't he want us to figure out why he went into a coma and just as mysteriously woke up?"

Foreman calmly stated: "He says he doesn't care. He says he feels fine now and wants to go home."

"Why doesn't he want to know? Either he's out of his mind or he knows what's wrong. I'm betting on the latter."

I got up and quickly limped out of the office. When I reached the patient's room, he was just finishing his lunch.

"Enjoy the Salisbury steak?"

He huffed: "A bit of parsley mixed in some hamburger does not make it a Salisbury steak. You must be Dr. House."

I tapped my cane on the floor. "No one in their right mind comes out of a coma and immediately asks to go home with an unknown condition. That means that either you're not in your right mind or it's not an unknown condition. So what is it? Did you try to off yourself?"

He smirked: "You figure I'm fat; therefore I hate myself."

"That's a _huge_ leap of logic."

He rolled his eyes. "I don't want to die. I just don't want to be here. I want to go home."

I cajoled: "Come on. Don't leave me hanging. What is it? Pickwickian syndrome? Thyrotoxic periodic paralysis?"

"I don't even know what that is."

"Leukoencephalopathy?"

"Stop it! If I knew what was wrong, I'd tell you. I'm not an imbecile and I'm not miserable. I'm just overweight. Now you can discharge me or I'll sign myself out."

I pondered for a moment, but I couldn't come up with any other argument to keep him here. "Fine. I'll send in a member of my team to discharge you."

I went back to the conference room and told Cameron to discharge him. Before I could take two steps towards my office, she started arguing with me. "How can you let him go? He is seriously ill. Don't you want to solve the puzzle?"

I rolled my eyes. "The fat kid doesn't want to play with me. He wants to take his toys and go home. You can escort him to the door or he'll let himself out. I would prefer that you do the former."

She huffed herself out of the room and all three of us rolled our eyes. I went into my office and sat down behind my desk. I thought about calling Elle again, but decided against it. I didn't want to bother her if she were busy with the kids.

Thirty minutes later, all three pagers went off and strangely enough the message told us to come to Room 532, STAT. That was our patient's room, the patient whom Cameron was supposed to be discharging. When we got there, Cameron was nursing a bleeding elbow and Nurse Sheila was cleaning some cuts on Fat Boy's back.

I barked out: "What the hell happened?"

Cameron answered: "He got disoriented and fell through a glass window."

Foreman said: "Disorientation and a loss of balance, combined with coma and fever could indicate neurofibromatosis."

Cameron shook her head. "I think we should just focus on the original symptoms."

Foreman frowned: "Why? The disorientation and loss of balance are newer symptoms. He is out of the coma now and the fever is gone."

"Yeah and the loss of balance could be caused by three grams of phenytoin."

Chase and Foreman's jaws dropped and even I was surprised by her audacity.

Cameron sighed: "I didn't think he should be discharged and so I did a little something to keep him here."

I smirked: "Nice one."

I had to admire her spunk, even though Cuddy would have not approved of her methods. Hopefully the team would keep their mouths shut about this one. Flipping open his file, I read over the discharge summary.

"It says here that Humpty Dumpty didn't eat his breakfast. He didn't get to be that size by skipping the most important meal of the day. What causes coma, fever and loss of appetite?"

Chase shook his head: "It can't be Chagas. He's never been out of the country."

"His stomach has. Our food no longer comes from America's heartland; it comes from South America's deforested jungle land. Get a sample of his CSF before the little bugs feasting on his brain move on to have dessert."

Foreman said: "How are we gonna do that? He's too big for an LP."

I slapped the file into his hand. "So go straight to the source. Drill a hole in his head and grab some brain."

I left them to run the test and I headed back to my office. It took five rings before Elle picked up the phone. I could hear both babies crying in the background.

"Hey, everything OK?"

"It's getting a little hairy now. Ben started crying and that set Rachel off. I'm trying to warm his bottle so I can get him fed and then sit down to nurse her. He really is on a schedule; right at 3:00, he started screaming."

"What do you expect? Both of his parents have OCD."

She interrupted me before I could say any more. "I gotta go. I can't juggle two babies and the phone. Love you."

She clicked off before I could respond. Damn, she sounded really stressed. I wanted to go home but I had this patient to deal with. I rang Cuddy's office, but her assistant told me that she was still in a meeting and she was not to be disturbed by Dr House unless he set the hospital on fire. I muttered that perhaps I should do just that and hung up. As I limped over to Wilson's office, he was escorting an elderly couple into his office. I pointed at my watch; he shook his head, held up six fingers and followed the couple into his office. Great. None of us could get out of here at the moment. I just hoped that this patient didn't eat into my weekend and then I rolled my eyes at my own stupid pun. I wanted a nice weekend with my girls; after today, Elle certainly deserved some relaxation.

The ducklings reported in. The brain biopsy was negative for Chagas. However the patient was now completely blind and was quite enraged at this new symptom. He felt that my team had caused it by poking around in his brain. Foreman swore that he had not even begun probing when the blindness occurred and he assured me that there was no inflammation in the optic nerve and that the retina was still intact. Therefore, we had no obvious reason for the sudden blindness.

Cameron tried again to convince the patient to let us test him for diabetes but he refused to allow any tests for any condition that he considered to be weight-related. He said he had been fat all his life but had only gotten sick recently, so he was convinced that his illness had nothing to do with his weight. I was infuriated. It was now 5PM and I wanted to get home. I stormed into his room and tried to convince him to let us test him for diabetes. He refused. I tried to force the bottle of concentrated glucose drink into his hand, but he fought against me. We struggled enough to spill the contents of the bottle all over the sheets. Then he grabbed my wrist and squeezed hard enough to cause pain. I gave up on trying to force him to drink the stuff and concentrated instead on peeling his fingers off of my wrist. As I was doing so, I noticed another symptom. I looked pointedly at his fingers and then at my team and then back at his fingers. They weren't getting it. I motioned them outside, calling to the nurse to go in there and clean up the mess.

As we walked towards the elevator, I said: "X-ray his hands, then do a bronch for a sputum culture. Check the CSF for anti-hu antibodies."

Foreman was the one bold enough to ask. "And you think he is going to let us do all that when he won't drink a simple glucose solution?"

"Tell him that lung cancer is in no way connected with obesity."

Foreman chuckled: "Uh, you don't think he'll realize that we're lying?"

"We're not. You didn't notice his fingers?"

"I noticed that they were fat."

"You should have pissed him off. He would have grabbed you and then you would have felt the bones. They're not just fat; they're clubbed. Go run the tests."

I headed back to my office while the team ran back to the patient's room to start the tests. With any luck, I could be out of here in a couple more hours. This time when I called Elle, only one baby was crying.

In a gentle tone, I asked: "Hey, how you holding up?"

She sounded weary. "OK, I guess. Ben's upset about something, I just can't figure out what. He's been crying for the last 30 minutes. But at least Rachel hasn't started up. How's your patient?"

"I'm circling the wagons. A few more tests and that will cinch the diagnosis. I'll be home as soon as I can. Have Wilson or Cuddy called?"

"Jimmy called around 4:30, apologizing that one of his patients had a crisis but he hoped to be here by 7:00. He said Lisa was still hung up in meetings and wasn't sure when she would be finished."

_Crap!_ I couldn't believe that all three of us were working so late on a Friday night. "I'll be home as soon as I can, sweetheart. We'll get some Thai tonight, how does that sound?"

"Anything I don't have to cook sounds perfect."

By 7PM, we had our results. Humpty Dumpty had small cell lung cancer. It had caused a paraneoplastic neurologic syndrome, which in turn had caused the coma and the blindness. He belonged to oncology now. I instructed Cameron to give the patient the bad news and to order the oncology consult for _tomorrow._ There was no way that I was going to allow anything else to keep Wilson from leaving this hospital tonight.

I dismissed the ducklings, grabbed my stuff and headed towards the elevator. Then on impulse, I turned and walked back to Wilson's office. Just as I thought, he was still there. I could see the light glimmering under the door. Not bothering to knock, I entered his office. He was writing in a chart and I noticed that there was a small mountain of paperwork on his desk.

I could see the fatigue on his face when he looked up. "Hey. You're outta here?"

"Yep. Just got the patient diagnosed. Small-cell. He's yours as of tomorrow."

"That sucks. Damn, I'm sorry. I didn't think I'd be so late getting out of here tonight. I didn't mean for Elle to have such a long day with Ben. Lisa just called me and said she'd be done in thirty minutes and would I wait to drive her home? She said she was so tired that she was afraid she'd fall asleep at the wheel. How was Elle the last time you talked to her?"

"Tired. BJ was crying and she couldn't figure out why. That was at 5PM, so hopefully she's figured it out by now."

He nodded: "Sometimes he just gets fussy."

I smirked: "Takes after his mother."

He grinned but didn't answer.

"I'm heading home. Why don't you swing by the Thai place and pick up dinner for us? Get some steamed veggie dumplings and some Spicy Buddha Rolls."

He jotted a note: "And what for an entrée?"

"Get me something with beef in it and get Elle that Dashe Tofu veggie thing that she likes."

"Got it. We should be there about 8:00. If it's any later, I'll call you."

The stereo was playing a Mozart concerto when I walked in; otherwise the house was quiet. By the time I had set my stuff down and taken off my jacket, Layla appeared in the kitchen. Her tail was going a mile a minute.

"Hey, pup. Where is everybody?"

She let out a woof, trotted back into the living room and then down the hallway to Rachel's room. I followed.

When I got to Rachel's room, I found Elle was sitting in the rocker. Her hair was falling out of its braid, there was a smudge on her forehead, but her expression was serene. Rachel was latched onto her left breast and Layla had flopped down nearby, panting and thumping her tail with excitement. Ben was snoozing in Rachel's crib and there was an empty bottle on the dresser.

I pulled the straight back chair over and sat down next to her. I gently touched her cheek; she looked up at me and gave me a soft smile. "You know, I'm going to miss this."

"Miss what, sweetheart?"

She looked back down at Rachel: "These quiet times when I nurse her."

"I know. I like hanging out and watching her at the milk bar too."

She sighed and said: "I guess it would be a good idea to wean her before I go back to work, huh?"

"If you want, but you don't have to. You can always pump bottles while you're at work. The big question is how long do you want to breastfeed. She's gone past the 6-month mark, has started on solid food, and is cutting teeth, so it's really up to you."

"I know. I guess it's just hard to give up that part of her babyhood, you know what I mean?"

"Hard to let the little bunny grow up, huh?"

She smiled wistfully: "Yeah. But she's going to need either breast milk or formula until she's at least a year old."

She looked up at me: "I don't really want to put her on formula."

"Then don't. Keep breastfeeding her."

"You're not tired of your playthings leaking?"

I shrugged: "It was a little weird at first, but now I like not having to climb out of bed to get a drink right after sex."

Elle laughed and then gave me a loving smile. "I hadn't had a chance to kiss you 'hello' yet."

I leaned closer: "Let's remedy that."

Our kiss was slow and gentle, our tongues dancing lazily with each other. Elle sighed when we broke apart. "Hmmmm, I needed that. I think we've all had a long day."

I glanced down at my child. She had stopped nursing and was just looking at us. I wondered what was going on in her little brain. "Rachel looks like she had a good day."

"She did and I think Ben did too. They both liked it when I played the piano for them."

She switched to French to talk to Rachel: _"Hey, little bunny. Daddy's home. Wanna go see Daddy?"_

I held out my arms: "C'mere Rug-rat. Come to Dada."

Rachel squirmed with excitement as I picked her up. "Dada's home and wait until I tell you about my day. You are not going to believe what Cameron did to the patient. Even Dada was surprised by her behavior."

I gave Rachel a kiss on the forehead and then I gently rubbed my nose against hers. She reached up, grabbed my nose and said: "Dada."

My eyes popped open and my jaw dropped. I turned to look at Elle; she had stopped in the middle of adjusting her clothing and her mouth was wide open. "Did she just say what I think she said?"

"I think so."

I rubbed my nose against Rachel's again. "Dada. Say Dada."

She squeaked: "Dada. Dada."

Elle laughed. "Oomigod. I can't believe it. She said her first word."

I grinned: "How cool is that?"

We kept encouraging her and she kept saying 'Dada' over and over again. After the long draining day we'd had, this was a moment to savor.

Smugly, I said: "She said 'Dada' first. I win the bet."

Elle chuckled: "I knew you would, but can you claim your prize tomorrow? I'm really tired tonight."

Wilson and Cuddy arrived a short while later with dinner. They laid the feast out on the dining room table while Elle grabbed plates and drinks for everyone. Ben was still asleep so we left him in Rachel's crib while I put Rug-rat in her swing and placed it next to the table. Since it was Friday night, Elle lit the Shabbat candles and said the blessing before we dug in.

We talked while we ate, Cuddy boring us with the details of all her meetings and I amusing everyone with my difficult patient; however I did leave out the part about Cameron doping the guy to keep him in the hospital. Cuddy didn't need to know about that. I'd tell Elle the whole story later. Wilson commented on how he had given terminal diagnoses to four patients today and that all of them had thanked him afterwards. Per our bet, I now owed him forty bucks.

I grumbled: "I'm not paying you this time. Consider it payback for watching your kid."

He waved his chopsticks at me. "Yeah, yeah, it's all part of what _I_ owe _you_ for this huge favor. What about your wife? She's the one who actually did the work."

Elle grinned as she grabbed another dumpling with her chopsticks. "Yeah and you owe me a _really_ big one. More than just a dinner can pay for."

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "We _know_ we owe you. You're as bad as your husband with this kinda stuff."

Elle waved the dumpling for emphasis. "Oh, I'm not talking about today. That's small stuff. You owe me big cuz I found you a new nanny."

She popped the dumpling in her mouth and chewed, watching the jaw-dropping expressions on their faces with an amused look.

Cuddy sputtered: "A new nanny? Who? Where did you find her?"

"I was talking to Theresa today and told her your tale of woe. She said for you to call her and she'll set you up with her cousin, Giovanna. She's widowed, in her late fifties, had 5 kids of her own and now all of her grandkids are in school so full-time baby-sitting is not needed. Her English isn't so good, but she's great with kids. Theresa thinks she'd jump at the chance to take care of Ben full-time. The only thing is that she goes to 7AM mass _every_ day, so she can't be at your house until 8:00."

Wilson said quickly: "That's fine. We can work around that."

Cuddy shot him a look: "James, we haven't even met her yet. How do you know we'll like her?"

"Well, of course, we'll have to meet her, but she sounds great so far."

Elle smiled: "And she'll cook for you, too."

Wilson leaned back in his chair and sighed: "She's hired."

**A/N:** Thank you for all your kinds reviews. There was a glitch in the system and it wouldn't let me respond to them. Said the link was unavailable,, sigh,, sorry about that and a big THANKS to everyone

who left me a review. glennie

Quote from _"Prisoners of Their Hairdos_", Christine Lavin, the 'COMPASS' album

Scenes borrowed from S3 "Que Sera Sera" episode


	81. Chapter 81

Chapter 81

**_HOUSE_**

By Thanksgiving, Rachel could say Dada, Mama, and Lala, although she didn't always connect the right name to the right person. She could crawl rather quickly now and we had to keep leggings on her so that she didn't get rug burn from the carpet. When she crawled around, Layla usually ran in circles around her and barked if she felt Rachel was getting into someplace that she shouldn't. Walking wasn't quite in the cards yet. Rachel had started pulling herself up on the furniture, but after attempting a step or two, she would plop down on her butt.

We continued to try to instill a love of music in our child. I would use the baby sling to secure her in my lap while I played the piano. As I played, she would babble or bang her little hands on the keys. She seemed to enjoy our little sessions. Oma bought her a decent toy piano that was actually in tune and had 25 keys for two full octaves. Rachel would delicately press each key in turn and then slap both hands down on the keyboard several times. Then she would start over again, pressing each key in turn and banging on the keys. This would keep her fascinated for a half hour or so before she got bored and crawled off for something else to do.

Rachel sat in her high chair now during our meals. Elle would place Cheerios on her tray; Rachel would pick them up, one at a time, examine it closely and then pop it into her mouth. We started slowly introducing her to new foods. After the success with applesauce, Elle started buying a line of organic baby food; Rachel had tried carrots, peas, bananas, prunes, sweet potatoes and rice cereal so far. I got a kick out of introducing a new food to her. At first taste, her little face would scrunch up in concentration as if to say: _'Hey, what the heck is this stuff? I'm not sure I like this.'_ Some of the foods were spit out the first time, but with gentle encouragement, she started eating them. Prunes were the one exception so far; she spit them out each and every time. She must take after me in that regard, as I hate them too.

As I had predicted, Elle invited the whole gang over for Thanksgiving. We had fifteen people around the table, including Rachel in her high chair. BJ wasn't big enough for a high chair yet, so he spent mealtime in Rachel's swing. Wilson and Cuddy seemed a lot more relaxed these past two weeks. They had hired Theresa's cousin, Giovanna, and she was working out really well. BJ seemed to adore her. She sang to him in Italian and fussed over him as if he were her own grandchild. Giovanna also cooked Italian delicacies for their dinners and Wilson was bringing tasty leftovers for lunch. Sometimes he shared; other times I just swiped them. Not wishing to lose a fourth nanny, Cuddy had also learned to not take out her work frustrations on an innocent bystander. She yelled at me more, but I learned how to tune her out even better.

In addition to Mom and the Wilson/Cuddy clan, Danny, Lenny, his main squeeze, Avi, Ricky, Adam, Gen and Audra were present at the feast. Mom was happy to have such a big gathering, but I knew that she missed Dad. He had specifically mentioned looking forward to this holiday. I looked at Rachel, babbling in her high chair, playing with her Cheerios and knew how thrilled he would be to watch her grow and learn new things.

When everyone was seated, Elle stood up to give her annual Thanksgiving Day speech.

"Welcome to the first Thanksgiving in our new home. Since last year, we've had a few changes in our lives. Greg and I had a baby and got married. We are now living in this big house, instead of splitting our time and belongings between two apartments. We've acquired some new family members, but we've lost one too. We welcome Rachel and Ben to the family for their very first Thanksgiving and a big welcome to Blythe for her move across country to live near us. I'm sad that the Colonel is not here with us tonight. He had been really looking forward to Thanksgiving."

She bit her lip and then continued: "After we eat, we'll continue with our tradition of going around the table and everyone saying what they are thankful for, but right now I just want to say that I'm thankful for having all of you here today and that I'm especially thankful for my husband and my daughter. Now, dig in!"

It was a feast to end all feasts; we had turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, little green peas with pearl onions, green bean casserole with fried onion bits, tossed salad, cranberry sauce, polenta with roasted red peppers and Elle's traditional lasagna.

We tucked in; I had two heaping plates and wished that I had worn stretchy track pants instead of my blue jeans. My gut was busting out and we still had dessert to go.

When we had stuffed ourselves into a turkey coma, Elle suggested that while we digested before dessert, we could go around the table and share what we were thankful for over the past year.

Wilson smiled and said: "Well, I'll start. This is my favorite holiday. It was two years ago on Thanksgiving that Lisa and I first got together."

I smirked: "It wasn't the _first_ time you got together; just the first time you did it in a bed and not under the influence."

"Yeah, well, thanks for that memory, but we consider Thanksgiving to be the _true_ start of our relationship. It's an anniversary for us."

He smiled at Cuddy; her face lit up as she smiled back at him. "I'm very thankful that I have you and Ben."

He leaned over and kissed her gently. When they broke apart, Cuddy said: That's exactly what I was going to say. Oh, and I'm thankful that Elle found us such a great nanny."

Lenny and his squeeze each expressed their thanks for finding the other, while Danny maintained that he was thankful that he was still single. When we got around the table to Mom, she smiled sadly and said: "Well, I am very thankful that this year I got to see my son get married to such a wonderful woman, and to became a grandmother to a darling little girl. I'm happy that I now live close enough to see my family several times a week. But I am sad that my husband isn't here to enjoy all of this. He would have really enjoyed today, this big gathering."

Avi put his arm around Mom. "I know that part is hard on you, Blythe. I want you to know that we're all happy that you're here with us. It's nice seeing how our tribe has grown over the last couple of years. I just wanna say that I'm thankful for the man in my life. It's been almost three years and we're still going strong. I'm thankful that my little sister is happy, that she has a good man and a cute baby. And I'm thankful that this tradition of celebrating together continues on."

Audra piped up: "Wanna know what I'm thankful for, Uncle Avi?"

He propped his elbow on the table, cheek leaning against his hand as he faced her. "Of course I do, Princess. Tell me."

She waited a moment until she was sure that she had everyone's full attention. "I'm thankful that next summer I'm going to be a big sister."

Jaws dropped and eyes widened all around the table. Adam put his hand over his eyes and shook his head, chuckling. Gen let out a sigh: "Sweetie, remember we said that it was supposed to be a _secret_. We weren't going to tell anyone until Hanukkah."

Audra clapped her hand over her mouth: "Oh, I forgot."

Elle squealed: "Are you really pregnant?"

Gen nodded: "I'm nine weeks; we thought we would wait until I was 12 weeks to tell everyone and it would make a nice Hanukkah surprise."

Avi got up and slapped his twin on the shoulder before hugging Gen from behind. "Hey, it's a Thanksgiving surprise. That's just as good."

Cuddy smiled: "Mazel tov. When are you due?"

Gen replied: "June 26."

Congratulatory words came from everyone around the table. "That's fantastic." "Congratulations." "Mazel tov."

Elle blurted out: "Oh! Did you hear that Nancy is pregnant too? She's due around the middle of May."

Mom chuckled: "Well that's two, but these things come in threes."

She looked pointedly around the table; everyone glanced at everyone else.

Lenny's squeeze held up her hands up in 'stop' mode. "Don't look at me."

Ricky blurted out: "Well, don't look at me. I don't have the right equipment."

We all laughed at that remark.

Elle asked: "Are we ready for dessert? We have pumpkin, apple and pecan pies, apricot cobbler, vanilla ice cream and whipped topping."

She stood up and started to gather empty plates. Mom stopped her by saying: "Wait, Elle. Greg didn't say what he was thankful for."

All eyes turned to me. _Crap_! I thought I was going to get away without saying anything this year since Elle was so distracted with Gen's news. As I tried to think of a snarky remark that wouldn't be too off-color in front of a five-year-old, two things happened. With a _'woof'_, Layla jumped up on my knee, begging for turkey, and Rug-rat squealed loudly: _"Dada! Dada!"_

She held out her chubby little arms and I picked her up, settling her on my lap. Layla promptly licked her toes. I glanced at my wife, standing at the opposite end of the table. She was wearing a loving smile and a tight red tee shirt that showed off her plump breasts to perfection. The realization hit me that I couldn't wait until we were alone so that I could show her just how thankful I was to have her in my life.

A nudge from Mom interrupted my musings: "Well, Greg. We're waiting. What are you thankful for?"

I smirked: "My girls, all of them. My nagging mother, my flea-bag dog, my Rug-rat, and most especially, my ball and chain."

There were snickers around the table, but Cuddy huffed: "That's not a nice thing to call your wife."

Wilson glanced at Elle and then chuckled: "Oh, I don't think she minds at all. In fact, I think she rather likes it."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Due to increasing obligations with their day jobs and family life, the band had cut back to playing at the club only once a month. Their next gig was on Saturday Dec 13 and Elle decided it was time for her comeback. Mom agreed to baby sit and Elle asked her to plan to stay overnight, as we probably wouldn't be home until after 2 AM. There was no point in Mom driving home at that hour of the morning when we had a perfectly good guest room.

The club was packed. It's a good thing that we had our usual reserved table because by 8:30, it was standing room only. Billy insinuated that the large crowd was due to Elle's comeback being announced on the marquee. Whatever the reason, the joint was jumping tonight. Tony, Nancy and Bill joined Ricky, Gen, Lenny's chick, Wilson, Cuddy and myself at the table just as the band took the stage. Without any intro, they played their usual opener, Stevie Ray Vaughan's _"The House is Rockin'."_ The part of the crowd that had managed to find a seat was immediately out of it and dancing to the music. I was pretty sure that we were over the maximum crowd limit allowed by the fire laws, but with Tony's presence, I figured that if there were any problems, his people would take care of it. After the first song ended, they immediately segued into _"Look at Little Sister."_ They didn't miss a beat; it was like they had just played together last week.

When they finished playing the first set, the band joined us at the table for their break, although they had a hard time making their way to us through the packed barroom. There weren't enough chairs so I pulled Elle down on my good leg, my arm wrapped possessively around her waist. I had a cold Heineken waiting for her and she drank half the bottle in one long gulp.

She set the bottle down and breathed a deep sigh. "Ah, that was good."

"The beer or the set?"

She grinned: "Both. It's been so long; I'd forgotten how much I enjoy playing with the guys."

"You hadn't forgotten. You just had other things on your mind and hanging off your tit."

She laughed: "Well, they say that beer is good for milk production, although Rachel seems to be enjoying her baby food more than my breast milk these days."

Nancy leaned closer: "Are you weaning Rachel now?"

Elle replied: "Well, not by intention. She almost seems to be weaning herself. She really likes the baby food that we give her and seems to be eating more of that each day and nursing less. She'll fill up on the food and only nurse a little bit at mealtimes. It seems like the only times she wants a good long nurse is first thing in the morning and right before bedtime."

"Well, that's good, gradual weaning is the best. Take it from me. I've done it three times so far."

"Have you had your ultrasound yet? Do you know the sex of this one?"

She shot Tony a dirty look. "It's another boy."

Tony held his hands up as if to ward off a blow. "I know, I know. It's my fault. Who knew that I'd have so many more Y sperm than my dad did? He had to fire seven times before he had a boy. I've hit that target three outta four times now. You wanna try again after this one, sweetheart, you know I'm up for it."

She smirked: "He's always _up_ for it."

Elle laughed and pointed at me. "This one is too."

I interjected: "Hey, I never heard any complaints outta you about that."

"Never." She leaned over and gave me a kiss.

As usual, Elle sang lead in the second set. The band played her usual intro as she strutted to the microphone.

"Hellooooo Satchel's! It's good to be back. Last time you saw me, I was out to here."

She turned to her side and mimed a hugely pregnant belly with her hands. "It was a girl!"

The crowd roared, she grinned broadly and signaled to Adam. They cranked it up. Elle owned the stage as she sang _"Midnight in Memphis_"; the crowd roared when she belted out _"It's my_ _Life."_ It was great to hear her sing with the band again. The mood shifted when she pulled out her acoustic guitar; the next few songs were slower and more melancholy. When she sang Joan Baez's _"Diamonds and Rust",_ I closed my eyes to allow her melodic voice to overwhelm my senses. An unwanted memory crept into my brain during that song. I had had a big fight with Dad over Joan's music. Her anti-war ballads made her albums unwelcome in a Marine Colonel's home and he had taken my two albums out to the garage and smashed them with a hammer. I was doubly pissed because I had bought them with my own money and he refused to reimburse me for them.

Elle returned to the piano for one of my favorites, Billy Joel's _"You're my_ _Home"._ The beat picked up with another one of Billy's songs: _"Ain't no Crime." _The guys harmonized really well with her on that one. Then she pulled out all the stops. Bette Midler's _"Stay with Me,_ _Baby"_ had the crowd on their feet again, screaming. She sang it with such passion; it was as if she looked inside of herself, viewed the raw painful bits and let it all come out in that song. The crowd roared as she held that last note as long as she could, head back, fists in the air, before collapsing into a semi-bow at the very end.

Adam screamed over the crowd: "We'll be back in 10 minutes."

But the crowd wasn't ready for a break yet. The chant started in one corner of the bar; it reminded me of the very first time that I had come to Satchel's to hear Elle sing. Before long, the chant had taken over the room.

"Rose, Rose, Rose."

The band had gotten halfway off the stage before Avi spun Elle into an about-face and pushed her back towards the piano. She had been sweating heavily under the stage lights; she took a long drink of water and mopped her face with a bandana before putting her fingers back on the keys. She played a few chords to allow the crowd to quiet down before beginning the soft, emotional song.

_When the night has been too lonely,_

_And the road has been too long,_

_And you think that love is only_

_for the lucky and the strong._

My nights had been lonely until I met Elle. She had changed my life and bought me more joy than I had ever thought possible. As she walked off the stage, some guy handed her a bouquet of roses, and I regretted that I had not bought her some flowers for tonight, her first night back, but my mind didn't usually run towards that type of romantic gesture. I'd find another way to express myself later; I never wanted her to have any doubt of the depth of my feelings for her.

The rest of the evening was just as enjoyable as the first two sets. The band played some Lynyrd Skynyrd, Don Henley and the Eagles and some more Bon Jovi and Billy Joel. Elle soloed a few more times with tunes by Janis Joplin and Melissa Etheridge. They closed the evening with a very appropriate number, Jackson Browne's _"All Good Things Gotta Come to an_ _End"._ After a very long standing ovation and several bows, they finally walked offstage and headed into the back room. Wilson, Cuddy, Bill and the Russo's had left around midnight, so the rest of us picked our way through the crowd to join the band in the back. When I got to Elle, I pulled her into a big hug and started nibbling on her neck.

She tried to push away: "Greg, I'm all sweaty. You don't want to kiss me now."

"I always wanna kiss you. Besides you taste good."

She laughed. "My sweat tastes good? You must really love me."

My reply was just a whispered breath in her ear. "You know I do."

She gave me a soft smile as she cupped my face with both hands. Our lips met and we shared a passionate kiss, while my hands possessively squeezed her ass and pressed her closer to me. There were groans from the peanut gallery: "Get a room, already!"

We ignored the comments and kissed until we needed to come up for air. Elle gave me a sultry smile: "I'm going to need a shower when we get home."

I raised one eyebrow. "I could help with that."

"I was hoping you'd say that."

The front of the bar was still clearing out, so Theresa brought refreshments to the back room for us. Elle passed on the scotch and just stuck with beer; I had a small Maker's Mark. Theresa and Elle had their usual banter about potato skins and that Rufus Wainwright song.

"I'm hungry. I'm a breastfeeding mother. Bring the skins and I'll play your damn song."

"No, you'll run outta here after eating and not play it. Sing it first and then you get the skins."

Elle whined: "But then I gotta wait until the crowd clears out and then play and only _then_ do I get to eat? That's too long to wait. I'm hungry now. I worked up an appetite up there on the stage."

Finally Avi couldn't take it any more. "For Gawd's sake, Theresa. Make her the damn skins. If she tries to get away without playing _"Broken_ _Hallelujah",_ I'll tackle her and tie her to the piano until she does."

Theresa huffed: "Fine. I'll make 'em. You just uphold your end of the bargain."

After she left the room, Elle smirked and she and Avi high-fived. I was secretly glad that we didn't have to wait for the skins, as I was rather hungry myself. Five minutes later, the skins were delivered by one of the waitresses. Ricky chuckled, saying that Theresa must have already had them cooking for them to be here that fast.

We hadn't had these potato skins with cheese and bacon since the last time that Elle had played at Satchel's. I wondered how hard they were to make, and if Elle could make them at home. They were so good with a big glob of sour cream on top. I probably ate more than my share, but since what's-her-name, Lenny's squeeze, was on a perpetual diet, I figured that I was just eating her share anyway.

After three skins and a bottle of Heineken, Elle sighed happily and leaned her head on my shoulder. Her eyes were drooping and I knew I needed to get her home soon, so that she'd have enough energy for our fun in the shower. Theresa returned to let us know the bar had been cleared, so we all trooped out to the front and Elle headed to the stage. Theresa took a seat right in front of the stage, and propped her feet on an adjoining chair.

Elle gave Theresa a little bow and said: "As per your request, Madam." The melody was soft yet haunting. It was a lovely piece but I never quite figured out Theresa's obsession with the song, and she never said why she liked it so much. Perhaps it was just the moving way that Elle sang it. Her rendition sounded more like the Rufus Wainwright version than the Leonard Cohen one and I, for one, preferred the former.

We called it a night after Elle's solo. The gang packed up their instruments and we went our separate ways. Our house was very quiet when we got home. We peeked in on Rachel; she was sleeping soundly in her crib with her guard dog laying underneath on her own little bed. As we slowly walked down the hall to our bedroom, Elle entwined her hand in mine.

"Care to wash my back for me?"

I squeezed her small hand: "Thought you'd never ask."

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Hanukkah and Christmas overlapped this year, so thankfully there was no need for _two_ dinner parties. We planned to have a combined Christmas Eve/Fourth night of Hanukkah celebration on December 24. Elle wanted Rachel to know the traditions from both sides of the family, so we would have both a menorah and a Christmas tree. Wilson expressed concern that celebrating both holidays might confuse Rachel, but Elle just brushed that off. "Rachel's a smart child and she'll figure it out. She's being raised Jewish but once a year, we'll have the secular celebration of a pagan holiday just like Daddy used to have when he was a little boy. After all, Jimmy, Greg's an atheist; we're not going to get into the whole religious aspect of Christmas, just the Santa Claus part. We'll have a tree and a few presents, but we won't go overboard. Plus, I want Blythe to be able to celebrate this holiday with her only grandchild."

The usual gang was invited for dinner; Mom was looking forward to her first Hanukkah celebration, while my mouth was watering, just thinking about the latkes. A few days earlier, Elle had convinced Avi and Ricky to go tree shopping with her and they brought home a six-foot Fraser Fur. We stood it in a corner of the living room, next to the piano. The twinkling multi-colored lights fascinated Rachel; the tree itself fascinated Layla. We would find her sniffing around the tree and snapping at the icicles. Elle ended up taking everything off the lower branches so as to not tempt the dog.

Mom and Elle had spent most of the afternoon in the kitchen preparing the white and sweet potatoes for the two types of latkes that we would have. Elle had also made a brisket and Gen brought a big bowl of chopped Israeli salad. Audra proudly handed me a plate of homemade menorah-shaped iced sugar cookies. Cuddy brought the wine; Avi and Ricky continued their tradition of bringing the _sufganiyot_, the special jelly donuts.

Wilson and Elle shooed everyone out of the kitchen while they worked their magic on the latkes. Audra was itching to play dreidel, but Gen wanted her to wait until after dinner so that the dreidel induced _gelt_ consumption would not spoil Audra's appetite. I wouldn't have minded some of that _gelt_ myself, but I resolved to save my appetite for the forthcoming delicious dinner. I had been practicing my dreidel spinning for a week and thought that I had gotten much better than last year. I didn't think I could beat the twins, but I was hoping to beat Wilson this year. Avi and Mom kept everyone entertained by playing the piano and singing. Mom would play and sing a Christmas Carol and then Avi would play and sing a Hanukkah song. Audra stood next to her uncle and sang along with him. Rachel crawled around the room, examining everything within her reach. By examining, I meant that everything went into her mouth. I had to keep a constant eye on her as she explored. Layla was clearly torn between watching her favorite human and hanging out in the kitchen with all the delicious smells.

Finally the latkes were ready and we were called to the table. They were piping hot and absolutely delicious. Mom tried them topped with both applesauce and sour cream and proclaimed both toppings to be equally tasty. Rachel was settled in her high chair and given some small bits of potato to eat. She examined each piece closely before popping it in her mouth. Elle also fed her some applesauce. BJ wasn't ready for solid food yet; he stuck with a liquid dinner. The rest of us gobbled the food like there was no tomorrow.

After dinner, it was time to light the candles. Since this was my third Hanukkah, I was used to the routine by now. Our new home had large living room windows, so Elle thought it would be nice to have the menorahs on the windowsills. She had put down aluminum foil on the sills to catch the candle drippings.

Before she could ask everyone to get their menorah ready, the twins had to perform yet another one of our traditions. Pulling yarmulkes out of their back pockets and placing them on their heads, they burst into Adam Sandler's _"Hanukkah Song"._

"_Put on your yarmulke, it's time for Hanukkah. So much fun-nic-ka, to celebrate Hanukkah. Hanukkah is the festival of lights. Instead of one day of presents, we get 8 crazy nights!"_

This year, Audra sang along with them. Mom was definitely amused by their antics.

Everyone started setting up their menorahs. Cuddy's very traditional silver eight-armed menorah stood next to Avi's avant-garde colorful metal menorah that depicted klezmer musicians holding up the candles. Gen had brought the clay menorah that Audra had made two years ago at her Jewish Day School. I was amused to see Cuddy hand Wilson a yarmulke and also place a tiny one on BJ's head. I guess all males, no matter how young, are supposed to wear one when the candles are lit.

We were just about ready to get started when Ricky shot Avi a look and then said: "Hmm, we don't usually give presents to the adults at Hanukkah, but we saw this and well, we just had to get it."

He pulled a wrapped package from behind the couch and handed it to me. "Happy Hanukkah, House."

I was shocked, to say the least. Why on earth would they get me a present? Elle, I could understand, but not me.

Avi said: "Go on, House. Open it."

I shrugged and ripped off the paper, and then I started to laugh. "Is this kosher?"

I held it up for everyone to see. They had given me a motorcycle menorah, molded from black wire, with a plank for the candleholders that stretched from the handlebars to the sissy bar. It was kinda cool.

Ricky said: "Yeah, it's kosher. It has the requirements to be a Hanukkah menorah. It can be made of any material as long as it has places for all the candles."

Elle said: "That's so cool. We have lots of candles, Greg, let's light this one too."

I was game, so I set the menorah next to our other one and placed the candles from right to left as I had learned from previous celebrations.

Elle asked Mom to dim the lights; the only illumination in the room was the twinkle lights on the tree. The kitchen light was on and it was sufficient for lighting the candles. After dimming the lights, Mom came over and stood next to me, watching all the activity with great interest.

Elle picked up Rachel, balanced her on her left hip and said: "Light your shammus whenever you're ready."

Matches were struck and the leader candle was lit on everyone's menorah. When everyone had that candle lit, Elle picked hers up and everyone else followed suit. In unison, they sang the blessing: _"Barukh atah Adonai, Eloheinu, melekh ha'olam. Asher kidishanu b'mitzvotav, v'tzivanu, l'hadlik neir shel Hanukkah."_

Elle lit the first candle on the left and everyone followed suit. I lit the first two on the motorcycle, then handed the shammus to Mom and had her light the other two. I glanced at Elle; she was whispering softly to Rachel. I knew this holiday brought back a lot of memories for her, of lighting the candles with her mother. Now _she_ was the mother, lighting the candles with her own daughter. I put my arm around her and she smiled up at me. I kissed the top of her head. Together we would ensure that Rachel had a lot of good memories associated with this holiday.

When everyone had finished, we all took a collective step back and looked at the candles. Five menorahs multiplied by five candles equaled 25 little flickers of flame.

Audra sighed and said: "It's magical, isn't it, Daddy?"

Adam picked her up and gave her a kiss. "It sure is, Princess."

Avi started singing _Maoz Tzur_ in Hebrew and everyone who knew it joined it. It was rather peaceful, standing there with my family; watching the candles flicker and listening to them sing the haunting melody.

Audra had a few small presents to open. She was still very much into art, so most of her gifts were art-related, markers, paints, Sculpey and a birdhouse kit. She had made presents for each of the babies, a watercolor painting of Layla for Rachel and a painting of a fire truck for BJ. The Moms oohed and ahhed appropriately over the paintings. After all the gifts had been opened, we gathered around the dining room table to spin the dreidel. Although my practicing had helped, I still couldn't beat the twins. I did better than Wilson, though, so I was happy about that. Mom gave it a try, but after spinning the dreidel so hard that it bounced off the table, she decided to leave the game to us. I gave her a piece of my _gelt_ for a consolation prize and she proclaimed it to be quite tasty.

By the time we finished dessert, the candles had burned themselves out. It was getting late; BJ was asleep and Audra was getting cranky tired, so our guests said goodnight. Mom was staying in the guest room tonight; she wanted to make us breakfast on Christmas morning. Tennessee sausage and slices of Cracker Barrel cheddar cheese stuffed inside a homemade biscuit were the Christmas morning breakfasts of my childhood and I looked forward to eating that simple meal again.

Mom wanted to read Rachel her bedtime story tonight. Even after I'd gotten too big for bedtime reading, Dad had allowed her to continue reading _"The Night Before Christmas"_ to me on Christmas Eve. She wanted to continue the tradition with her granddaughter. Rachel was getting sleepy; she wanted her bedtime feeding and started pulling at Elle's shirt, trying to find a nipple. Elle settled on the couch with Rachel at her breast while Mom and I book ended my girls. Mom read the story and flipped the book around with each page to show us the pictures. Comforted at her mother's breast, Rachel fell asleep before the end of the story, but Elle and I paid attention until Mom finished. We all put Rachel to bed, Layla curling up on her dog bed as usual. I actually bought the fleabag a nice big chew bone for a Christmas present. I guess I'd gone a bit soft over the last year. Having a house full of estrogen can do that to a man.

We both gave Mom a hug and kiss goodnight and wished her a Merry Christmas. She promised not to wake us too early in the morning for breakfast.

Elle and I brushed our teeth; she slipped on a nightgown and I put on some pajama bottoms. As we snuggled in bed, Elle whispered: "Your Mom is going to make us a ham tomorrow."

"Really? She didn't mention it. Wow, she's really doing Christmas, huh?"

"Yeah, I think she wants to give you a really nice Christmas, like what you had when you were a kid. Plus I think she needs the distraction from missing your Dad on the holidays. She got you a present too, but I don't know what it is."

I smirked: "Did you get me a Christmas present?"

She replied in a teasing tone: "May-be."

I nuzzled her neck: "Can I have it tonight or do I have to wait until tomorrow?"

She slipped her hand into my pajamas: "You can have one of your presents tonight. It shouldn't be opened before an audience."

I groaned with pleasure when her hand found Mt Gregory. I slid my hands up under her nightgown.

"Am I unwrapping it right now?"

She sighed happily. "Mmmmm, hmmmm."

"Well, jingle my bells, sweetheart and I'll jingle yours."

_January, 2009_

Elle returned to work the first week of January. She had arranged to see pain management patients on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10AM to 5PM. Amazingly enough, Kirby agreed to pay her salary out of the pharmacy's budget. Elle had been sure that he would try to push her salary onto oncology or Chris's department, but he didn't. It was only 14 hours a week, so I guess it wasn't such a huge chunk out of his budget. Elle wasn't even working enough to get benefits, but now that we were married, she was covered under my insurance anyway. Elle wanted to work part-time until Rachel was school age and then she would consider working longer hours. My salary was enough to support us, so whatever she wanted to do was fine with me, although I did think that working at least part-time would be good for her.

The first day was hard. Elle literally had to run out the door to make herself leave. Oma distracted Rachel, so the baby didn't seem to be upset by her Mama's departure. Mom reported to me later that Elle had called her three times during the day to see how things were going. I had responded: "Only three?"

Mom had laughed and happily reported that their first day had been a good one. Rachel had been very active, banging on the piano, playing with her blocks and crawling around the house. She was starting to pull open the lower kitchen cabinets now so I had had to install childproof devices on them. I left one cabinet device-free and we put some small plastic bowls and cups in there for her to 'discover' and play with.

Elle and I got home at the same time that first night and it was almost a tug-of-war to see who was going to get the baby first. I had become accustomed to having my 'baby time' when I first got home, but since it was Elle's first day back at work, she wanted the first cuddle. Mom refused to referee and continued stirring the pot of beef stew that she had made. I resolved the issue by having all three of us get into the recliner. I had Rachel on my chest, as usual; Elle managed to squeeze in on my left side, half on the seat and half on the arm, her head resting on my shoulder. My day had been rather uneventful, so it was a short tale for Rachel tonight. Then Elle told us about her first day back, while Rug-rat and I listened. She had seen eight patients today and was bubbling with excitement about being back in the saddle again. I knew she missed being home with Rachel, but getting back to work did seem to be agreeing with her. We lay in the chair together, playing with Rachel until Mom called us in to dinner.

Rachel was a week shy of turning nine months old, when Elle returned to work. She was now nursing only twice a day, first thing in the morning and at bedtime. Elle was still pumping, but about two weeks before her return to work, she had introduced Rachel to a sippy cup. Once Rachel figured out that _milk_ came out of that little spout, she grabbed the handles and raised it to her mouth all by herself. Now instead of the pumped milk going into bottles, it went into the sippy cup.

If I wasn't working late, it was my job to feed Rachel her dinner. After our nightly 'chat' session in the recliner, I'd put her in the high chair and feed her a jar of baby food. Once she had finished that, I'd give her some milk to drink from her sippy cup of milk. She was becoming a fairly independent eater, grabbing at the spoon as I fed her. It wouldn't be long before she was completely feeding herself. While we ate our dinner, we also gave her small portions of our food to try. She would pick up each piece and examine it closely before putting it in her mouth. Layla stayed constantly by her side at mealtime, to consume any rejected bits that landed on the floor.

We adjusted to our new schedule with surprising ease. Mom was thrilled with her new 'job', and that helped the transition immensely. On Tuesdays, Mom would cook for us so that dinner was ready when we got home. On Thursdays, we'd get take-out and Mom would stay and eat with us. Rachel seemed to be eating more and more 'regular' food every week, so that by the time she was 11 months old, Elle was only nursing her at bedtime.

One night, about a week before Rachel's first birthday, I'd had a critical patient and didn't get home until almost 11PM. The house was quiet when I walked in. I poked my head in the refrigerator, but didn't see a plate that I could easily warm up for my dinner. So I wandered off to the bedroom to find my lovely wife.

I found her in the bathroom, checking out her naked body in the mirror. I guess she didn't hear me come in; I doubted that she would have been examining her body like that if she knew I was watching.

Her hand went to her belly and she jiggled it. Despite all the yoga, she had a little belly pooch that she just couldn't seem to get rid of and had expressed frustration with her inability to lose all of the pregnancy weight. Remembering how terribly thin she had been when I met her, I personally thought that the extra five pounds looked good on her. Her curves were womanly and very sexy.

My original thought of asking her to make me something to eat completely fell off my radar as I watched her heft her breasts. Those lovely orbs were bigger now, but they weren't as perky. They sagged a bit, not unexpected after almost a year of breastfeeding. She sighed and looked glum. To me, she was the most beautiful woman in the world; her expression told me that she thought otherwise.

Hoping that she hadn't spotted me, I quietly backed up and then made a very dramatic entrance. "Oh! Naked wife. Gorgeous, naked wife. I came to ask you if you'd make me something to eat, but I see a virtual feast right in front of my eyes."

I wrapped my arms around her and starting nibbling on her neck. "Ummmm, tasty."

She giggled: "Welcome home, cowboy. You've had a long day. There's some chicken left; let me heat that up for you."

I continued nibbling: "I've got a nice snack right here. One beautiful, sexy woman and she's all mine."

Her arms wrapped around my waist. She sighed: "You still think I'm sexy? My boobs sag and I'm not in as good a shape as I was when you first met me."

I continued my ministrations: "Quiet, woman. I'm concentrating here. And you're damn sexy. Does my dick lie?"

I pressed against her; Mt Gregory was almost at full salute and she could feel that even through my jeans.

She slipped her hands up under my shirt and stroked my bare back. "No, your dick never lies. But I thought you wanted something to eat."

"I do, but it's not in the kitchen."

She tilted her head and delicately raised one eyebrow. She had that certain kittenish smile that told me she wanted some playtime. "Where is this little snack, then?"

"I'm going to close my eyes, count to five and hope that it magically appears in the middle of our king-size bed."

By the time I made it to five, Elle was lying in the middle of our bed, propped up on one elbow and looking quite appetizing.

I grinned as I pulled my shirt off over my head and made my way to the bed. "That's what a man wants when he gets home from a hard day's work. Something to eat and someone naked; getting both things at the same time: priceless."

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We had a party for Rachel's first birthday. It seemed silly to me to have a party when Rachel was really too small to enjoy it, but Mom was so excited about her birthday and Elle claimed that it would count as our dinner party for the month so I went along with it. I thought she was just inviting our usual gang, but she also extended invitations to Billy and Theresa, Bill, and Tony and his family. Elle also wanted to include Chase since she felt he had been so helpful during her pregnancy. And, of course, she couldn't invite Chase without Cameron since they were now living together. And she couldn't invite two of my team without the third, so all of the ducklings ended up being invited to the party. I bemoaned the number of people attending, but Mom told me to suck it up. "Get used to it, Greg. Your daughter will have a birthday party every year, and when she gets older, she'll be inviting her classmates too. It's not so bad to have a few people over once in a while."

I mumbled: "It's more than _just_ a few people; it's half of Princeton."

Elle wrapped her arms around my neck and tip-toed up to whisper encouraging words in my ear: "There'll be _cake_ and _ice cream_ and you can help Rachel unwrap and play with the _toys_. And if the crowd gets to be too much, you can go hide in your man-cave with Wilson."

I had to laugh; my wife knew just what to say to me, promises of all the upcoming goodies and permission to hide if the crowd got to be too much.

Rachel's birthday fell on a Saturday, so Elle decided to make it an afternoon affair. Everyone was invited for 4:00; we'd have finger foods and other assorted nibbles. Since Rug-rat's birthday fell in the middle of Passover, Elle made two desserts, a crust-less cheesecake for the observant and a regular birthday cake for the rest of us. I planned on eating both, of course.

I found the party wasn't too intolerable. After an initial greeting, the attention was focused on the birthday girl. It was easy for me to stay in the background. Gen and Nancy generated a lot of attention too, as they were 7 and 8 months pregnant, respectively. At one point, I saw Elle give Gen an affectionate belly rub and then turn away with a peculiar look on her face. I wondered what that was about, but before I could approach her, the doorbell rang again and she ran off to answer it.

Everyone seemed to be having a great time. It was a balmy day for April, so we had the party out on the deck. Audra ran around the yard with Tony's kids. Rachel must have inherited the _social butterfly_ gene from her mother; she handled being passed from person to person like a trooper. BJ, on the other hand, preferred to stay with the people he knew best and made his feelings known if anyone else tried to pick him up. He and I hung out on the chaise lounge for a while and discussed the inscrutable ways of women, while his parents did the socializing thing.

Finally it was time for cake and ice cream. Elle held Rachel and I stood beside them while everyone sang _'Happy Birthday'_ and Mom took about a million pictures. Then I sat down with Rachel in my lap and fed her some cheesecake. She liked it, but wanted to feed herself. So I placed her in her highchair with a small piece on a plate and let her play with it. Some of it ended up in her hair and on the floor but she managed to eat part of it. Layla, naturally, cleaned up the floor. While she played with her food, I had a slice of cake and some ice cream. I gave Rachel a tiny taste of the ice cream; she loved it and squealed for more.

Next it was time to open the presents. The pile was bigger than the birthday girl. Elle protested that it was way too much, but no one listened. We 'helped' Rachel open the gifts while Mom, again, snapped photos. Amongst her gifts were some board books; simple wooden puzzles, a stuffed dog with floppy ears, a set of stacking rings, a toy barn with little farm animals and a pink toy doctor kit. I checked the card; naturally that gift was from Wilson and Cuddy.

I frowned: "Don't you think she's a little too young to be playing doctor? Besides it's _pink!"_

Cuddy snarled: "She's a girl; get used to it."

"Just cuz she's a girl doesn't mean everything has to be pink. I don't want my child to be suffocated by gender stereotypes."

Wilson and Cuddy just rolled their eyes at that remark.

Elle squealed when she saw the gift from Gen and Adam; it was a lovely hardcover edition of _Le Petit Prince_, Elle's favorite book. In my opinion, the best gift of all came from Avi and Ricky. It was a Little Tykes Push and Ride car. Rachel could sit on it and scoot around or she could walk behind it and push the car. She wasn't quite walking by herself yet, but I was betting that she would quickly get the hang of this. I set her on the car and put her new stuffed dog on the passenger seat. She squealed and bounced on the seat, but couldn't quite figure out how to get moving. So Audra got behind her and pushed her around the deck, while Rachel laughed.

The party broke up not long after that. Avi and Ricky stayed to help clean up. I was more of a hindrance than a help, so I stayed out on the deck with Rachel and watched as she tried to figure out how to make the car move. I could almost see the little wheels turning in her head. By the time that the cleanup was finished, she had figured out how to place her feet in front and pull herself forward. She wasn't going very fast, but she was moving all by herself. We cheered her and she smiled, showing off all eight of her teeth.

Rachel was tired after her long day and she zonked out around 7:30. We undressed her, changed her diaper and put PJ's on her without waking her up. As we tucked her into her crib, Elle sighed: "Our daughter is one year old. She isn't a baby anymore."

I kissed her temple. "She's still our baby, but she is going to grow up. Can't stop that."

"I know, I guess it would just be nice for it to not happen so darn fast. This year went by so quickly. Before you know it, she'll be outgrowing her crib and we'll need to convert it to a bed."

"I think we still have a few months before that happens. Come on; let's go to bed. I gotta a little present for you."

She gave me her kittenish smile: "I'm betting it's not so little."

"And you'd win that bet, sweetheart."


	82. Chapter 82

Chapter 82

_(June 2009)_

_**HOUSE**_

I was in a rather melancholy mood as I flipped through my record albums, finally deciding on Ray Charles. My birthday was only a week away. I was about to hit the big Five-O, or as I preferred to call it, the big Fuck-O. How the hell did I get to be so damn old? Wilson had been teasing me and calling me 'old man' for weeks now, payback for all the teasing that I had given him back in February when he turned 40. I pretended that it didn't bother me, but the approaching milestone filled me with trepidation. This 'old man' had a fourteen-month-old daughter; I hated to think how old I was going to be when she graduated from high school. Of course, I had known this going into the game, but as I slid down the slope towards 50, it hit just a bit harder.

I poured myself three fingers of Maker's Mark and settled back in my recliner to listen to ol' Ray sing. Elle was down the hall, putting Rachel to bed. I closed my eyes and smiled as I thought of my girls. I may be aging chronologically, but they were keeping me young in other ways. My hot young wife kept my blood pumping and took good care of me. I had never felt so loved and cherished in my whole life as I felt with Elle. And together we had produced this very precious child. Our daughter was a little pistol. She looked like her mother and yet she seemed to have my personality. She had already mastered the House eye-roll. Her brain was like a little sponge, absorbing everything that came her way, and it was fascinating watching her learn new things. We'd have to keep a close eye on her when she started school; I didn't want her to be bored and start acting out the way that I had.

I took another sip of bourbon as I pictured our daily rituals. Every night when I came home from work, she'd squeal and come running to me and every night I thought my heart would burst from happiness. I'd pick her up and we'd spent a little time together right here in my recliner. I would tell her about my day and she would listen solemnly, occasionally bursting out with _'Dase!_' or _'Dam'ron!'_ when I mentioned a duckling's name. Then I would show her something new. This week we were learning the parts of the face. So far, she had learned 'nose', 'ear' and 'mouth'. I had asked her to kiss my nose tonight and she responded appropriately, which thrilled me to no end. Then she said: "Daa-dee, kiss Ra-Ra nose." And she collapsed in a fit of giggles when I did just that. When Elle walked into the room, Rachel requested the same thing from her Mama. There was a lot of nose kissing and giggles tonight. Rachel had needed three stories to settle down enough for bedtime.

My reminiscing was interrupted when Elle walked into the room. My 38-year-old hot mama was wearing a pale pink tank top over faded low rider jeans. She walked over to the recliner and perched her lovely ass on the arm of the chair. I silently offered her my glass and she accepted it. Her eyes locked with mine as she took a deep sip and then she whispered: "Rachel's asleep."

My ears perked up, along with another part of my anatomy. When said with a certain urgency, those words had become foreplay for us. Since becoming parents, the quantity of our sex life had declined somewhat, but the quality had only grown better.

"Is she now?"

Elle set the glass down on the coffee table and gave me a playful look over her shoulder: "Mmm, hmmm."

Ray was crooning _'Georgia on My Mind'_ as I stood up and pulled her into my arms. We swayed together to the slow song, our lips gently brushing together and pulling away, a game we played to build the heat between us. I could feel her breasts pressing against my chest, nipples already standing at attention. Her hands slipped under my shirt and she caressed my bare back. As the song ended, I grabbed her ass and pressed her against my growing desire. Lips hovering mere millimeters apart, I whispered: "Wanna get naked?"

Her reply was breathless: "Thought you'd never ask."

Ray was singing _'The Night Time is the Right Time'_ as we slipped our arms around each other and made our way to the bedroom. We quickly peeled each other's clothes off and then Elle playfully pushed me down on the bed. I grinned as she climbed on top of me, straddling my hips and placing my hands above my head.

She pressed my wrists into the pillow. "You're not allowed to move until I say so."

I smirked: "Yes, Mistress."

She warned: "Be a good boy now and you'll get a lovely reward."

Changing to a more sultry tone, I answered: "Yes, Mistress."

Elle slowly kissed and licked her way down my body, my erection growing ever harder as she nibbled my earlobe, nipped the sweet spot on my neck and flicked my nipples with her tongue. When her tongue dipped into my belly button, I groaned out her name.

Hands possessively squeezing my hips, she whispered: "Patience, my love. I'll get to him."

As she kissed her way across my abdomen to my hips, her hands pushed my thighs apart and she settled herself between my spread legs. Her kisses and delicate nibbles on my inner thighs were making me crazy; my cock twitched in anticipation of her touch.

When she licked my balls, I moaned loudly: "Oh, gawd, Elle, please."

"Please, what?"

"Please lick my cock."

"Like this?"

She gave me one long swipe from base to head.

I moaned: "More."

She ran her tongue around the head, toyed with the hole and then licked her way down the shaft again. She treated Mt Gregory as if he was a Sugar Daddy sucker and she had all day to lick on him. I had to fist the pillow to keep my hands in place. Her ministrations were lovely, yet agonizingly slow and I wanted her to pick up the pace. Suddenly she deep-throated me, hard and fast, and I cried out with pleasure. Elle sucked me until I was close to the edge and then she stopped and just held me balls-deep in her mouth. Her tongue wagged back and forth on the underside of my cock as she slowly withdrew me from her mouth.

Grinning mischievously as she reached for a condom, she said: "You were a very good boy. You're going to get your reward now."

She tore the condom open and positioned in on the head. Using her lips, she rolled it down my shaft, until my covered cock was once again balls-deep in her mouth.

I bucked up and moaned: "Oh baby, get up here and ride your cowboy."

She gave me that sultry smile again as she moved up my body. Her hand took my cock and rubbed it against her wet slit. She'd pop the head in just a bit and then slide me back out again. The teasing was agonizing, yet delicious. Just when I thought I couldn't take any more, she slowly slid down the full length of my cock.

I groaned at finally being completely inside of her. Elle smiled at my response and continued to slowly ride my cock. I thrust up against her, desperately trying to increase the speed. I needed more and I needed it now. She had topped me long enough; it was my turn now.

My hands flew to her hips and I held her firmly against my body, my cock deeply buried inside of her. In one deft move, I rolled us over.

She gasped at the change of position. I smirked: "Naughty girl. Teasing me for so long. It's my turn now."

I grabbed both of her hands and placed them above her head, securing both to the pillow with my left hand. My mouth found the sweet spot on her neck and I nipped her hard. She cried out and I did it again, suckling the spot to ensure that I left a mark. I thrust hard and deep into her; she arched her hips to take me even more fully.

I kissed her mouth hard; her lips parted to admit my tongue and we had a fiery dance. We broke apart with a gasp; our breathing grew more labored as our passion increased.

I changed the angle of my thrust so that I was rubbing right up against her swollen clit. "Are you mine?"

She screamed: "Yes, yes, I'm yours. Oh god, yes!"

A fresh flood of moisture hit my cock and her walls tightened around me as her orgasm hit. I fell over the edge right behind her. A few more thrusts to ride out our orgasms and I collapsed on top of her. I released her hands and she wrapped her arms around my sweaty body. I didn't want to move. I was breathless, exhausted and yet completely exhilarated lying in my wife's arms. However, I didn't want to squash her so I attempted to roll off but she held me firmly. I smiled and kissed her neck; I knew she relished the feel of my body covering hers as much as I loved doing it.

We held each other for a few minutes, panting a bit as we tried to catch our breaths. Elle planted several kisses on my shoulder and gave me a big squeeze; I recognized that as my signal that she was ready for me to roll off of her. I grasped the end of the condom and did just that.

Something didn't feel quite right; I glanced down and saw the problem right away.

"Crap!"

Elle frowned: "What's the matter, Greg?"

I pointed my finger at the problem.

She lifted her head and took a look. Then she looked at me, eyes wide: "Oh, crap."

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

The condom had completely split apart at the end. I may as well have been taking a bareback ride for all the good it had done us. I rolled off the useless item and tossed it towards the small trashcan. Groaning, I lay back with my arm draped across my eyes. Elle sighed and nestled her head on my shoulder, her arm draped across my chest.

I was pretty sure I knew, but I asked anyway: "So where are you in your cycle?"

She snorted: "Like you don't know. Right smack in the middle of where we don't want to be."

We cuddled silently for a while, each lost in our own thoughts. Elle's fingers played with my chest hair and I lightly stroked her back.

Finally Elle broke the silence: "Do you want to write me a script for Plan B? I know you don't want me to take hormones, but I think it would be OK, just this once, and then I guess we need to think about some better birth control."

I rolled over to face her. My hands caressed her face and ran down her body, touching her breasts and stopping at her belly. I stroked that lovely little pooch that embarrassed her so, because even with her regular yoga practice, she couldn't quite get rid of it. I, on the other hand, loved her womanly curves. I remember how I enjoyed watching her body change when she was pregnant with Rachel.

Rachel. Our funny smart daughter. I couldn't help smiling as I thought of her. And I shook my head as a thought took hold in my mind. I must be crazy, considering the conversation that I had been having with myself in the living room not too long ago. But the more I thought about it, the more it made me smile. Finally, I guess Elle couldn't take the suspense any more.

"You're smiling. What are you thinking about?"

The words came out slowly. "Maybe we're not right where we don't want to be."

She shook her head: "_What?_ That was too many double negatives. What are you trying to say?"

I cupped her face with both hands and asked: "What do you think about having another baby?"

MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD

Her mouth fell open. "Are you kidding?"

I shook my head. "I'm serious."

Elle laughed: "Greg, I'd love to have another baby, but."

She bit her lip.

"But what?"

"What about the APS? It would be the same thing all over again. Worrying about miscarrying, the injections and all that. And I'm older now, I'd be 39 when I gave birth."

"I'm almost 50."

"Does that bother you?"

I rolled on my back and stared at the ceiling. "Yeah, in a way. I wonder if people will think I'm Rachel's grandfather instead of her father. I think about how old I'll be at the major milestones in her life. I'll be 55 when she starts school and 67 when she graduates from high school. And I have to wonder, will I be around to see her graduate from college or to walk her down the aisle?"

Elle grabbed my chin and made me look at her. "Don't say things like that. You'll be here."

"I might be rolling down the aisle in my wheelchair. Chasing one kid around is hard; chasing two will require a lot more stamina. Maybe you should start feeding me vitamins."

Her face fell. "So this is probably not a good idea."

I stroked her face: "I know all the negatives. Tell me why you want to have another baby."

She sighed and cuddled in closer to me. "I'd like a bigger family. You and I are both only children. We know what that's like. I'd love for Rachel to have a sibling. And I have to admit that I'm a little jealous of Gen having another baby. Aside from the scares and the weeks on bed rest, I liked being pregnant. I liked breastfeeding our child, even though it made my boobs sag and milk used to leak out at the most inconvenient times. If we have another baby, they'll sag even more and you won't think I'm such a hot chick anymore."

She was deflecting and I knew it. Kissing the top of her head, I said: "You will always be my hot chick. And I will always be your stud muffin, even when I'm in my wheelchair and gumming my oatmeal."

I felt a gentle kiss on my chest. "Yes, you will always be my stud muffin."

Then she sighed: "I have to admit that going through another pregnancy with APS scares me."

"Not getting knocked down by a very large, very distressed man while you are in your 8th month would help a lot."

She nodded: "That's true, but a lot could still go wrong. We're so lucky to have a happy healthy baby. Maybe we shouldn't press our luck."

"Wanna know what I think?"

"You know I do."

"There's a lot to be scared of. My age, your health, wondering if the baby will be OK. Despite all of that, I still want to do it again. I loved watching your body swell with our child growing inside of you. And although the 2AM feedings weren't a lot of fun, and I think we are soon to be in the terrible two's, Rachel is just so fascinating. I love watching her little sponge brain soak up new things. I look forward to teaching her so many things, like playing the piano and getting up to level 5 on Grand Theft Auto. I want to take her to concerts and football games and monster truck rallies. Never in my wildest dreams, did I imagine that I would enjoy having a child so much. And to my complete surprise, I want to do it again. However, I do think we should stop at two. I don't want to be outnumbered by the kids. Then they'd be able to gang up and vote us off the island."

Elle smiled: "So we'll just let nature take its course and see if I end up pregnant."

I shook my head and said deliberately: "No. Granted the condom breaking started this conversation, but our first child was not an accident and our second one won't be either. You need to tell me. Do you want another baby or not?"

Her face softened and she said wistfully: "Yes, I do want another baby."

I smiled: "Well, then."

I rolled her onto her back and slipped between her legs. "Let's make one. We should do it again, just in case the first time didn't take."

_**ELLE**_

Greg was positive that he'd knocked me up the night the condom broke. I begged off, preferring to wait for a missed period and a positive test result. On the day that my period was due, I woke up to find him thoughtfully squeezing both of my breasts.

"As pleasant as this is, what are you doing?"

He smiled: "They're bigger. I'm telling you, you're preggers."

"My period is due today. _Today_ just started."

He smirked: "Aunt Flo is not coming today. Her arrival has been delayed for, oh, nine months or so."

I rolled my eyes. "We'll see."

I didn't want to get my hopes up that I had gotten pregnant that fast, but as I soaped up in the shower that morning, I did notice that my breasts seemed a bit bigger and more tender than usual. I shrugged it off; it was probably just PMS.

When Greg walked in from work that evening, he cocked an eyebrow at me and asked: "So? Did Aunt Flo arrive?"

I sighed: "She seems to be a tad bit delayed."

He wrapped his arms around me and gave me a very sweet kiss. Then he placed his hand on my belly and said softly: "You're pregnant. I know you are."

"I'll give Aunt Flo two more days to arrive. If she's not here by then, I'll pee on the stick."

He smirked, but said nothing more about it for the rest of the night.

When he arrived home on Friday evening, he tossed a bag from CVS on the counter before pulling me into his arms for a kiss. As our tongues danced together, his hands roamed my body, testing the size of my breasts and finally rubbing my belly. Rachel tugged at his pants leg and whined for Daddy's attention. We broke our lip-lock and he picked her up.

He tapped his cheek with one finger. "Got a kiss for Daddy?"

Rachel bussed his cheek and giggled. "Ra-Ra kiss Daa-Dee."

He kissed her forehead. "Rachel's a good girl. Tomorrow, Mama is going to pee on a stick and tell us that she's pregnant."

"Ra-Ra goo girl. Mama pee 'tick she nant."

The child was parroting everything we said. We were at the stage where we needed to watch our language around her or one day Blythe would faint when her precious grandchild said the 'F' word.

I muttered: "Great. Even our child thinks I'm pregnant before the test results are in. She is _so_ your child."

Greg smirked: "You know we're right."

Later on that night, when I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth, I saw the CVS bag sitting on the back of the toilet. I shot Greg a look.

"Hey, I didn't want you to forget to use it when you peed first thing in the morning."

I rolled my eyes. "I won't forget. And even if I did, you will surely remind me."

I woke up first. It was only 6:30 on Saturday morning and I knew he liked to sleep until at least 8:00, but I wasn't going to allow that today. I nudged him awake: "Hey, I gotta pee."

He mumbled: "So go pee. You don't need me."

"Oh, I thought you would want to watch me and make sure that I peed on the stick. Guess you are not that interested in knowing the results."

I started to get out of bed, but a long arm shot out and trapped me before I could escape. "Very funny. Fine, I'll get up with you and watch you pee. Then you will see that I'm right yet _again_, and you'll owe me one."

"One what?"

"I don't know, but I'll think of something. It's too early to make that kind of decision."

We wandered into the bathroom together and he peed while I took the test out of the box and read the instructions. I finished reading and he was still peeing.

I started dancing around: "You're a horse! Hurry up, I gotta pee."

He chuckled, finished and gave his willy a little shake. Then he put the seat down for me and said: "Your turn."

Just then we heard Rachel through the monitor. "Mama! Mama!"

I had to laugh; her timing was just as good as her father's. "Please go get her while I pee."

He nodded: "Be sure and aim well."

I sat down and peed on the stick. I laid the stick down on a tissue next to Greg's watch so that I could watch the three minutes tick by. Over the monitor, I could hear Greg talking to Rachel.

She had squealed excitedly when he walked into the room. "Daa-dee!"

"What's up, Rug-rat? Oh, you're wet. No wonder you wanted Mama. Come on, let's get you into a clean diaper."

Rachel babbled and Greg held up his end of the conversation as he changed her. "OK, you're all freshened up now. Let's go see Mama and see what the stick says."

I glanced down at the watch; it was exactly three minutes. I took a deep breath and looked at the stick. The results made me smile. He was right, blast him, he was always right. I rubbed my belly, thinking of the tiny life growing inside of me.

"Mama pee 'tick. Mama!"

I walked out into the bedroom to tell my family the news. Greg held out his free arm and I walked into his embrace.

"Two pink lines! Rachel is going to have a sibling."

A huge smile appeared on Greg's face. He bent down and gave me a loud smooch. "Told ya so, sweetheart."

Then he gave Rachel a kiss: "Here that, Rug-Rat? You're getting a baby sister."

I had to laugh: "You think it's another girl? It could be a boy."

He shook his head. "Nope, it's a girl. I am destined to be surrounded by estrogen. Even the dog is a girl. In this household, there will only be one penis."

"Penis!" squealed Rachel. "Penis, penis, penis."

Greg threw his head back and laughed. "Oh look, Mama, Rug-rat just learned a new word."

THE END

Oct 19, 2009

Copyrighted: glenlivet19

**A/N:** Thank you so much for enjoying this story. Your devotion to this very long tale has really touched me and I can never ever express my gratitude sufficiently for all your love. Your

comments meant a great deal to me,,,, they really encouraged my muse. I also appreciated the support that I received when my dog died. I decided to end Elle, here on a happy note, and obviously I have

left it open for a sequel which I have jotted notes about already. But I need to work on another fic now,,, it's really talking to me and I need to listen to my muse. Sadly I'm not able to work on

more than one at a time,,so this seemed like a good place to end Elle. The fic I'm working on now,, is also a House fic,, and when I have more written, I'll start posting it. I appreciate

you sticking with me thru this very long fic.

Thank you,,, a million times,, thank you,,,,, glennie


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